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Online privacy is still a very unsexy topic. The majority of internet users are not concerned with protecting their online privacy and security. However, a growing minority gradually starts grasping the implications of allowing large firms such as Google and Facebook to track their every move.

Online Tracking

Besides well-known multinational firms, there are hundreds of companies out there collecting every single bit of data they can get their hands on. They know which websites you currently visit and how you got there. They even know which websites you visited last week, last month, and even before that. These firms have a great deal of data from you, without you even knowing. There have been initiatives such as DoNotTrack that are aimed at eliminating tracking from websites you do not visit. However, the ad industry is very unwilling to commit to such alternatives, so it is the responsibility of the user to ensure protection.

The following three extensions will protect you against tracking and increase your online security. The installation of these Chrome extensions will take approximately 2 minutes.

1.      Adblock Plus

Adblock Plus is a critical extension to protect your online privacy.  Besides removing all online advertising, it can also be configured to disable tracking. Installing Adblock Plus is recommended by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a renowned non-profit fighting for your digital rights. According to a Stanford University study, Adblock Plus is the best solution to protect your online privacy.

To install Adblock Plus, go to www.adblockplus.org and click on the green install button. After confirming the installation, you will already be protected against all online advertising.

Ad Block Plus

Then, you need to add one so-called filterlist to Adblock Plus to ensure that all tracking will be disabled. Please go to the list of subscriptions and choose to subscribe to “EasyPrivacy”, and click “Add”. Now, you will be protected from all unwanted tracking and ads.

2.     HTTPS Everywhere

HTTPS Everywhere is an initiative from the EFF aimed at increasing the online security. It automatically redirects the user over the safer ‘https’ connection instead of the ‘http’ connection. Therefore, your data is automatically encrypted when visiting a website, which will protect you against many forms of hijacking and surveillance. In order to install this, please go to the Chrome Webstore, and click on “Add to Chrome”. After the confirmation, you will be protected.

3.     Privacy Palette

To regain full control over your browsing, Privacy Palette offers all privacy and security features in one neat dashboard. By installing Privacy Palette, you do not have to dive into the settings in Chrome to remove cookies or to delete your browser history. Everything is neatly arranged and very easy to use. It even presents the direct links to social channels such as Facebook and Google to opt-out of advertising, or to increase your social privacy and security. You can install Privacy Palette by clicking on “Add to Chrome”.

Privacy Palette

After the installation of the three aforementioned extensions, you have significantly increased your online privacy and security.

 

Author Bio: Rutger van Dijk is an open-source enthusiast. Loves to write about Google Chrome, Chrome Webstore, Chromium and Adblock Plus. Owns and writes for http://chrome-plugins.org.

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