The browsing history includes the list of web pages you visit while surfing the internet. As you continue navigating from one webpage to another, your laptops, computers, and mobile devices save your digital footprints with the help of cookies to save information that primarily includes the exact date and time you visited a page. Many people dislike storing such information; they prefer clearing the browser history.
But why should any of you delete your browsing history and cookies?
In 2013, hackers stole Yahoo’s proprietary code related to their use of web cookies. The code they stole enabled them to bypass the password security of more than 32 million Yahoo users.
Now that you know how important it is to clear browser history, you can take comfort in learning that you can erase your digital footprints from any device, including laptops, computers and mobile devices. However, keep in mind that each browser maintains its own history, so you will have to clear the browsing history of each browser separately.
In this blog, we will let you know how you can clear browser history from the most popular browsers used on Laptops/PCs and mobile phones.
Table of Contents
How to Clear Browser History on Windows PCs and Laptops?
Google Chrome and Firefox are the most popular browsers people use on Windows PCs and Laptops. The steps to clear history from these web browsers are given below:
Steps to Clear Browsing History on Google Chrome
- Launch Google Chrome on your laptop/PC and press ‘Ctrl+Shift+Delete’ to view the ‘Clear Browsing Data’ options.
- Use the mouse or touchpad to check all the categories you wish to wipe off the slate under the ‘Basic’ and ‘Advanced’ tabs. Furthermore, use the drop-down placed on top of the window to select the time frame of history you want to clear.
- Click the ‘Clear Browsing Data’ button.
Steps to Clear Browsing History on Mozilla Firefox
- Press ‘Ctrl+Shift+Delete’ to open the ‘Clear Recent History’ options after launching the Firefox web browser.
- Click the ‘Details’ button to view all the delete search history options.
- Check all the categories you want to clear and use the ‘Time-range’ drop-down to select the duration of history you wish to delete.
- Click the ‘Clear Now’ button.
How to Clear Browser History on Macbooks and Mac Desktop PCs?
Google Chrome, Firefox and Safari are the most popular web browsers among Mac users. The steps to delete search history from these browsers are stated below:
Clear Google Search History
- Use the shortcut key ‘Cmd+Y’ to open the ‘History’ page.
- Click the ‘Clear Browsing Data’ option on the left sidebar.
- Select the time frame and use the checkboxes to select all the categories you want to clear.
- Click the ‘Clear Data’ button.
Mozilla Firefox
- Launch Firefox on your Macbook or Desktop PC and press ‘Shift+Command+Delete’ to open the history clearing options.
- Select all the categories you want to clear via checkboxes and use the ‘time-range’ drop-down to select the history length.
- Click the ‘OK’ button.
Safari
- Launch Safari and click the ‘History’ tab from the ‘Menu’ bar.
- Click ‘Clear History’ from the list of ‘History’ tab options.
- Use the ‘time-range’ drop-down to select the length of history you want to delete.
- Click the ‘Clear History’ button.
How to Clear Browser History on Android Phones?
Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox are the most popular among Android phone users. The steps to clear the search history on these browsers are listed in the following sections:
Google Chrome
- Launch the Google Chrome app from the menu.
- Tap the 3-dotted vertical icon on the top-right corner of the screen and select ‘History’.
- Tap the ‘Clear Browsing History’ on the subsequent screen.
- Select the time frame from the drop-down menu and check the categories you want to delete under the ‘Basic’ and ‘Advanced’ tabs.
- Click the ‘Clear Data’ button.
Mozilla Firefox
- Launch the app and tap the 3-dotted menu icon.
- Select ‘Settings’ and then tap the ‘Delete Browsing Data’ option.
- Select the categories you wish to erase via checkboxes and use the drop-down to select the time frame.
- Tap ‘Delete Browsing Data’.
How to Clear Browser History on iPhone?
Adhere to the steps below to clear the browsing history from the popular web browsers among iPhone users, Google Chrome, Safari, and Mozilla Firefox.
Delete Google Search History
To delete Google history, follow these steps:
- Launch the app.
- Tap the 3-dotted horizontal menu icon and select ‘History’.
- Tap the ‘Clear Browsing Data’ option on the subsequent screen.
- Select how much history log you want to erase via the ‘time-range’ drop-down.
- Use the checkboxes to select the categories you wish to clear.
- Tap ‘Done’.
Steps to Delete History on Mozilla Firefox
- Launch the app and tap the ‘Menu’ button (3 horizontal lines) from the bottom navigation panel.
- Select ‘History’ from the list of options and then proceed to tap ‘Clear Recent History’.
- Select the time frame for the logs you wish to clear out.
- Tap ‘Done’.
How to Delete History on Safari
- Launch Safari and tap the ‘Bookmark’ button (Open book icon) from the bottom navigation panel.
- Select the ‘History’ icon (The one that looks like a clock) and then go on and tap ‘Clear’.
- Choose the time frame of the history logs you wish to delete.
- Tap ‘Clear’.
What Information is Saved on a Web Browser?
As soon as you open a web browser and visit any website, it starts saving your digital footprints. The websites you visit can use these footprints to track your activities, analyse your audience’s preferences, and boost their business. On the other hand, hackers can use similar techniques to steal and misuse your data without your knowledge to steal your identity for illegal purposes.
The websites draw this info from the cookies, which web browsers store. Therefore, you must know what information your web browsers collect about you.
So, let’s look at the types of data your web browsers collect when you surf the internet.
1. Software and Hardware Details
The web browsers collect vital details about your device’s software and hardware specifications, like the battery statuses, browser preferences, IP addresses, and GPU and CPU-related information.
Hackers can use such information to bypass your system’s security by narrowing down the optimum attack method.
2. Geolocation
You know a website can pinpoint your location even if you haven’t permitted it to access your GPS coordinates. What they do is they use Google’s GeoLocation API to estimate your location accurately within 30 miles if you are using a mobile web browser to access it.
A web proxy is one way to stop a web browser from exposing your location. Furthermore, you can disable JavaScript to prevent your web browsers from using the GeoLocation API.
3. Browsing Activities
There’s no surprise in learning that a web browser keeps tabs on all of your browsing activities.
However, you may no longer feel all that comfortable when we tell you that Google, the most popular search engine in the world, maintains a record of all the activities performed on Google Chrome even if you delete it.
4. Mouse Movement Logs
You may not know this, but a web browser can also access the mouse movements.
Many companies collect this information for web browsers to create a footprint to identify their target audience. However, you can use a mobile VPN to hide these details.
5. Social Media Logins
Web browsers collect information about the login sessions when you use your social media profiles. Advertisers use such information to pitch the right products.
6. Image Data
Whenever you use your web browser to upload any image, it scans its metadata. The data it collects from scanning images includes information like camera model, image resolution and location.
7. Cookies
If you ever fill up an online form using a web browser, it will save information like your phone number, address and name. Furthermore, it saves terms you search to do the search for the same terms convenient for you in the future.
Apart from this information, web browsers use cookies to record your preferences. The preferences also include your login credentials.
8. Cache
Web browsers also have a cache. They use it to store temp files, including webpages, to speed up the load time.
