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In the settings, http://duckduckgo.com/settings.html http://duckduckgo.com/settings.html, you can turn on POST requests as well as disable favicons and 0-click.

In the settings, http://duckduckgo.com/settings.html http://duckduckgo.com/settings.html, you can turn on POST requests as well as disable favicons and 0-click. Switching to POST alone should fix this issue for you. In particular the Referer heading then becomes: Referer: https://duckduckgo.com/ https://duckduckgo.com/

jacquesm 16y ago
Better make that the default then for secure searches!
- epi0Bauqu 16y ago
  Some people, perhaps most, don't like POST because it is annoying to copy URLs and use the back button. I'm not opposed to making it the default for https, but I don't want to make a default that most people don't want either.
  - jacquesm 16y ago
    That's a good point. Maye you could put a small warning on the page if they disable 'POST' that there might be leakage of their search terms to the sites they visit? "Hello dear user, you probably know exactly what you're doing, but on the off-chance that you don't, please realize that disabling the POST option for https connections may leak your search terms to the visiting site". Or something to that effect.
    - mike-cardwell 16y ago
      The problem is not that the referer leaks to the sites you click through to. The referer leaks to sites as soon as the results page is displayed because there are externally hosted images embedded in the results page.
      - jacquesm 16y ago
        But a post would take care of that right ? After all, then the referring url would just be the search page without any parameters. So if you switch off the post then leakage would occur, with the 'post' enabled you're fine. edit: I see what you mean now, if they switch to 'get' mode it leaks the info even to sites they don't visit. One more good reason to use that post!
  - orblivion 16y ago
    But what's the point of an https search if it's not really secure? The only thing the user is trying to hide is the query, and it's not being entirely hidden. For users who are annoyed, you could explain to them somewhere on the site that you don't put it in the URL because it exposes their query. If they really want a secure search, I imagine they'll understand the tradeoff.
jimboyoungblood 16y ago
how about you set up a separate domain (e.g., supersecretduck.com) where all the options you mention above default to their paranoid settings?
- MikeCapone 16y ago
  If that separate domain can be used in the Chrome URL bar, count me in. Thought it would be even better if it could be done using the main URL in the Chrome URL bar somehow...
  - baddox 16y ago
    If the domain exists it can be used in the Chrome URL bar. Any search engine that puts its queries in the URL can be added manually to Chrome.
    - fhars 16y ago
      The whole point of using POST is to remove the queries from the URL, though.
      - Pistos2 16y ago
        In Opera, when setting up search engines [which can be used directly in the address bar], you have the option of using POST instead of GET.
  - clusterfu_k 16y ago
    Why use chrome if you seek privacy?
    - MikeCapone 16y ago
      Why not? Could you please elaborate.
- orblivion 16y ago
  Or make it automatic or at least default for https? If you're using https, the only thing you have to hide is your search term, right? And that's what's being exposed to Amazon, or whoever else is seeing your URL along the way.
MikeCapone 16y ago
Does the POST switch works when you are using DDG via the Google Chrome URL bar? (I have it set at "https://duckduckgo.com/?q=%s https://duckduckgo.com/?q=%s)
- okahn 16y ago
  Doesn't seem to, no. The page I land on is still http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news.
  - mike-cardwell 16y ago
    Encrypting the url parameters is the way to go: Requests for: http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news Should HTTP redirect to something like: http://duckduckgo.com/?enc=34g7h3giuh3g http://duckduckgo.com/?enc=34g7h3giuh3g Where 34g7h3giuh3g would be the ciphertext generated by encrypting "hacker news". That page knows what the search term was because it will have decrypted the parameters on the server side, but any referers would just contain "garbage", and it would also mean people can copy/paste the address bar about.
    - apgwoz 16y ago
      all the other person has to do then is perform a search to see the secret terms. granted, it's better than it showing up in plain text in the referrer, but you could easily write a script to scrape the actual terms...
      - mike-cardwell 16y ago
        Yes, you're right. I didn't think of that.
      - erikpukinskis 16y ago
        What if you use the IP address of the user as a seed for the encryption? Then if someone else used the same key from a different IP they'd get different search terms?
Tichy 16y ago
Moving such stuff to "settings" is hardly a good solution for wanting to stay anonymous. After all, it probably means you'll have to be logged in.
- epi0Bauqu 16y ago
  There are no accounts and these settings can be set without cookies as well.
  - Tichy 16y ago
    How do you do it without cookies? Changing the settings for each search?
    - epi0Bauqu 16y ago
      You hardwire a specific URL query string into your browser search bar. Here are the params: http://duckduckgo.com/params.html http://duckduckgo.com/params.html
  - onedognight 16y ago
    Furthermore, the setting cookies are simple transparent cookies (f=-1 to turn off favicons), they are not tracking cookies. They are only used when you set the preference and then only contain your preference itself.

jacquesm 16y ago

Better make that the default then for secure searches!

epi0Bauqu 16y ago
Some people, perhaps most, don't like POST because it is annoying to copy URLs and use the back button. I'm not opposed to making it the default for https, but I don't want to make a default that most people don't want either.
- jacquesm 16y ago
  That's a good point. Maye you could put a small warning on the page if they disable 'POST' that there might be leakage of their search terms to the sites they visit? "Hello dear user, you probably know exactly what you're doing, but on the off-chance that you don't, please realize that disabling the POST option for https connections may leak your search terms to the visiting site". Or something to that effect.
  - mike-cardwell 16y ago
    The problem is not that the referer leaks to the sites you click through to. The referer leaks to sites as soon as the results page is displayed because there are externally hosted images embedded in the results page.
    - jacquesm 16y ago
      But a post would take care of that right ? After all, then the referring url would just be the search page without any parameters. So if you switch off the post then leakage would occur, with the 'post' enabled you're fine. edit: I see what you mean now, if they switch to 'get' mode it leaks the info even to sites they don't visit. One more good reason to use that post!
- orblivion 16y ago
  But what's the point of an https search if it's not really secure? The only thing the user is trying to hide is the query, and it's not being entirely hidden. For users who are annoyed, you could explain to them somewhere on the site that you don't put it in the URL because it exposes their query. If they really want a secure search, I imagine they'll understand the tradeoff.

jimboyoungblood 16y ago

how about you set up a separate domain (e.g., supersecretduck.com) where all the options you mention above default to their paranoid settings?

MikeCapone 16y ago
If that separate domain can be used in the Chrome URL bar, count me in. Thought it would be even better if it could be done using the main URL in the Chrome URL bar somehow...
- baddox 16y ago
  If the domain exists it can be used in the Chrome URL bar. Any search engine that puts its queries in the URL can be added manually to Chrome.
  - fhars 16y ago
    The whole point of using POST is to remove the queries from the URL, though.
    - Pistos2 16y ago
      In Opera, when setting up search engines [which can be used directly in the address bar], you have the option of using POST instead of GET.
- clusterfu_k 16y ago
  Why use chrome if you seek privacy?
  - MikeCapone 16y ago
    Why not? Could you please elaborate.
orblivion 16y ago
Or make it automatic or at least default for https? If you're using https, the only thing you have to hide is your search term, right? And that's what's being exposed to Amazon, or whoever else is seeing your URL along the way.

MikeCapone 16y ago

Does the POST switch works when you are using DDG via the Google Chrome URL bar? (I have it set at "https://duckduckgo.com/?q=%s https://duckduckgo.com/?q=%s)

okahn 16y ago
Doesn't seem to, no. The page I land on is still http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news.
- mike-cardwell 16y ago
  Encrypting the url parameters is the way to go: Requests for: http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news http://duckduckgo.com/?q=hacker+news Should HTTP redirect to something like: http://duckduckgo.com/?enc=34g7h3giuh3g http://duckduckgo.com/?enc=34g7h3giuh3g Where 34g7h3giuh3g would be the ciphertext generated by encrypting "hacker news". That page knows what the search term was because it will have decrypted the parameters on the server side, but any referers would just contain "garbage", and it would also mean people can copy/paste the address bar about.
  - apgwoz 16y ago
    all the other person has to do then is perform a search to see the secret terms. granted, it's better than it showing up in plain text in the referrer, but you could easily write a script to scrape the actual terms...
    - mike-cardwell 16y ago
      Yes, you're right. I didn't think of that.
    - erikpukinskis 16y ago
      What if you use the IP address of the user as a seed for the encryption? Then if someone else used the same key from a different IP they'd get different search terms?

Tichy 16y ago

Moving such stuff to "settings" is hardly a good solution for wanting to stay anonymous. After all, it probably means you'll have to be logged in.

epi0Bauqu 16y ago
There are no accounts and these settings can be set without cookies as well.
- Tichy 16y ago
  How do you do it without cookies? Changing the settings for each search?
  - epi0Bauqu 16y ago
    You hardwire a specific URL query string into your browser search bar. Here are the params: http://duckduckgo.com/params.html http://duckduckgo.com/params.html
- onedognight 16y ago
  Furthermore, the setting cookies are simple transparent cookies (f=-1 to turn off favicons), they are not tracking cookies. They are only used when you set the preference and then only contain your preference itself.