Browser Privacy and Security Settings

Every major browser (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari) ships with privacy and security controls most people never open. None of these require technical knowledge — they're a handful of settings worth checking once and revisiting occasionally.

Modern browsers include a built-in tracker blocker, usually under a setting called "Tracking Prevention," "Enhanced Protection," or similar. It's worth confirming it's actually set to its strongest non-breaking level — it's sometimes left on a weaker default.

The browser's own password manager (covered in more depth in the earlier password lesson) is worth reviewing periodically — checking for any weak or reused passwords the browser flags, and removing saved logins for accounts that no longer exist.

Sites accumulate permissions over time — camera, microphone, location, notifications — often granted once, years ago, for a site no longer even used. The browser's site settings page lists every permission ever granted, by site, and lets each one be revoked individually.

Saved addresses, phone numbers, and card details speed up checkout forms, but they're also exactly the data a malicious or compromised site could try to harvest silently. Reviewing what's actually saved there — and removing anything no longer needed, especially old card details — is worth doing alongside the password review.