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Shopping on Amazon is awesome until you realize third parties can pry into your shopping habits. Thankfully, there are a few ways to protect your privacy on the world’s largest e-commerce platform.
1Make Your Profile and Wish Lists Private
Despite the convenience it brings, Amazon is also borderline predatory when it comes to your data. It gets scarier the more Amazon services and devices you use, so before focusing on your online profile, I recommendadjusting your Alexa privacy settingsfirst.
After you’ve silenced (or at least impeded) Jeff Bezos’s bug, it’s time to make your Amazon profile more private.
At the time of writing, the new lists you create are private by default. This wasn’t always the case, though, so there may be a possibility random people on the internet can see the stuff you’re window shopping for. Here’s how to change your Amazon list privacy settings:
In fact, it’s also a good idea to make your entire profile private so you may stop sellers from retaliating if you leave a bad review. Here’s how:
Voila! You’re now incognito to other Amazon users!
2Disable Interest-Based Ads
You may never be able to fully escape shady data collection practices on the web, but you’re able to at least disable Amazon’s targeted ads. That way, you’ll minimize your chances of falling victim to impulse purchases.
Opting out of these ads is surprisingly easy:
That’s it—Amazon’s ads will no longer creep up on you online.
3Disable Amazon Search History
Did you know everything you’ve looked up on Amazon since creating your account is logged? Sometimes, you may want to remove specific entries from the list. Even better, you can disable your Amazon browser history altogether.
This has a few drawbacks, as recent searches will no longer appear in the search bar, and Amazon will no longer recommend relevant items. However, it’s worth it, as turning off browsing history will stop the retail giant from peeking into your browsing history.
4Use a Private Browser
I get it; apps are much more convenient than websites. Still, if you care about privacy, it’s the right time to switch to old-school browsing.
As soon as you download the Amazon app, you’re giving the company new avenues for accessing your information. For example, did you know apps can track your location and see which devices are connected to your Wi-Fi?
For some extra privacy perks,you should use a privacy-focused browser. These browsers come with built-in privacy features like script blocking, anti-fingerprinting, and anti-canvas tools and are useful to boost your privacy.
If you take all the steps outlined above, your Amazon shopping experience will be more enjoyable, and you’ll protect your precious data!
