Best online anonymity apps. This is a complete and yet extremely simplified guide on online anonymity. If you use half the apps on here, you’ll almost be invisible on the internet, no kidding.
Neither the govt. nor your ISP will be able to trace/track your location, or your internet activities.
Almost all the apps I’ve listed are free. That would mean you can disappear off the grid, without spending a fortune!
Anonymity should be a choice, not something that only criminals or those “with something to hide” opt for. If you agree, keep reading.
Here are the online anonymity apps you need to get right now [free]
Here’s a list of everything I’m discussing on this piece. I’ve curated this as a “package” for you, covering nearly every aspect of your online being.
You wouldn’t be worrying about your identity, e-mails, files, messages, browsing history, or even digital fingerprints once you’ve gone through these.
- A VPN- for hiding your IP address
- An anonymous browser– So your activities & devices aren’t fingerprinted.
- An anonymous e-mail provider– So you can send e-mails without sending your identity.
- Anonymous instant messaging: For obvious reasons
- Anonymous cloud storage: So the govt. or other third-parties do not know what files you own.
- Search engines: So Google and its friends do not know what you search for.
A VPN
Get a VPN: https://www.nordvpn.com
A VPN is the best online anonymity app you can get. In fact, it’s the best “anonymity” tool for anything and everything related to the internet.
It’s a simple software you can download that “masks your IP address”. Now, your IP address is how you’re identified on the web. Using your IP address, anyone can retrieve your location, connect your browser activities to you, and in some cases even hack into your system.
Using a VPN is extremely easy. In most cases, you only need a single-click. You simply choose a country, the VPN automatically replaces your original IP with an IP from that country. Everything you do on the web after selecting the country is completely de-linked to your real location or identity.
Now, choosing a VPN can be real tricky. In fact, not having a VPN is better than using the wrong VPN. If you need a straight answer, just go with NordVPN.
If you’d pick one yourself, just make sure it has a publicly audited and verified no log policy. Secondly, it shouldn’t be a part of the “Five-Eye” group. Third, it must allow for Cryptocurrency payments. Lastly, advanced features such as Split Tunnelling and Dark web optimization do help as well.
An Anonymous Browser
Most browsers you use trace and track you.
Browsers know a lot about you. They know where you live (literally), what you search for, how much time you spend on each website, which OS/device you’re using, your screen size and so much more.
Browsers also let websites track you individually. These websites then know almost everything you search for, like, or do on a website.
This is why you need a browser which respects your privacy. Brave is a 100% free browser that makes this possible. It looks and feels exactly like Google Chrome, minus all its trackers and other intrusions.
In fact, Brave even has in-built ad-blockers that make Youtube a completely different experience.
Tor Browser
Tor is another browser you shouldn’t ignore if you’re searching for online anonymity apps.
It’s popular mostly as a “dark web browser” or “onion network browser”. However, it totally can be used to browse the normal web as well.
Do note that Tor resembles a VPN in some regards. Tor hides your IP address from your ISP and the govt. as well. It does this by routing your connection via various volunteer nodes before spitting your request out to your target website.
There’s no history, no cookies, no fingerprinting not even screen-size. Yes, Tor uses a different screen-size on the browser making sure your real screen-size isn’t shared.
Now, Tor isn’t meant for normal browsing. As a result, you may loose images, animations and a few other things when browsing. However, it definitely can be used to browse normal websites. In fact, it’s one of the most anonymous ways to do so.
Anonymous e-mail
What’s one of the most common things you do online? Send/receive emails, don’t you?
Did you know your emails aren’t private? Some of the biggest e-mail providers have accepted being able to “read” user e-mails. Yes, “read”, without your consent.
Even when they can’t read it, these providers still log and share your IP address, name and other such private details with govt. agencies when forced to do so.
This is why you need an encrypted and anonymous e-mail provider.
Skiff is an End-to-End encrypted e-mail provider. E2E means no third-party, not even the company can read your emails. It’s not just a “choice”, but a technical impossibility for any third-party to read your e-mails.
Similarly, you can also go with Protonmail. It too is E2E encrypted, free, based in Switzerland and lets you send anonymous e-mails.
Tutanota is another similar option. Free, E2E encrypted and is based out of Germany.
Anonymous instant messaging
Now, most instant messaging apps you use are probably “end to end encrypted”, such as Whatsapp. However, they aren’t “anonymous”. Meaning, you’re required to share your personal details to use the service.
This means, while the contents of your messages are secure, your identity still isn’t. This is where you need an anonymous instant messaging app.
There are multiple options you can go with. However, I’d recommend going with Signal if you need an online anonymity app for instant messaging.
It offers all the features that Whatsapp does, without all the trackers/links to your social media accounts.
You can send messages, enjoy video calls, create and chat in groups and much more. All of this is E2E encrypted, and completely free. Signal is a non-profit and open-source.
Moreover, the app is even recommended by Edward Snowden, Elon Musk and even the founder of Twitter- Jack Dorsey.
You can also go with Telegram. This is something else that’ll let you chat with complete anonymity, E2E encrypted, and is free. On Telegram, you can add friends and talk to them without even sharing your number.
If you’d rather be 100% anonymous and sign up without a number, you can look at Ricochet. It’s computer-based instant messaging app that’s extremely advanced and completely anonymous. No numbers, signups or any other personal details are required.
Online anonymous cloud storage
What’s the cloud storage app you use? It’s probably Google Drive or Dropbox or something similar, isn’t it? Google Drive is owned by Google, one of the most controversial tech-giants on the planet. Dropbox was slammed by Snowden for bad privacy.
You need something that’s anonymous and doesn’t have access to your data (E2E encrypted).
A good place to start is NordLocker. It’s a newer product from NordVPN. NordVPN has proved itself to be “the” most secure, anonymous, and privacy-respecting companies on the planet, through “independent and third-party audit”.
NordLocker too is End-to-End encrypted, and it’s free. More importantly, all its encryption & decryption is in real-time. Meaning, you do not have to “wait” to open your encrypted files.
Tresorit is another application you can go with. E2E encrypted, Swiss-based, amazing collaboration features and a lot more is offered.
Sync is another E2E encrypted cloud storage provider. It provides 5GB free storage, password protected sharing and other amazing collaboration features. pCloud is a similar solution although it requires additional payment for encryption. If you have the cash, it’s totally worth it though.
Anonymous search engines
Finally, we all use search engines to search for almost everything on the Internet, don’t we?
Now, if you’re using a VPN and an anonymous browser, you’ve half won this battle. However, to win the war, you must switch to an anonymous search engine.
Basically any search engine that doesn’t care who you are, what you search for, which links you click on or anything else you do.
Now, there are a few of those. However, only one comes close to a site index as good as Google- Duck Duck Go.
Yacy is another privacy-respecting search engine worth a peek. It’s a bit more advanced than traditional search engines. It’s decentralized, and lets you “make your own search engine”, you heard that right.
This search engine doesn’t track you or your browsing habits. It’s truly anonymous and has a massive link index. It even blocks ads.
Online Anonymity apps- Closing words
So, which are the best online anonymity apps? I’ll say all of these.
If you notice, I’ve curated this list based on “purpose”. So, there’s the VPN for IP-masking, Brave for anonymous browsing, Skiff and Proton for anonymous e-mails and so on.
Of course, you can find alternatives to everything I’ve mentioned on this list. However, all the mentions here are based on my personal experience and use. Moreover, these are mostly free and hence going with them would still save you some time.
If it’s too much for you, I’ll suggest get just the VPN. That’s one of the strongest (and easiest) anonymity steps you can take. However, if you opt for multiple of these anonymity apps, I guarantee you’ll be untraceable on the web.
That’ll be all folks. Do remember that while you’re untraceable, engaging in illegal activities is still not encouraged or supported. You’ll solely be responsible for any and all of your usage of these online anonymity apps.
