Today, almost all web browsers have a private browsing mode - a special privacy functionality that allows you to browse websites without the browser remembering your surfing history.

Private browsing in Firefox, in addition to its main purpose, blocks services that request access to your data: requests to search engines, page views, file downloads, etc.

How to enable private mode in Firefox

To enable “Private Browsing” in Firefox, click the sandwich icon, which hides the main menu, in the upper right corner, and then select “Private Window" or use the keyboard shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + P.


A new browser window will open where your privacy will be protected.

Keep Firefox running in private mode all the time

By default, Firefox remembers your surfing history, which you can later always look at in the “Journal”. However, by changing Firefox settings, you can enable the “Private Browsing” feature at all times so that the browser stops remembering all the sites you visit.


Click on the main menu and select the “Settings” icon, in the new window follow the link “Privacy" and change the history setting to " won't remember history" Activating this option is equivalent to the private browsing feature, only it is already enabled on a permanent basis.

Automatically start private browsing for certain sites

Firefox itself doesn't provide the ability to automatically launch private browsing for certain sites, so we'll use an add-on Auto Private. The extension does not have a visual interface that you can interact with directly, so setting up the add-on will be quite difficult.


After the module is installed, open new tab and enter “ about:config» without quotes, then pressing Enter. You will be redirected to the service page hidden settings. Here in the “Search” line enter “ extensions.autoprivate.domains", click on the found line right click mouse and select “Edit" in the menu:


In the new dialog box, write the domains you want to open in private mode, separated by semicolons.


The add-on supports filters and prohibiting private browsing for certain sites. For more information, visit the Auto Private download page.

How to disable private browsing in Firefox?

What if you want to check your child's surfing history, for example, but you can't trace all the pages because they were opened in private mode?


To disable the private browsing feature, you can use the Disable Private Browsing Plus add-on.

Install this extension and restart your browser. Disable Private Browsing disables access to “Private Browsing” using hotkeys Ctrl + Shift + P, as well as through the “Private window” menu.

Private browsing, InPrivate, incognito mode - this function under different names is available in all modern browsers. Private mode provides a certain confidentiality, but still does not guarantee complete anonymity on the Internet.

In private mode, the behavior of the browser changes, be it Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Apple Safari, Opera or any other option. However, nothing else changes.

How the browser usually works

In normal mode, the browser stores information about your web surfing history. When you visit a site, the browser records its address in a log, saves cookies and form data for later auto-filling. The browser also stores a history of downloads and search queries entered in the address bar, remembers user-selected passwords, and saves fragments of web pages so that they can be opened faster in the future (this is called caching).

If someone else is on your computer, they can easily access this information - for example, they will start typing something in the address bar, and the browser will suggest one of the sites you have previously visited. And in general, nothing prevents a stranger from opening your browser history and seeing what web pages you go to.

Saving some types of data can be disabled manually, but this is how all browsers work by default.

How the browser works in private mode

When you enable private mode (aka incognito mode in Google Chrome and InPrivate browsing in Internet Explorer), the browser does not save any of the above. When visiting sites in private mode, addresses, cookies, form data, etc. are not remembered. Some data - cookies, for example - are saved for the duration of browsing, but are destroyed when the browser is closed.

When private mode first came out, some sites tried to outwit it by storing cookies using a plugin Adobe Flash, but now it also supports private mode and does not remember any data.

Private mode starts a separate browsing session: for example, if you're signed in to Facebook normally and then open a private window in the same browser, you'll have to sign in to Facebook again in that window. This allows you to use private mode to log into several accounts on one site at the same time - for example, in normal mode you can log into your main Google account, and in a private window - to a second Google account.

With private mode, others won't be able to access your web browsing history because it simply isn't saved. In addition, in private mode, sites cannot track you using cookies. However, the private mode does not guarantee complete anonymity.

Threats on the computer itself

Private mode prevents the browser from storing information about web surfing, but does not in any way prevent other applications on the computer from spying on the user. If a keylogger or something else has leaked into the system spy app, it may well observe what is being done in the browser. And on some computers a special software to monitor browser activity - private mode does not protect, for example, from programs parental controls, which take screenshots or record the history of visited sites.

In other words, private mode prevents strangers from knowing what sites you've been on after you've been there, but it doesn't stop them from spying on you while you surf the web if they have access to your computer. If your computer is securely protected, there is no need to worry about this.

Network activity monitoring

Private mode in browsers only works on your own computer. The browser may not remember the history of web surfing, but is not able to destroy this history on other computers, servers and routers. Let's say that when you visit a website, traffic from your computer passes through several other servers before reaching that site's server. And in a corporate or university network, traffic also passes through a router, which may well store the browsing history if required by the employer or educational institution. And even if you are in home network, requests to sites go through an Internet provider, which can also record traffic. And after that, the request goes to the server of the site itself, which can record information about visitors.

Private mode does not protect against all of the above. It simply allows you not to store your web surfing history on local computer where others can see her. However, other systems continue to record your movements across the network space.

Private Browsing does not save your browsing information such as passwords, cookies and history, leaving no trace after the session ends. Firefox also has Content blockingAdvanced tracking protection that prevents hidden trackers from collecting your data across multiple sites and slowing down your browsing experience.

How can I open a new private window?

There are two ways to open a new private window:

Open a new Private Window from the Firefox menu

The Private Browsing home page will open in a new window.

Advice: A purple mask will appear at the top of your Private Browsing windows.

What is not saved in Private Browsing Mode?

• Pages visited: Pages will not be added to the list of visited websites in the History menu, the History window of the Library window, or the address bar drop-down list.
• Forms and search data: Nothing you enter into various forms on web pages or in the Search Bar will be saved for form autofill.

• Download list: After exiting Private Browsing Mode, files downloaded during Private Browsing Mode will not be displayed in the Download Window.
• Cookies: Cookies store information about websites you visit, such as site preferences, registration status, and data used by plugins such as Adobe Flash. Cookies may also be used by third parties to track your movements between websites. Read the article How do I turn on Do Not Track? for more tracking information. Cookies in private windows are kept temporarily in memory, separate from those of regular windows, and are reset when your private session ends (after the last private window is closed).
• Cached Web Content And Offline web content and user data: Temporary Internet files, cached files, or files saved by websites for battery life, will not be saved on the computer.

Can I configure Firefox to always use Private Browsing?

By default, Firefox is set to remember your history, but you can change this setting in Firefox's Privacy Settings:

Attention: When Firefox is installed on won't remember history, you won't see the purple mask at the top of every window, even if you're actually in private browsing mode. To restore normal browsing, go to Settings Privacy and Security and install Firefox to will remember the story.

To hide your activity from your employer or provider, you will need more serious solutions, for example: anonymizers, special software, proxy plugins, etc. Incognito mode in Firefox can offer:

• Don't save history.
• Turn off cookies.
• Hide activity in search engines.
• Delete temporary files.

In this case, all downloads and bookmarks will be saved. display user activity on a particular site. Browsing history saves all sites that have been opened in the browser over the past six months and often becomes an incriminating factor in any “crime”. In general, incognito is a very useful feature for those who have small secrets, but it is far from omnipotent. This certainly will not help international terrorists and intelligence agents.

How to enable incognito mode in Firefox

The first step is to open the menu, which is hidden under the icon in the form of three horizontal sticks in the upper right corner. Here we press the button with the image of a Venetian mask - “ Open private window».

The second method is somewhat simpler. All you have to do is right-click on any link. IN context menu select “Open link in a new private window.”

How to check functionality: try in incognito mode to open a site that requires user authorization, for example: email, profile in social network, forum account or other. The page will launch on the start window, where you need to enter your login and password, which says that working with cookies is disabled, privacy mode is working.

Why might my employer or provider track me?

It's simple - to hide online from such surveillance, you need to mask your IP. Chameleon, Tor and VPN are some of the many services that allow you to completely hide your activity, and if you try hard, you can bypass the traffic! What’s remarkable is that most anonymizers are absolutely free. In some cases, you will need to install the software on your PC, for others it is enough to open a similar online service in Mozilla, enter the desired address and use it without fear of surveillance.

When viewing web pages, browsers (Yandex, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox) save a lot of information. For example, browsing history, passwords for social network accounts and Email. But sometimes there is a need to hide traces of your time on the Internet, for example, if you decide to secretly give a gift to a loved one or access your email while visiting. Incognito mode allows you to enable private browsing mode, when entered passwords, as well as addresses of sites and pages that you visited, are not saved.

What is private mode (aka “Incognito” and InPrivate)

This function is available in the most popular browsers, sometimes there are different names for it. In Incognito mode, the browser does not save entered passwords, search queries and addresses of pages visited. At the same time, changes in settings, downloaded files and added bookmarks are saved.

Remember: private tabs do not make you invisible to sites. If you log in to a social network, your appearance will be noticed. Incognito mode is designed to hide your online history from other users of your computer. By opening a private tab, you instruct the browser not to use old cookies, cache, or local memory.

In incognito, only the browser does not store your Internet activity. Other sources may see what websites you visit, including:

• your employer (if you use an office computer);
• internet service provider;
• directly the websites you visit.

How to enable the mode in different browsers

In order to log in in private mode, you need to know what browser you are using. As a rule, the transition is indicated visually by an icon depicting a mask or glasses. How to open a private tab in Yandex Browser, Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, read on.

Google Chrome

Yandex browser

Opera

Mozilla Firefox

Microsoft Edge (Internet Explorer)

How to quickly open a private window using hotkeys

For quick launch Incognito mode, you can use hot keys: in Google Chrome, Opera and Yandex Browser, the combination Ctrl + Shift + N is used. In Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Edge The combination Ctrl + Shift + P is used.

How to close or disable Incognito mode and exit private browsing

To return to normal browsing and disable the use of private mode, just close the window. After this the browser will delete everything cookies, created while working in it. This method to remove Incognito mode is suitable for any browser, including the most popular: Yandex, Mozilla Firefox, Opera and Google Chrome.

Video instructions: how to log into Incognito

To make it easier for you to understand how to open private browsing in any browser, we have selected video instructions that clearly show several ways to switch to private mode.

If you need a computer while visiting, the best way to avoid leaving traces or passwords from your accounts is to browse in private mode, because this feature is implemented in every browser. When you use tabs or windows in private mode, data (such as history, temporary internet files, and cookies) is deleted from your computer as soon as you finish browsing.