Want to delete your Google search history on your Android phone, iPhone or laptop? Here’s how you do it.
By Priya Pathak: Nothing is safe on the web. Almost every other day we come across reports about how personal data are sold on the dark web. Incidents of online privacy threats have also become very common these days. But there are multiple ways to stay safe online as. To start with, you should look into your browser carefully. Most web browsers have a practice of holding onto the information which if left unchecked for long can affect your logins or access to other websites.
Google, one of the widely used browsers globally, stores everything on its server that you search in the browser. There have been multiple reports claiming that Google spies on its user, collect data, and shares it with other companies. The company also targets ads using these data. Therefore, it is always better to delete your search history, cache history, and clear cookies on a routine basis. If you are looking to delete your Google search history, here's a detailed guide to help you do so.
How to delete Google search history on iPhone
- Go to your Google My Activity.
- You can see all your activities here. Tap on delete right above the activity.
- Tap All Time
- Tap Next and then Delete. This will delete all your search history at once. You can also individually delete or set to automatic deletion by going to Manage your account> Data & privacy> History settings> Tap auto delete> Next> Confirm
How to delete Google search history on Android
- Open the Chrome app.
- Tap on three dots> History
- Tap Clear Browsing Data
- You can select the time range for data you wish to delete from options given next to Time Range. For everything, tap All time
- Check Browsing history. Uncheck any other data you don't want to delete.
- Tap Clear data.
How to delete Google search history on PC/laptop
- Go to manage your account from Gmail or click on three vertical dots in the Chrome app
- Tap on History
- You will see all your browsing data here.
- You can delete everything by tapping on "Clear browsing data" given on the right side of the window or individually select information and delete.
Learn how to delete your history, cookies, and cache in Settings.
Delete history, cache, and cookies
- To clear your history and cookies, go to Settings > Safari, and tap Clear History and Website Data. Clearing your history, cookies, and browsing data from Safari won't change your AutoFill information.
- To clear your cookies and keep your history, go to Settings > Safari > Advanced > Website Data, then tap Remove All Website Data.
- To visit sites without leaving a history, turn Private Browsing on.
When there's no history or website data to clear, the setting turns gray. The setting might also be gray if you have web content restrictions set up under Content & Privacy Restrictions in Screen Time.
Block cookies
A cookie is a piece of data that a site puts on your device, so that site can remember you when you visit again. To choose whether Safari blocks cookies, tap Settings > Safari, then turn on Block All Cookies.
If you block cookies, some web pages might not work. Here are some examples:
- You will likely not be able to sign in to a site even when using your correct username and password.
- You might see a message that cookies are required or that your browser's cookies are off.
- Some features on a site might not work.
Use content blockers
Content blockers are third-party apps and extensions that let Safari block cookies, images, resources, pop-ups, and other content.
To get a content blocker:
- Download a content blocking app from the App Store.
- Tap Settings > Safari > Extensions.
- Tap to turn on a listed content blocker.
You can use more than one content blocker. If you need help, contact the app developer.
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Published Date: December 16, 2021