Every time you browse the web, dozens of trackers follow you across sites, building profiles of your interests, behavior, and identity. These profiles are used for targeted advertising, sold to data brokers, and in some cases used by governments and employers. Here's how to stop the tracking — starting with the most important tools.
Table of Contents
Types of Online Tracking
IP Address Tracking
Every website you visit sees your IP address — a number that uniquely identifies your network connection and can be used to determine your location (down to the city level) and your identity (via ISP records).
Cookie Tracking
Websites place small files (cookies) on your device. Third-party cookies from ad networks like Google and Meta follow you across millions of websites, tracking which pages you visit.
Browser Fingerprinting
Even without cookies, websites can identify you by the unique combination of your browser version, screen size, fonts, timezone, and hundreds of other settings — creating a "fingerprint" that's unique to your device.
ISP Data Collection
Your internet provider sees all unencrypted traffic passing through their network and, in many countries, is permitted to sell this data to advertisers or hand it to government agencies.
VPN: Hide Your IP and ISP Data
A VPN addresses two of the biggest tracking vectors simultaneously:
- Hides your IP address — websites see the VPN server's IP, not yours
- Encrypts ISP traffic — your ISP can only see encrypted data going to a VPN server, not the sites you visit
CarrotVPN's WireGuard® encryption makes your traffic completely unreadable to your ISP, government monitoring, and network-level eavesdroppers. It does not block cookies or browser fingerprinting — those require browser-level tools.
Browser: Block Trackers at the Source
Use a privacy-focused browser or browser with privacy extensions:
- Firefox + uBlock Origin: Best combination for blocking ads and trackers. uBlock Origin in Medium Mode blocks third-party scripts by default.
- Brave Browser: Built-in ad and tracker blocking, fingerprinting protection, and HTTPS upgrade. Available on Android.
- DuckDuckGo Browser (Android): Automatic tracker blocking, fire button to clear sessions, email protection built in.
Private DNS: Stop DNS Logging
When you type a URL, your device asks a DNS server to translate it to an IP address. By default, your ISP's DNS servers log every site you visit. Switch to a privacy-respecting DNS:
- Cloudflare 1.1.1.1: Logs nothing beyond 24 hours, audited by KPMG
- Quad9 (9.9.9.9): Blocks malware domains, no logging
- NextDNS: Configurable ad and tracker blocking at the DNS level
On Android, go to Settings → Network → Private DNS and enter 1dot1dot1dot1.cloudflare-dns.com.
Private Search Engines
Google builds a comprehensive profile of every search you make. Switch to a private search engine:
- DuckDuckGo: No search history stored, no personalized results based on your profile
- Startpage: Shows Google results without the tracking
- Brave Search: Independent index, no tracking
Stop App Tracking on Android
Android 12+ includes an App Tracking Transparency-style control. Go to Settings → Privacy → Ads and enable "Opt out of Ads Personalization." Also:
- Review app permissions (Settings → Apps → [App] → Permissions) — revoke location for apps that don't need it
- Disable "Ad ID" to prevent cross-app tracking via advertising identifier
- Use CarrotVPN to encrypt all app traffic, preventing apps from exfiltrating data on insecure networks
Recommended Privacy Stack
The minimal privacy toolkit for Android:
- VPN: CarrotVPN (free, WireGuard®, no logs)
- Browser: Brave or Firefox + uBlock Origin
- Search: DuckDuckGo
- DNS: Cloudflare 1.1.1.1 (set as Private DNS)
- Email: ProtonMail or Tutanota for sensitive communication
Start with the Easiest Privacy Win
Install CarrotVPN and hide your IP from every website you visit — in one tap.
Download CarrotVPN Free