DuckDuck Go, privacy browser surrenders to Microsoft

DuckDuckGo, a web browsing software, would have signed an agreement with Microsoft, with which the Redmond company will be able to track users even when they use the browser made famous by the privacy-oriented features.

The tracking was uncovered by security researcher Zach Edwards, who posted an account of his analysis on Twitter stating that "while DuckDuckGo blocks Google and Facebook trackers, it has allowed Microsoft's trackers to continue working."

According to the researcher, Microsoft can therefore activate the tracking of the IP address of those who use DuckDuckGo to surf the internet.

Unlike other browsers, DuckDuckGo does not store searches made as you type on web engines, such as Google, but allows Microsoft to use trackers on sites it manages itself, such as Bing and LinkedIn.

This means that the software does not hide, as it usually does, the activities of users on the sites that are part of the agreement, thus being able to share the information created at each visit with companies.

The data does not include strictly sensitive elements but already with only the IP address it is possible to follow the operations of a person on the network, offering personalized advertisements and banners.

One of the reasons why DuckDuckGo had risen in notoriety over the years was the built-in anti-tracking functionality, with no exclusions.

In front of Zach Edwards' post, DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg,