At DuckDuckGo, we don’t track you, ever. That’s our Privacy Policy in a nutshell. For example, we do not create unique cookies and architect our product so that we do not even have the ability to create a search or browsing history for any individual — it’s privacy by design.
There may be cases when you want more accurate ___location-based results like local weather and restaurants. We can still serve results for searches like these (including instant answers and ads) while keeping you anonymous.
To do this, DuckDuckGo Search simply guesses your ___location using a GEO::IP lookup with the IP address that's automatically sent to us via your device; then we throw away the IP address. Per our Privacy Policy, we don’t save your IP address on our servers. We only use this GeoIP info to anonymously improve our search services, and our default search experience was designed so that we don’t need to request any additional information than what you are already sending.
This process isn’t always accurate enough; for example, DuckDuckGo Search may end up assuming you’re hundreds of miles away from where you actually are, especially on mobile phone networks that route traffic through a central hub. That’s why we built an option that lets you improve the accuracy of your local search results.
When you see a prompt like the one above, "Use Location" will let you share your browser ___location to improve the accuracy of results while still hiding your precise ___location from DuckDuckGo.
Major web browsers have access to more accurate ___location information using a variety of techniques, including Wi-Fi databases, cell tower ___location databases, and GPS. When you see one of these standard browser prompts, you are being asked whether your browser can obtain this more accurate ___location for use by the webpage indicated. In our case, we engineered a solution to shield that more accurate ___location from us.
The ___location returned by your browser is stored locally on your device. The next time you perform a local search, selecting “Use Location” will send us a random ___location nearby, while hiding your actual ___location from DuckDuckGo. We use that random ___location to generate your results.
If available on your device, enabling Precise Location in your app permissions will yield the most accurate local results. If you’d rather choose a custom ___location instead, you can pick “Set Location on Map” instead of “Use Location.” This bypasses the browser ___location permission, but still keeps your precise ___location anonymous to us.
The only time we’ll use your exact ___location during a search, rather than a randomized ___location nearby, is to ensure accuracy when you request map directions. In this case, the information is only used to generate your directions and is not saved on DuckDuckGo's servers.
To be clear, this means that even if you opt-in to using a more accurate ___location, your searches will still be anonymous.
Learn more about your browser’s ___location services
As mentioned above, browsers use a variety of techniques browsers use to identify an accurate ___location, which may present their own privacy implications. These vary by browser and depend in part on the ___location service the browser uses. Most major browsers provide detailed information on the ___location service they use and its associated policies:
- Firefox (uses Google Location Services): https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/does-firefox-share-my-___location-websites
- Chrome (uses Google Location Services): https://policies.google.com/technologies/___location-data?hl=en-US#how-find
- Safari (uses Apple Location Services): https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204690
- Edge (uses Windows Location Services): https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-edge/___location-and-privacy-in-microsoft-edge-31b5d154-0b1b-90ef-e389-7c7d4ffe7b04