Making Chrome Private by Default

[nerdslife_team]

Chrome is a popular browser, known for its user-friendliness and speed. However, this convenience sometimes compromises your privacy. While some users might not worry about their data, others are very cautious, or simply prefer not to keep browser history. This guide caters to all, offering several ways to enhance your privacy in Chrome.

Method 1: Always Launch Chrome in Incognito Mode

If you’re serious about privacy and don’t want to keep any browsing history, forcing Chrome to always open in incognito mode is a great option. This method disables the normal window, ensuring every session is private.

1. Open the Registry Editor. You can do this by clicking the search icon on your taskbar, typing Registry editor, and selecting the app.
   

   

2. Alternatively, press Windows + R, type regedit, and click ‘OK’.
   

   

3. In the Registry Editor, navigate to or copy the following address into the address bar:

Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Google\Chrome

Note: Make sure you close all Chrome instances before proceeding.

4. Right-click in the left pane, hover over ‘New’, and select ‘DWORD (32-bit) Value’. This creates a new file in the directory.
   

   

5. Name the new file IncognitoModeAvailability and double-click it.
   

   

6. In the ‘Edit DWORD’ window, enter 2 in the ‘Value data’ field, and click ‘OK’.
   

   

7. Now, when you launch Chrome, it will automatically open in incognito mode. The ‘New Window’ option in the menu will also be grayed out.
   

   
   
   
   

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Method 2: Get a Chrome Incognito Shortcut on Your Desktop

This method allows you to have a separate shortcut to launch Chrome directly in incognito mode, while still keeping your regular Chrome shortcut. If you’d prefer incognito mode always, then it’s best to use the previous method.

1. Go to your Chrome installation directory. Usually, it’s C:\Program Files\Google\Chrome\Application. Right-click chrome.exe and select ‘Show more options’. You can also press Shift + F10.
   

   

   Note: If you have a custom directory, find the path where you installed Chrome.

2. Hover over ‘Send to’ and click on ‘Desktop (create shortcut)’.
   

   

3. Go to your desktop, right-click the new Chrome shortcut, and select ‘Properties’.
   

   

4. In the ‘Shortcut’ tab, go to the end of the string in the ‘Target’ field, add a space, and type -incognito.
   

   

5. Click ‘Change Icon’ to differentiate it from the regular Chrome icon.
   

   

6. Choose the incognito icon and click ‘OK’.
   

   

7. Click ‘Apply’, then ‘OK’ to save the changes.
   

   

8. You now have a new incognito Chrome shortcut. Use your regular Chrome icon for a normal window or the new shortcut for incognito mode.
   

   

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Method 3: Make Chrome a Privacy First Browser by Default

This method focuses on adjusting Chrome’s settings to enhance privacy, without directly switching to incognito.

Set up a Chrome Profile Without Signing in to a Google Account

To minimize tracking, you can avoid signing into Chrome with a Google account. There are two ways to achieve this: clean your current profile or create a new one.

Clean Your Existing Chrome Profile

1. Launch Chrome. Click your profile picture/initials at the top right and select the ‘Sync is on’ option.
   

   

2. Click ‘Turn off’ next to your synced account details.
   

   

3. Check the box ‘Clear bookmarks, history, passwords, and more from this device’ and click ‘Turn off’.
   

   

4. Alternatively, click the three dots (kebab menu), hover over ‘More Tools’, and click ‘Clear Browsing Data’.
   

   

5. Click on the ‘Advanced’ tab.
   

   

6. Select all the checkboxes and click ‘Clear Data’. Then, click on the ‘sign out’ option.
   

   

Set up a New Chrome Profile

1. Launch Chrome, click your profile picture/initials, and click ‘+ Add’.
   

   

2. Click ‘Continue without an account’.
   

   

3. Enter a name for the profile and choose a color. You can create a desktop shortcut for easy access. Click ‘Done’.
   

   

Disable Built-in Google Services in Chrome

Chrome uses several built-in services that can collect data. Disabling these services can significantly improve your privacy.

1. Launch Chrome, click the three dots (kebab menu), and select ‘Settings’.
   

   

2. Click on the ‘Sync and Google services’ option.
   

   

3. You will find all the Google services that are enabled for your profile under ‘Other Google services’.
   

   

Disable Chrome Sign-in

1. Go to ‘Sync and Google services’. Turn off ‘Allow Chrome sign-in’.
   

   

2. Relaunch Chrome to apply the changes.
   

   

Disable Autocomplete Searches and URLs

1. In ‘Sync and Google services’, turn off ‘Autocomplete searches and URLs’.
   

   

2. Turn off ‘Make searches and browsing better’.
   

   

Disable Sending Statistics and Crash Reports

1. In the ‘Sync and Google services’ screen, turn off ‘Help improve Chrome’s features and performance’.
   

   

2. Relaunch Chrome using the ‘relaunch’ button that appears after toggling the switch.

Separate Google Drive and Google Search

Note: This option is only visible if your Chrome profile is synced with a Google Account.

1. In ‘Sync and Google services’, turn off ‘Google drive search suggestions’.
   
   

Disable Autofill Features in Chrome

Chrome offers autofill for things like addresses and passwords, but saving this info can be a privacy risk. Here’s how to turn it off.

1. Launch Chrome, click the three dots (kebab menu), and select ‘Settings’.
   

   

2. Click on the ‘Auto-fill’ tab.
   

   

3. You will see settings for all autofill options here.
   

   

Disable Password Saving and Auto Sign-in

1. In ‘Auto-fill’, click ‘Passwords’.
   

   

2. Turn off ‘Offer to save passwords’.
   

   

3. Turn off ‘Auto Sign-in’.
   

   

Disable Payment Method Features

1. In ‘Auto-fill’, click ‘Payment methods’.
   

   

2. Turn off ‘Save and fill payment methods’.
   

   

3. Turn off ‘Allow sites to check if you have payment methods saved’.
   

   

4. Delete any saved payment methods individually by clicking on the three dots (kebab menu) next to each entry, and selecting ‘remove’.
   

   
   
   
   

Disable Address, Email, Phone Number Filling Features

1. In ‘Auto-fill’, click ‘Addresses and more’.
   

   

2. Turn off ‘Save and fill addresses’.
   

   

3. Delete any saved addresses by clicking on the kebab menu next to each entry, and select ‘remove’.
   

   
   
   
   

Disable Cookies and Site Data

Cookies can track you across the web. Here’s how to manage them in Chrome.

1. Launch Chrome, click the three dots (kebab menu), and select ‘Settings’.
   

   

2. Click on ‘Privacy and security’.
   

   

3. You will be able to see the privacy and security settings screen.
   

   

Block Cookies for all Websites

1. In ‘Privacy and security’, click ‘Cookies and other site data’.
   

   

2. Select ‘Block all cookies’.
   

   

Send a ‘Do Not Track’ Request

1. In ‘Cookies and other site data’, turn on ‘Send a “Do Not Track” request with your browsing traffic’.
   

   

2. Click ‘Confirm’ on the overlay alert.
   

   

Disable Preload Pages Feature

1. In ‘Cookies and other site data’, turn off ‘Preload pages for faster browsing and searching’.
   
   

Disable Location, Camera, and Microphone Access

Controlling website access to your peripherals enhances your privacy.

1. In ‘Privacy and security’, click on ‘Site settings’.
   

   

2. Under the ‘Permissions’ section, click ‘Location’.
   

   

3. Select ‘Don’t allow sites to see your location’.
   

   

4. Delete any sites listed under ‘Allowed to see your location’ by clicking the ‘Trash bin’ icon next to each.
   

   

5. Click the back arrow to go to the previous page.
   

   

6. Click on the ‘Camera’ tile under ‘Permissions’.
   

   

7. Select ‘Don’t allow sites to use your camera’.
   

   

8. Delete any sites listed under ‘Allowed to use your camera’ using the trash bin.
   

   

9. Click the back arrow to return to the previous page.
   

   

10. Click on the ‘Microphone’ tile.
    

    

11. Select ‘Don’t allow sites to use your microphone’.
    

    

12. Delete any sites listed under ‘Allowed to use your microphone’ using the trash bin.
    

    

Disable Website Notifications

1. In ‘Privacy and security’, click ‘Site settings’.
   

   

2. Click on the ‘Notifications’ tab under ‘Permissions’.
   

   

3. Select ‘Don’t allow sites to send notifications’.
   

   

Disable Background Sync for Closed Tabs

1. In ‘Privacy and security’, click ‘Site settings’.
   

   

2. Click on the ‘Background sync’ tile present under the ‘Permissions’ section.
   

   

3. Click on the option ‘Don’t allow closed sites to finish sending or receiving data’.
   

   

Disable Background Apps in Chrome

1. Launch Chrome, click the three dots (kebab menu), and select ‘Settings’.
   

   

2. Click on ‘Advanced’ on the left sidebar of the window.
   

   

3. Then click on ‘System’.
   

   

4. Turn off ‘Continue running background apps when Google Chrome is closed’.