Incognito Mode, Private Browsing, InPrivate mode: it goes by a number of different names, all with the same basic promise: web activity that happens here won’t be tracked…right?
Well, kind of.
There’s more to the story — and Microsoft is changing some elements of how this works in Windows. Here’s what you need to know.
What Is Private Browsing?
Private browsing is a feature in nearly every modern internet browser where users can open a window where their activity won’t be tracked or stored in cache or history.
We can’t get any further without getting this out of the way: most people’s first thought when they hear “private browsing” or “incognito mode” is, shall we say, browsing that's not safe for work. That’s not what we’re talking about here.
Instead, there are numerous business-related reasons to use this feature. Marketers use it to research the competition, to see how their own websites appear to outsiders, and so on. Content creators use it to research what they’re writing about without having irrelevant ads follow them around for weeks. (For example, I certainly don’t want whatever kinds of ads are going to come along with searching for “incognito mode”!)
People also use private browsing to avoid being tracked on consumer-type sites. Did you know that travel booking sites sometimes show higher prices to repeat customers, or to people viewing from specific types of devices? Sometimes, shopping for hotels or airfare in a private tab can get you a cheaper rate.
How Private Is Private?
Another thing to know about private browsing is that it isn’t quite as private as you might think. Your internet service provider can still see details about what sites you’ve visited, and in many cases your business (or IT department or managed services provider) can see similar information.
This isn’t a big deal in most cases. Still, some users get a false sense of security, thinking their private browsing is truly secret. It is, on the device you’re using. But this privacy isn’t universal or ironclad.
Recent Privacy Updates to Private Browsing
In the last few years, software makers have made tech headlines for notable flaws, accidental or otherwise, in their private browsing features. Google got slapped with a $5 billion lawsuit for allegedly intentionally tracking customers using private browsing, collecting information from those sessions.
Microsoft hasn’t done anything so brazen (that we know about, at least), but some flaws in its privacy features recently came to light. Good news: the software giant has recently addressed a few of these issues.
Clipboard Woes Solved
Until recently, if you copied anything to the clipboard from a private browsing session (text, an image, or a URL), that bit of information would stay on the clipboard indefinitely until it was replaced with something else. That means that hours after you copied something from a private browser, the “paste” command could recall that element, even if you thought the activity was hidden and private.
Making matters worse was Microsoft’s Cloud Clipboard: to try to make life easier, this feature synced your clipboard between devices. It’s a great way to get a map link from your PC to your phone or to share an image between devices — but anything copied during a private browsing session was getting synced here too. Not great!
Microsoft has patched this problem across Windows in its latest updates, so to make sure you’re getting the latest privacy protection, be sure to update Windows ASAP.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is this: private browsing can be a useful tool, but don’t expect it to do more than it really does. It can be a convenient way to get an outsider’s glimpse of your own web property or to shop or research without intrusive tracking. But it’s not a be-all, end-all privacy solution.
Looking for more help with business data privacy or configuring these systems the right way? Contact Blue Ridge Technology. We can assist!