VPNs protect your privacy online and hide your internet browsing from your ISP. What about your browsing history? And what about past searches on Google. Is it possible to keep this information secret? It is not easy to answer. It is important to know the following: What history and searches can a VPN hide from you?
Are you short on time?
These are the top VPNs to hide your online activity.
- NordVPN – The best VPN overall for privacy
- SurfShark – top-tier encryption standards
- ExpressVPN – Great connection speeds and a wide range of servers
- Private Internet Access– Strong security and privacy features
- PureVPN is a solid service at very reasonable subscription prices
The internet path you take when you use VPN
Let’s look at the path that your browsing information takes to get a better understanding. After you have typed a query, it travels from your browser through a router to an ISP. It then reaches its destination, such as Google search site.
The connections may leave traces on any device or part of the internet that they traveled. This browsing history can be logged by ISPs, devices and even your browser.
A VPN can hide your browsing history and search history but only at certain points. A VPN cannot hide certain things. Let’s look at how VPN protects your browsing and search history.
Can a VPN hide your browsing history?
A VPN allows you to hide your browsing history and search history from your ISP. Strong encryption ensures that only your ISP can see connections to VPN servers. Your search history and websites visited are kept completely confidential. Only the times you attempted to connect to a VPN are visible to your ISP.
Can a VPN hide your search history?
The search history of Google can be hidden by a VPN, but only to a limited extent. Even if you connect to a VPN, search queries can still be identified. Google is the search engine’s owner and can collect past searches. Your search history can still be seen and linked to you for several reasons.
One of the best ways to link back searches to your Google account is to type queries while signed into Google. If you are using their account, a VPN will not hide your identity. Log out before you can hide your search history from Google.
Google uses advanced tracking and detection techniques to identify its users. A VPN cannot hide your search history, but it can partially. Cookies, browser and OS used or GPS location are all possible ways to reveal your search history.
How can you hide your search history in Google
Google is a terrible search engine. Although it is sometimes impossible, it has proven to be the best. DuckDuckGo, an alternative search engine, does not collect or log any data. All searches made there are confidential.
Sometimes, a different search engine may not be an option. However, you still want Google.
How to hide your search history in Google.
- Log out from your Google Account
- Connect to a VPN server
- Disable Browser GPS detection
- Open Incognito Window
- Google Search
Can VPN hide browsing history from a router?
Although home routers don’t have enough memory to store browsing history, network logs can still easily be collected. The ISP-based routers log some data.
A VPN will conceal any browsing activity from any router. Strong encryption will block anyone from viewing the websites you visit. The times you connect to VPN servers cannot be concealed even on a router.
VPN traffic is encrypted once it leaves your device. It hides your web browsing history from enterprise and home routers. VPNs also offer the added benefit of bypassing firewall rules and internet restrictions placed on routers at school, work, or ISPs.
Can a VPN hide your browsing history?
Employers can monitor traffic the same way as ISPs. You can also have the logging system installed that allows you to see your browsing history. VPNs can hide browsing activities from your employer and allow you to unblock sites at work.
Does VPN hide your browser history
VPNs cannot hide browsing history stored locally by browsers. VPN apps do not have any control over the processes of other applications. Your browsing history and searches must be managed manually. A VPN and Incognito Window are the best ways to avoid logging of your online activities.
After it is closed, the private browsing window will automatically delete any history files. It is a great combination to protect your online privacy. NordVPN is a reliable service that will not keep browsing history. It is an independent audited VPN and has a strict no log policy.
Summary
Here’s a table that summarizes what kind of browsing history and search history VPN hides and from whom.
| Hides from | Browsing history | Search history |
|---|---|---|
| ISP | Yes | Yes |
| Google Search engine | Yes | No |
| Router | Yes | Yes |
| Employer or University | Yes | Yes |
| Browser (Chrome, FireFox) | No | No |
