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Apple now allows DuckDuckGo as a Safari Search Engine, but is it safe?

MartinAppleGuy

MartinAppleGuy

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Apple now allows DuckDuckGo as a Safari Search Engine, but is it safe? I remember reading that there was a lot of problems with this search engine such as tracking what you are doing as well as the plug in that won't go away. What are you takes on this?
 
The whole ethos behind DuckDuckGo is that it doesn't track you.

I can't comment on the actually quality of the search results because I've never used it.
 
MartinAppleGuy said:
Apple now allows DuckDuckGo as a Safari Search Engine, but is it safe? I remember reading that there was a lot of problems with this search engine such as tracking what you are doing as well as the plug in that won't go away. What are you takes on this?
Click to expand...

The entire premise of Duck Duck Go is that they don't track you or keep up with your private information so as not to be creepy and invasive as Google's services.
 
I wouldn't trust DuckDuckGo if I were you, because:

1) The company is located in Pennsylvania, and the events of recent years have shown that US-based companies simply cannot be trusted.

2) The site "suddenly" received a massive, expensive overhaul a couple of months ago (search result quality, graphical overhaul), amidst recent internet privacy concerns. Feels... how should I put it, "honeypot-ish"?
 
pickaxe said:
I wouldn't trust DuckDuckGo if I were you, because:

1) The company is located in Pennsylvania, and the events of recent years have shown that US-based companies simply cannot be trusted.

2) The site "suddenly" received a massive, expensive overhaul a couple of months ago (search result quality, graphical overhaul), amidst recent internet privacy concerns. Feels... how should I put it, "honeypot-ish"?
Click to expand...

I also have reservations about it being US based, but not because I don't trust the people behind it; it's that they are more easily coerced or threatened than a foreign based operation.

That said, I have not heard anything bad about them and used their search engine extensively for a year or so. I prefer Ixquick/StartPage though because they are not US based.
 
Oh you guys have gotta be kidding me!

You'll start equipping tin foil hats next. 😛


If you are so utterly petrified about your privacy then get off the internet. I know that sounds harsh but it's reality. True privacy on the internet is a myth. You give someone information, they have that information even if they don't share it. I've used Google for years. I've got nothing to hide. I don't care about them knowing what I'm searching. Even if it's porn. People view porn. People get off. I hold no shame.

Also the US based company thing must be a joke. We're all Mac users here. Apple is a US-based company.

Duck Duck Go is as safe as any other search engine. It may not be the best but supposedly it does not track you if you care about that rubbish. Whether you choose to use it or not is up to you. You already know your preference for searches.
 
pickaxe said:
The company is located in Pennsylvania, and the events of recent years have shown that US-based companies simply cannot be trusted.
Click to expand...

Congratulations, you have left me totally dumbfounded by that statement. So why are you on MacRumors, a website founded and operating in the US, discussing products from Apple, another company founded and centrally operating in the US?
 
madsci954 said:
Congratulations, you have left me totally dumbfounded by that statement. So why are you on MacRumors, a website founded and operating in the US, discussing products from Apple, another company founded and centrally operating in the US?
Click to expand...

MR isn't a search engine, so it is not nearly the same thing.
 
sunsetblow said:
I love how there's an "add to Chrome" option. Kinda defeats the purpose of "the most private search engine", no?
Click to expand...

And this is where my problems lies with it. About a year ago, people added it to Safari and Firefox and couldn't remove it.

----------
j800r said:
Oh you guys have gotta be kidding me!

You'll start equipping tin foil hats next. 😛


If you are so utterly petrified about your privacy then get off the internet. I know that sounds harsh but it's reality. True privacy on the internet is a myth. You give someone information, they have that information even if they don't share it. I've used Google for years. I've got nothing to hide. I don't care about them knowing what I'm searching. Even if it's porn. People view porn. People get off. I hold no shame.

Also the US based company thing must be a joke. We're all Mac users here. Apple is a US-based company.

Duck Duck Go is as safe as any other search engine. It may not be the best but supposedly it does not track you if you care about that rubbish. Whether you choose to use it or not is up to you. You already know your preference for searches.
Click to expand...

Well there is a lot of results that show up on Google what it was at least at some point malware where it could be added to a browser but almost impossible to remove. I don't care about it tracking me or not, I care though I couldn't uninstall it from my browser like many people had issues with.

It's got nothing about privacy scares. Safari really needs a traffic light system that show next to results to show how safe and trusted they are. Just because there is no viruses out there for Mac, there certainly is a countable amount of malware/spyware.
 
I'm really happy with the results that I get with Google. When I try other search engines, actual programs get installed so that your results (sometimes) have so many pop ups that you can't read the article. I mean if I wanted to increase the speed of my computer, I would have to BUY into the service that slowed it down with those pop ups.
It is so strange to go to control pannel and see the programs listed there causing the problems. Some with 2 entries. I uninstall them and go to settings in my browser to switch the landing page that had been changed for me.
Google doesn't pull that crap.
 
MartinAppleGuy said:
Apple now allows DuckDuckGo as a Safari Search Engine, but is it safe? I remember reading that there was a lot of problems with this search engine such as tracking what you are doing as well as the plug in that won't go away. What are you takes on this?
Click to expand...

it's the other way round, DuckDuckGo is the one that doesn't track you. in fact if you do a video search on it and it finds stuff on youtube it will warn you before clicking play that google doesn't let you watch anonymously.

Not being able to chose a search engine other than google or yahoo/bing on safari has been a nuisance for the past 4-5 years, such that I put in a feedback suggestion asking for DuckDuckGo. I doubt my feedback was the only reason they added it, presumably thousands of other people have asked for it as well.

Great they didn't just add it to iOS but also OS X, using it on Yosemite now and no longer require the extension to get DuckDuckGo 🙂 By the way, when you uninstall an extension on safari - it does go away.

Jonny
 
j800r said:
Oh you guys have gotta be kidding me!

You'll start equipping tin foil hats next. 😛....
Click to expand...

Irrationally placed fear: If a plane crashes it dominates the news and we talk about and fear flying. Yet we drive a car and text without giving it a thought.
 
MartinAppleGuy said:
Don't drive and text -_-
Click to expand...

You can leave off texting (see below). The point is you have an irrational fear (as most do). We are all tracked by numerous entities (like Equifax) and have been since birth. Every cell phone that is, has and will be used is tracked 100% of the time it's on and connected. It's not a safety issue but a fact of life.

The news media just steers and then stirs or fears by sensationalizing. Point:

US major airline deaths in 2008-0
US traffic related deaths in 2008-34,017
US major airline deaths 1982 to today-2947 (less than 10% of 1 years traffic fatalities)
 
Last edited:
Julien said:
You can leave off texting (see below). The point is you have an irrational fear (as most do). We are all tracked by numerous entities (like Equifax) and have been since birth. Every cell phone that is, has and will be used is tracked 100% of the time it's on and connected. It's not a safety issue but a fact of life.

The news media just steers and then stirs or fears by sensationalizing. Point:

US major airline deaths in 2008-0
US traffic related deaths in 2008-34,017
US major airline deaths 1982 to today-2947 (less than 10% of 1 years traffic fatalities)
Click to expand...

It is a cognitive process that stops you from having full focus on the road.
 
It would be good to hear techy thoughts on ddg vs google...
Anyway, I think their existence in Safari side by side with Yahoo, Baidu, Bing... is impressive already, as they are much younger. It is good to have alternatives in the free market. Hope normal users can get something good out of it.
 
MartinAppleGuy said:
And this is where my problems lies with it. About a year ago, people added it to Safari and Firefox and couldn't remove it.

----------



Safari really needs a traffic light system that show next to results to show how safe and trusted they are. Just because there is no viruses out there for Mac, there certainly is a countable amount of malware/spyware.
Click to expand...

There is. Install WOT (Web of Trust) extension.
 
You realise that everyone on the internet has at least one company that knows exactly what you do on the net.

It's either your ISP or the VPN company you use.

As someone else said, if you want privacy, get off the net. Otherwise, remove the tin foil hat and browse. Or if you're really paranoid, get TOR. But TOR is slow.
 
cjmillsnun said:
You realise that everyone on the internet has at least one company that knows exactly what you do on the net.

It's either your ISP or the VPN company you use.

As someone else said, if you want privacy, get off the net. Otherwise, remove the tin foil hat and browse. Or if you're really paranoid, get TOR. But TOR is slow.
Click to expand...

That's not what I'm talking about though. I'm talking about the issues people have had with not being able to get rid of the extension even after deleting every trace.
 
MartinAppleGuy said:
Apple now allows DuckDuckGo as a Safari Search Engine, but is it safe? I remember reading that there was a lot of problems with this search engine such as tracking what you are doing as well as the plug in that won't go away. What are you takes on this?
Click to expand...

I've been using duck Duck Go for over 3 years and have found it to be highly secure and free from tracking cookies. Another wonderful feature is that it allows you the option of NOT storing your searches, so there is no history of the sites you visit on a daily basis. I have never had any problems with Duck Duck Go!
[doublepost=1521650656][/doublepost]
pickaxe said:
I wouldn't trust DuckDuckGo if I were you, because:

1) The company is located in Pennsylvania, and the events of recent years have shown that US-based companies simply cannot be trusted.

2) The site "suddenly" received a massive, expensive overhaul a couple of months ago (search result quality, graphical overhaul), amidst recent internet privacy concerns. Feels... how should I put it, "honeypot-ish"?
Click to expand...

I have never had a problem with Duck Duck Go and have found it to be a reliable and secure search engine! One of its best features is that it allows you to browse without leaving a trail, i.e., there is no history of visited sites and no cookies are allowed in.
 
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