Is incognito mode really anonymous?

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Got into an argument with a buddy about browser privacy. I told him that when you work in incognito mode, you’re completely anonymous and nobody knows what you’re doing there. He says that’s complete bullshit and even in this mode they can track you. Is that true and which one of us is right?

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Your buddy’s closer to being right here. Incognito mode just stops your browser from saving history, cookies, and login info on your device. Your internet provider, employer, websites you visit, they all still see your activity. Your IP address is visible, so your location and identity can be tracked. Schools and companies monitoring their networks can see exactly what sites you’re hitting even in incognito. It basically just keeps your roommate from seeing your search history, nothing more.

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Incognito mode gives you way less privacy than most people think. Websites still collect browser fingerprints through screen resolution, installed fonts, timezone, language settings, and tons of other data points. These fingerprints can identify you pretty accurately across sessions even in incognito. You can learn what is browser fingerprinting here https://gologin.com/blog/what-is-browser-fingerprinting/ . It breaks down how the tracking works and why incognito mode doesn’t make you anonymous at all.

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