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Online privacy matters more than ever, with fresh reports of data breaches every week.
So, strengthening your privacy and data security must be your top priority.
But thats easier said than done.
However, there are solutions to fortifying your online privacyprivacy tools!
Theyre also divided into different use cases to help you choose a tool based on your requirements!
you might trust Geekflare
At Geekflare, trust and transparency are paramount.
Ive also highlighted their categories, free plan availability, and starting prices.
Privacy Tools for Secure Browsing
VPNs and privacy-focused browsers offer secure and anonymous browsing.
I have listed the best tools below based on my hands-on testing.
In some cases, your ISP can also monitor your online activities.
A virtual private web connection (VPN) hides your actual IP address.
It also encrypts your online traffic, making it unreadable for prying eyes.
So, always use a VPN to stay anonymous and shield your online activities.
All privacy guides recommend using VPNs to guard privacy.
Here are the threebest VPNsI tested for their privacy and security features.
NordVPN
When choosing a VPN, you want a secure, fast, private service.
NordVPN ticks all these boxes.
It encrypts your web traffic using AES-256, the highest encryption standard available today.
The tool also follows a verifiable strict zero-log policy, meaning it saves no logs about your online activities.
In my testing, I have found that its proprietary NordLynx protocol offers fast speeds.
I personally use NordVPN and highly recommend it.
It provides unique features that are hard to find with other VPN providers.
It also scans the dark web to see if anyone has posted your stolen account details there.
Our detailedNordVPN review, based on our hands-on experience, will help you learn more about it.
NordVPN pricing starts at $4.99/month (when billed yearly).
All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
To offer fast speeds, ExpressVPN leverages its proprietary protocolLightway.
It offers the Advanced Protection feature, which can block trackers, adware, and malicious websites.
ExpressVPN is a bit more expensive than NordVPN but with a twist.
In my testing experience, the Lightway protocol offers better speeds than NordVPNs NordLynx protocol.
It was the price that made me switch to NordVPN.
We tested these two VPN vendors in-house when writing theNordVPN vs. ExpressVPN review.
If youre not sure which one to pick, it’s possible for you to check that.
For an annual plan, you pay $6.67/month.
ExpressVPN includes a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Thats the reason why I strongly recommend ProtonVPN if you dont want to buy a premium VPN subscription.
ProtonVPNs free plan has zero ads and offers unlimited data and bandwidth.
It follows a strict zero-log policy.
We do have aProtonVPN review, detailing our experience with it after 30 days of testing.
you could check that out to learn more about what ProtonVPNs paid subscription offers.
Its pricing starts at $4.99/month.
All plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Based on my personal experience, I recommend the following privacy-focused browsers.
It can block trackers, intrusive ads, scripts, and third-party cookies.
It also has a feature to stop websites from web client fingerprinting you.
you’ve got the option to select an option to upgrade connections to HTTPS for added security.
Braves Leo AI can summarize sites content and answer your queries like a regular chatbot.
Moreover, it offers you an option to shape its answers based on the pages content.
If you use video calling a lot, Brave Talk allows you to do that within the online window.
you’re free to also choose your favorite search engine on Brave.
It supports Brave Search, Google, DuckDuckGo, Bing, StartPage, and Qwant.
Brave is free to use.
It is available for desktop, iOS, and Android devices.
Its key privacy-focused features are:
Im impressed with DuckDuckGos commitment to privacy.
It also encrypts your traffic multiple times to prevent anyone from reading it.
One caveat of using Tor is that it is slower because it routes your online traffic through multiple nodes.
A privacy-focused web client, combined with a VPN, offers reasonable privacy protection without compromising user experience.
Tor is free to download.
It supports Windows, Mac, and Android devices.
Privacy Tools for Data Protection
Your online accounts hold sensitive data.
Strong passwords are the first line of defense against account intrusions.
Put simply; the stronger your passwords are, the more secure your accounts will be.
It offers a free trial for both personal and business plans.
Dashlane
Dashlane is another highly recommended password manager.
It also supports passkeysa new data throw in that enables passwordless logins.
The personal plan starts at $4.99/month and is billed annually.
The business plan cost starts $20/user/month for up to 10 users, also billed annually.
A 14-day free trial is available to explore its features.
Bitwarden
If you want an open-source password manager without spending much, Bitwarden is your best bet.
Ive been using it for almost 2 years, and Im fully satisfied.
It implements zero-knowledge encryption, which means only it’s possible for you to access your saved passwords.
These reports provide valuable insights into strengthening password security.
What I like most about Bitwarden is its clean user interface.
It has everything a good password manager should have without overwhelming users with unnecessary bells and whistles.
Bitwarden has desktop applications for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
It also has mobile apps for Android and iOS devices.
It offers a 7-day free trial.
Encryption Tools
Encryption tools safeguard data by scrambling readable data into an unreadable format.
This unreadable format can only be accessed and decrypted using a special key.
I have tested multiple encryption tools to list the best solutions below.
VeraCrypt
VeraCrypt is an open-source encryption tool for portable drives, hard drives, and system drives.
The encryption is automatic and in real-time.
It uses highly secure encryption algorithms, including AES, Twofish, and others.
It also leverages parallelization and pipelining for fast data processing.
It supports Windows, macOS, Linux, and Raspberry Pi.
VeraCrypt is free to use.
It uses AES-256 encryption to secure your data.
I specifically liked its file name encryption feature, which can encrypt file names and extensions for extra protection.
it’s possible for you to secure new files in designated Secured Folders with a single click.
If you want to delete a file permanently beyond recovery, its File Wipe feature can help you.
AxCrypt is available for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS devices.
The Premium plan costs $4.67/month, and the Business plan is $10.42/month (billed annually).
A one-month free trial is available.
Cryptomator
Cryptomator is an easy-to-use encryption tool that encrypts your data locally and in the cloud.
It allows you to assign a password to a folder within your cloud or on your box.
Every time you paste anything in that password-protected folder (known as Vault), it is automatically encrypted.
It is an open-source software and has been audited by security researchers multiple times for code quality.
The tool uses AES 256 encryption to secure your data.
Cryptomator uses client-side encryption, ensuring no one, not even its staff, can access your data.
It supports both Android and iOS devices.
For businesses, it offers Cryptomator Hub, which enables secure team access with zero-knowledge key management.
you’re free to easily integrate it with your existing identity management tool.
It is free for personal use for Windows, macOS, and Linux users.
The community edition (self-hosted) is free for businesses.
Pricing for the standard plan starts at $6/seat/month for self-hosting and $12/seat/month for managed hosting.
To protect your privacy, the way forward is to use good privacy tools for communication.
Below, I have listed secure messaging apps and private email services based on my research and testing.
Secure Messaging Apps
The following messaging apps are known to offer superior privacy.
Signal
Signal is owned and operated by Signal Technology Foundation (a non-profit organization).
It leverages end-to-end encryption to protect the privacy of your communication.
It offers encrypted chats, calls, and media sharing.
What I loved about Signal is that it offers metadata protection via Sealed Sender.
This means it will hide the senders identity in messages.
Also, Signal doesnt show any ads on its platform.
Signal is free and available for Windows, Android, and iOS devices.
Telegram
Telegram is another instant messaging app I recommend for private communication.
you’re free to share a file up to 2 GB with Telegram.
Telegram doesnt show ads in private chats.
While testing, I found its Secret Chats feature quite powerful to preserve privacy.
This feature lets you encrypt your message end-to-end, meaning only you and your recipient can read it.
Apart from Secret Chats, common messages in Telegram use client-server/server-client encryption.
It supports proxies to help you hide your real IP address.
Telegram Pricing
Telegram is available for Android, iOS, Windows, macOS, and Linux devices.
It is free to use.
A premium plan offers some additional features and costs $4.99/month.
Private Email Services
Private email services employ end-to-end encryption to prevent malicious actors from reading your messages.
They can also block email spy pixels to enhance user privacy.
Based on my testing and research, here are the popular private email services I recommend.
Proton Mail
Proton Mail from Proton AG is my top pick for private email service.
It offers end-to-end encryption, meaning emails are encrypted before they leave your gadget.
Its zero-knowledge encryption ensures that no one other than recipients can read your email content.
Using its password-protected email feature, you could send encrypted emails outside the Proton Mail ecosystem.
Proton Mail blocks spy pixels by default, which protects your privacy from email senders.
Moreover, its Link confirmation keeps you safe from malicious websites.
With Proton Mail, users can create aliases to mask their emails when signing up for online services.
This helps them hide their real email addresses and reduce spam.
The Proton Mail app is available for web, desktop, and mobile devices.
Pricing starts at $3.99/month, and its free plan offers 1 GB of storage.
Tuta
Tuta is a secure email service emphasizing privacy and user control.
Its Smart Protection feature keeps your inbox safe from phishing and scams.
Tuta Mail also comes with built-in tracking blockers that protect your emails, calendars, and contacts from tracking.
It encrypts all your data, including email headers and metadata, like subject lines.
It also lets you use your custom domain to create unlimited email addresses.
Tuta offers a fully anonymous email service.
During the signup process, I noticed it doesnt require your phone number like Google and Outlook.
I dug deeper and found that the company also doesnt log your IP address.
Tuta enables you to send encrypted emails even to users outside its ecosystem.
It uses a password to encrypt and decrypt messages.
To initiate encrypted communication, youll have to share the password with non-Tuta users.
Additionally, Tuta lets you access your encrypted inbox offline for added convenience.
Its app is available for Android, iOS, Linux, Windows, macOS, and web.
Its free plan offers 1 GB of storage and paid plans start at 3/month.
Zoho Mail
Zoho Mail is another privacy-friendly email provider that offers secure communication.
The mail service encrypts data in transmission and data at rest.
Through PGP encryption, it also offers end-to-end encryption.
Its SecurePass feature lets your team send confidential data protected with a code.
The Zoho Mail app is available for web Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS devices.
Its free plan allows you to create up to five users with a 5 GB per user limit.
Zoho Mails premium plan starts at $1/user/month for a 5 GB per user limit, billed annually.
It offers a 15-day free trial that lets you explore its premium features.
Ive provided some options below.
1. uBlock Origin
uBlock Origin is my favorite ad blocker due to its user-friendly interface.
It filters out web page elements that affect your user experience with ads.
uBlock Origin is open-source and free to use.
I have tested it on the Edge web app, as shown in the screenshot below.
Custom filters also allow you to customize your Ghostery experience further.
Ghostery is free to use.
Ive installed it on my Windows 11 PC and added an extension to my Edge net net app.
It can block all kinds of ads and annoying elements on the web pages you visit.
After removing ads, it hides empty spaces on websites, so it doesnt affect their appearance.
Also, it blocks ads and trackers before web pages load.
This speeds up page loading.
AdGuard is available for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices.
The price starts at $3.33/month for 3 devices.
It offers a free version for Android and iOS.
Desktop users can avail of a 3-day trial to explore its features.
CanvasBlocker for Firefox
Privacy-focused browsers like Brave, DuckDuckGo, or Tor minimize fingerprinting.
CanvasBlocker works by blocking some popular JavaScript APIs used to fingerprint users.
It has a4.6 out of 5 ratingbased on400+ reviewson Firefoxs surfing app add-on page.
CanvasBlocker is also available for Edge and Chrome.
It is free to use.
Privacy Badger for Chrome
Chrome is infamous for tracking and profiling users to serve them personalized ads.
So, you must amp up your privacy protection when using Chrome.
Privacy Badger is a powerful tracker blocker that can detect canvas-based fingerprinting and block websites that use it.
Privacy Badger only blocks ads that track you, while uBlock Origin blocks all ads.
Privacy Badger has 4.4 out of 5 stars based on 1.8K ratings on Chrome Store.
Privacy Badger is available for Chrome, Edge, and Firefox.
you’re free to use it for free.
Here are some options for sharing files privately.
So, you oughta adopt secure platforms for file sharing to protect the security and privacy of sensitive documents.
I have listed two secure file sharing options based on my testing and research.
Sync
Sync allows you to send and receive files securely.
It also lets you set expiry dates for shared files.
I found the Remote machine Lockout feature very helpful because it keeps your Sync account safe.
Sync is available for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS devices.
If billed annually, Sync personal plans start at $5/month, and team plans start at $6/user/month.
All paid plans include a 30-day money-back guarantee.
The free Starter plan offers 5 GB of storage and basic sharing features.
Wormhole
Wormhole is my favorite tool to share files.
It uses end-to-end encryption, ensuring the company itself cant see the files you share.
I like Wormholes ability to let you set the time for deletion and download frequency.
The Wormhole app is available for free on Windows.
To share files on other devices, you must use its website.
In my testing, the web app is fast enough to upload and share files.
Secure Cloud Storage
Not all cloud storages offer the same level of security.
Here are secure cloud storage providers that offer excellent features to protect your sensitive data.
1. pCloud
pCloud is a leading cloud storage provider known for its security.
It encrypts your files with AES 256-bit encryption during and after transfer.
The encryption key in pCloud encryption is saved locally.
This means no one can see your files except you, not even pCloud employees.
So, pCloud Encryption adds an extra layer of security to your sensitive data.
pCloud has Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, and iOS apps.
Free users can avail of up to 10 GB of cloud storage.
Premium plans for individuals start at $49.99/year, while business plans start at $15.98/user/month with annual billing.
All plans come with a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Tresorit
Tresorit is another secure cloud storage provider that leverages end-to-end encryption by default.
Files and their metadata are encrypted with random encryption keys, which are never sent to Tresorit servers.
This mitigates the risks of any password breach.
Moreover, theres a free plugin for encrypted attachments via Gmail/Outlook.
The Tresorit app is available for the web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, and Android.
All plans come with a 14-day free trial.
A forever free plan offers 3 GB encrypted storage.
Dropbox
Dropbox is an old and trusted cloud storage provider.
It uses 256-bit AES and SSL/TLS encryption to keep your files safe during rest and transfer.
With Dropbox, it’s possible for you to securely share files.
It offers advanced sharing controls, such as expiration dates, password protection, and easy revocation.
It also allows you to prevent someone from downloading shared files.
Version history helps you to restore files to earlier versions without manually saving multiple copies.
It tracks changes automatically, so you’re free to easily revert to a previous state if needed.
Dropbox is suitable for both individuals and businesses.
Though it offers end-to-end encryption, it is available only in the Business Plus plan.
If end-to-end encryption is your priority, I recommend Tresorit, which offers it by default.
Dropbox is available for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices.
It offers a free basic plan with 3 GB storage.
A free trial is available.
Privacy Management Tools
Privacy management tools help you remove personal information from data broker sites.
Privacy Bee is a popular tool in this segment.
It tracks and removes your personal information from 885+ data brokers and people-search websites.
The company claims to offer the industrys highest removal success rating.
I tested this tool for 7 days and found its vulnerability monitoring service helpful.
Its proprietary scanners continuously scan for your personal informations exposure to help you proactively mitigate risks.
Privacy Bee costs $197/year.
It offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
It has the following key features to help your kids stay safe online.
During my analysis, I explored all its key features and found it a reliable parental control tool.
Qustodio is available for Windows, macOS, Chromebook, Android, iOS, and Kindle devices.
Its pricing starts at $54.95/year.
A forever-free plan with limited features is available.
It offers a 3-day free trial to explore its premium features.
NetNanny
NetNanny offers multiple features to protect your kids online.
Its real-time content filters give you visibility and control over your childrens online activities.
It lets you block or allow specific social media services on their devices and set content filtering rules.
If a particular app isnt supported for social media protection, NetNanny provides the option to block it entirely.
NetNanny also allows you to review your childrens online searches, and you will get alerts for dangerous searches.
It lets you block/resume your childrens internet access.
If you ask me which platform is better, NetNanny or Qustodio, I would go with Qustodio.
This is because Qustodio offers more unit support, more features, and better value for money.
NetNanny supports Windows, macOS, and iOS devices.
Its pricing starts at $39.99/year (including discount).
Family Link
Family Link is a parental tool from Google.
It lets you set downtime for your kids devices and app time limits.
With Family Link, you might manage and secure your kids accounts.
Family Link lets you know your childrens location via their smartphones.
However, it doesnt have content blocking as strong as NetNanny or Qustodio.
So, if you want a full-fledged parental control tool, it might not be the best option.
you’re able to download Family Link on your childrens Android devices.
you might access it on your Android or iOS unit to manage your childrens account parameters.
you might also open Family Link in your web client to manage your childrens account controls.
Family Link is a free tool offered by Google.
Tools for equipment Privacy
Threats of info-stealer malware, spyware, and keyloggers are surging.
So, you should install good tools on your devices to enhance their security and privacy.
Antivirus and Anti-Malware
Based on my testing experience, I recommend the following antivirus and anti-malware solutions.
Malwarebytes
Malwarebytes offers Premium Security to protect your PCs and mobile devices.
It also blocks ads on websites you visit.
You also get a VPN to protect your online privacy, but its unavailable in starter plans.
Malwarebytes for teams includes additional features to protect your business.
These features include brute force protection, tamper prevention, security reports, and more.
When enabled, tamper protection prevents malicious actors from changing your Malwarebytes controls.
Malwarebytes is available for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices.
Malwarebytes Premium Security pricing for individual plans starts at $44.99/year.
For teams, pricing starts at $119.99/year.
All plans come with a 60-day money-back guarantee, and theres a 14-day free trial.
Avast One
Avast One is an all-in-one security and privacy solution that protects your online activities.
It also notifies you if it finds any sign of hacking involving your social media accounts.
Its Advanced Firewall helps block sophisticated attacks.
Moreover, it provides suggestions for protecting your connection when you join unsecured connections like public Wi-Fi.
Theres also a File Shredder feature to permanently delete sensitive data beyond recovery.
Avast One is available for Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS devices.
Its pricing starts at $2.99/month for 3 devices, and all plans come with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
System Privacy Enhancers
Here is my favorite system privacy enhancer to tackle various privacy issues.
This tiny tool, which doesnt require installation, can easily enhance your Windows 10 and Windows 11 privacy.
I downloaded it to my Windows 11 PC to test it.
It offers all essential Windows privacy parameters in one place to manage them.
You dont have to change Windows tweaks manually.
O&O ShutUp10++ is free to use.
Its available only for Windows 10 and Windows 11.
Facebook, for example, is known to collect extensive user data.
Unsurprisingly, only 18% of social media users[4]trusted Facebook with their data.
So, you should proactively focus on security and privacy across all social media platforms.
Based on my testing, I recommend the following privacy utilities for social media.
Its a helpful tool for customizing your Facebook experience.
Social Fixer has advanced filtering capabilities that let you create rules to process posts in your news feed.
I added the Social Fixer Extension to my Edge web client to test it.
As shown in the screenshot below, it offers various pre-built filters you’re free to use immediately.
Another useful feature of Social Fixer is that it adjusts the behavior of theEnter keywhile commenting.
It also allows you to back up your tweaks, tweaks, and data.
Users like Social Fixer.
One Reddit user said the following in appreciation of Matt, who created this tool.
McAfee Social Privacy Manager
Social media platforms collect user data to serve personalized news feeds and ads.
So, its no surprise that these platforms have made privacy parameters confusing and challenging to adjust.
Social Privacy Manager is an inbuilt feature of most McAfee protection premium plans.
Its a good tool for increasing privacy on social media accounts.
It provides privacy options for content visibility, platform experience, ad preference, and more.
9 Benefits of Using Privacy Tools
Privacy tools prevent identity theft and online surveillance.
They also protect your sensitive data from unauthorized access.
Lets explore the key benefits of using privacy tools below.
Enhanced Data Security
To improve data security, you must encrypt and preserve your data in secure storage devices.
Encryption tools, password managers, and secure cloud storage providers help you do that.
Online Anonymity
Internet anonymity involves hiding your personal identity online.
It prevents websites and other users from connecting your actions to your real self.
Anonymity is achieved by hiding your IP address and encrypting your online activities.
Privacy tools like VPNs and Tor hide your IP addresses and encrypt online traffic, offering anonymity online.
For example,Surfsharkoffers an Alternative ID feature to mask your identity and phone number.
Protection Against Tracking
Websites collect data through trackers to offer personalized content and ads.
Privacy tools like Brave, DuckDuckGo, uBlock Origin, Ghostery, and Privacy Badger block online trackers.
Secure Communication
Secure communication employs end-to-end encryption to protect the privacy of your messages.
For instance, Signal encrypts your messages with end-to-end encryption and hides your information through metadata protection.
Control Over Personal Data
Privacy tools improve your control over your personal data.
Freedom from Geo-restrictions
VPNs let you connect to servers in different countries.
They hide your actual IP address and display the IP address from your chosen location.
Improved Browsing Experience
Privacy-focused browsers like Brave or DuckDuckGo block ads and third-party trackers on sites you visit.
This boosts your browsing experience by removing intrusive elements.
So, privacy tools can support your organizations compliance with privacy regulations, such as GDPR or CCPA.
Its time to take control of your digital safety.
Explore the tools on this list and find the right fit for your privacy needs!
