Guide to Browsing the Internet Efficiently and Securely

For tools we depend on for everything from socializing to shopping, browsers can be infuriatingly unwieldy and unsafe. Are you tired of dealing with nonsensical UI elements, juggling windows, and having to suffer through ten different ads before reaching an article? Read this one to supercharge and lock down your browser!

Improving Browsing Speed

You can do little about slow website loading times on your end, but that doesn't mean you can't speed browsing up in other ways. Here are some zippy tips to try.

Learn the Essential Keyboard Shortcuts

While you can do everything in a browser with a mouse on the desktop, the right keyboard shortcuts are often faster and more convenient. For example, why navigate to the address bar and manually select text to delete when you can just press CTRL + L? There are dozens of helpful shortcuts to memorize, and most work across browsers. Our favorite is CTRL + SHIFT + T, which opens a previously closed tab!

Use an Ad Blocker

The number and obnoxiousness of ads you have to sift through to get to the content you want to see have become too high. Google’s end of support for well-known ad blockers isn’t helping either. However, you still have options like uBlock Origin if you don’t mind switching to a non-Chromium browser like Firefox.

It shouldn't take too long to adapt, and the difference in how clean and user-friendly your browsing experience will become is night and day.

Use Search Operators

Search engines aren’t mind readers, and they’re becoming more adept at serving up sponsored content than actually useful search results. Help them along by enhancing your searches with operators. They’re super helpful for ensuring the search contains an exact phrase or doesn’t contain results created after the ChatGPT-driven AI content explosion.

A bonus tip the above guide doesn’t provide is to end your searches with “Reddit.” Ironically, the platform’s users have become more adept at answering many questions than actual search engines!

Create Several Browser Profiles

Part of browsing more efficiently is keeping things organized. Some people do this by using different browsers for different tasks. However, you can become more organized conveniently if you set up multiple profiles in the same browser.

The benefits are many—you can have different profiles for work, shopping, casual browsing, etc., and they won't overlap. Each has its own theme, bookmarks, history, and even extensions.

Improving Browsing Security

Since digital threats are getting more widespread and complex, practicing safe browsing habits is more important than ever. Here's what to keep in mind.

Only Visit Secure Websites

Most websites are now encrypted, meaning that information you enter on them is protected and hackers can’t decipher it. However, some sites, especially if they aren’t maintained or are designed to steal your data, don’t have these protections. Check your address bar. If there’s a padlock on the left and the address starts with HTTPS, you’re good.

Let Your Browser Update Automatically

We’ve all groaned at seeing that progress bar instead of the regular browser window, but automatic updates are vital. Each brings new features that enhance the browsing experience. More importantly, new updates address known security issues.

Limit What Others Can Learn About You

Some people put their lives on display on social media, yet simply browsing can tell interested parties a lot about you. Take just your IP address, for example. It's assigned by your ISP, which can track it to see which websites you've visited. Advertisers also use your IP address and third-party cookies to annoy you with ads even when you move away from the website where they first popped up.

Luckily, you can manage your IP’s exposure in several ways. One is to use a privacy-focused browser. In some cases, you may find VPNs that offer dedicated IPs and split tunneling, which provide a consistent address while still protecting your privacy—useful if you need to avoid captchas or access IP-restricted services without sharing an address with thousands of others.

Featured Image by Freepik.