Anti-Tracking Guide

How to turn on Global Privacy Control

Turn on Global Privacy Control in Brave, DuckDuckGo, Firefox, Chrome, Edge or Safari, then confirm the signal is really sent. Sources: GPC, Mozilla, EFF.

Official source: Global Privacy Control, official site. Verified on

3 min read · Review scheduled for 2027-01-24

Contents

In short

  • Two browsers send it without you doing anything: Brave and the DuckDuckGo browser (GPC).
  • Firefox has it, but switched off. You tick one box in the settings (Mozilla).
  • Chrome, Edge and Opera need an add-on. None of them appears on the GPC project's list of browsers with native support; extensions such as Privacy Badger add the signal (Privacy Badger).
  • Then confirm it. Run the browser check on our home page: the first line says whether the signal is On.

Browser by browser

Browser Built in? What to do
Brave Yes, on by default Nothing. Brave says the feature is on by default in versions that include it (Brave)
DuckDuckGo browser Yes, on by default Nothing. DuckDuckGo says the setting is enabled by default (DuckDuckGo)
Firefox (120 and later) Yes, off by default See the steps below the table
Chrome Not on the GPC list Install an extension that sends GPC, such as Privacy Badger or DuckDuckGo's extension
Edge, Opera Not on the GPC list Same: Privacy Badger offers versions for both (Privacy Badger)
Safari Not on the GPC list Privacy Badger's site lists a Safari version (26.5 or later) (Privacy Badger)

Firefox, step by step

  1. Open Settings from the menu button, then choose Privacy & Security.
  2. Find Website Privacy Preferences (called Additional protections in newer versions).
  3. Tick "Tell websites not to sell or share my data". Firefox saves it at once.
  4. To turn it off, untick the same box (Mozilla).

Mozilla removed the older Do Not Track setting in Firefox 135, so this box is now the only built-in preference signal (Mozilla).

Which extension?

  • Privacy Badger (EFF): its FAQ says it sends the GPC signal by default to every company you interact with, together with Do Not Track, and learns to block trackers that ignore them (Privacy Badger).
  • DuckDuckGo Search & Tracker Protection: DuckDuckGo says GPC works in this extension as well as in its browser, switched on by default (DuckDuckGo).
  • Others on the GPC list: Disconnect, OptMeowt and lockrMail (GPC).

One extension is enough. Two that do the same job add more code to your browser without sending a stronger signal.

How to confirm it is on

A page can read the signal through navigator.globalPrivacyControl. It returns true when you have opted out of sale or sharing, and false when you have not said anything; the same value travels to servers in the Sec-GPC request header (MDN). Our browser check reads exactly that property and shows On, Off or Not reported. Nothing leaves your device.

Why it can still show Off

  • You are in a different profile or browser from the one you changed.
  • DuckDuckGo switched it off for one site. It says it sometimes disables GPC to stop a site from breaking (DuckDuckGo).
  • The extension is paused or not allowed in private windows.

Limits

The signal is a request. Whether a site must honour it depends on where you live and on the site; see GPC and California law. It does nothing against fingerprinting by itself, so pair it with the steps in how to reduce fingerprinting.

Outside this page: Mobile apps, smart TVs and other devices that are not web browsers. The GPC project describes the signal for browsers and extensions only.