Who owns DuckDuckGo? (2024)

FAQs

Who owns DuckDuckGo? ›

About DuckDuckGo

No, we are not and have never been owned by Google or any other entity. We have been an independent company since our founding in 2008.

DuckDuckGo is an American software company that offers a number of products intended to help people protect their online privacy. The flagship product is a search engine that has been praised by privacy advocates.

Like most search engines, DuckDuckGo tries to filter out potentially dangerous sites from its search results, but it cannot guarantee complete protection against malware-ridden websites or content. This means you can still land on a webpage infected with malware or containing intrusive trackers while using DuckDuckGo.

Schools typically forbid the use of DuckDuckGo because students can use it to get around network restrictions and access inappropriate content.

Many on the right adopted it as their pro-free-speech search engine of choice, a mission DuckDuckGo never actually had but had now, somehow, violated. DuckDuckGo was accused of betraying a user base it unintentionally cultivated but didn't exactly discourage.

Because Google has a vastly larger pool of search data to dive into, it can often make an effective guess as to what you're trying to find. DuckDuckGo can also get the job done, but you might have to clean up your unusual search terms a bit to hit the nail on the head.

DuckDuckGo is an independent Google alternative that also lets you search and browse the web, but we don't track your searches or browsing history, and our browsers and extensions help you block other companies from trying to track you as well, all by default.

DuckDuckGo Search, our browser extensions, and DuckDuckGo Private Browser, our everyday browser and privacy-protecting alternative to Google Search & Chrome in one app, are all free. We also offer Privacy Pro —- our three-in-one subscription service —- which costs $9.99 a month, or $99.99 a year.

Can hackers see DuckDuckGo? ›

It doesn't collect information about you the way Google does, so there's no information for hackers to get their hands on. As an added bonus, DuckDuckGo doesn't associate your searches with your IP address or maintain your search history. Your searches are private and anonymous.

Unlike Google, the company doesn't keep or sell any information about you, which is a massive plus. DuckDuckGo is considered one of the safest search engines for your privacy, but it's good to be aware of its limits. For example, DuckDuckGo's tracker blocker only blocks well-known trackers.

The primary reason people start using DuckDuckGo is because they want the privacy that they can't get from other search engines, browsers, and email services.

The MHA also said that the apps posed a threat to the safety of user data and privacy, and they are prejudicial to the country's sovereignty and integrity.

DuckDuckGo is an independent Google alternative that also lets you search and browse the web, but we don't track your searches or browsing history, and our browsers and extensions help you block other companies from trying to track you as well, all by default.

DuckDuckGo Daily Searches

On average, DuckDuckGo processes around 100 million daily searches. Daily search activity has remained relatively stable since 2021 and doesn't show recent signs of growth. The average number of daily queries on DuckDuckGo nearly doubled (1.92x) since January 2020.

Is there a search engine that does not track you? Yes, there are multiple private search engines that do not track you, like DuckDuckGo, Surfshark Search, and Startpage.