Managing Your Digital Footprint

This poor guy lost a toe to Big Tech.

Your digital footprint is all the data you leave behind on the internet, intentionally or not. It's nigh impossible to avoid leaving some data, but you can minimize or obscure it. Websites you visit may collect it, your browser may share it, or malicious nerds may actively try to intercept it.

He's not so bad.

There are tools available (see some of my favorites here) that will limit how much data is leaked, but you may be able to adjust settings on your current apps to improve your privacy.

I'll use Google Chrome as an example.

Click on the three-dot menu and open the settings page:

I removed the metadata from this screenshot using Metadata Cleaner for Linux. Probably available in your distro's app store. ExifCleaner is a good cross-platform option as well.

Click on the hamburger menu (are people still calling it that?) and select "You and Google":

Select "Privacy and security" and then "Third-party cookies":

Match your settings to this screenshot; Block third-party cookies, do not allow related sites to see your activity, and send a "Do not track" request.

Next, go back to the hamburger menu and click on "Search engine"

Then click the Change button.

And then select DuckDuckGo and click Set as default.

DuckDuckGo is the most private of these options.

And lastly, go back to the settings sidebar, select "System", and switch off "Continue running background apps when Google Chrome is closed.

I still do not recommend using Google Chrome, but these changes can at least reduce the amount of data you leave behind.

Curiosity is key; check other apps on your device, see what settings can be changed to maximize privacy. Look up unfamiliar terms. You will always learn quickly by following your own curiosity.

Overall, a VPN is the go-to tool for anonymizing yourself online, but it isn't a panacea. Can you make your router more private? Check out DD-WRT. How about your laptop's operating system? Try running Qubes.

It's a deep rabbit hole. Dive in.