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Brave browser introduces Forgetful Browsing

Kerem Gülen
May 15, 2023
Brave
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23

As we reported two days ago, Brave Software has been developing a fresh privacy feature named Forgetful Browsing for its Brave Browser. It's finally here.

The issue of online security and privacy is a matter of great importance for all individuals who utilize the internet, particularly those whose work heavily relies on online platforms. One prevalent method employed by both large corporations and smaller entities to monitor user behavior across various websites is through the utilization of third-party cookies, which continue to track user activity even after logging out from services.

However, as awareness regarding this issue continues to grow, companies have started adopting alternative tracking methods. One such method involves the use of reidentification via first-party cookies, which enable the recognition of returning visitors. In response to these concerns, the developers of the privacy-oriented Brave Browser have recently announced the introduction of a new feature called Forgetful Browsing.

This feature is set to be incorporated into both the web and Android versions of the browser and aims to address privacy concerns by offering enhanced protection against tracking activities.

As some observers might note, the Forgetful Browsing feature in Brave Browser bears similarities to Mozilla's Firefox option to "Delete cookies and site data when Firefox is closed."

The Brave team themselves acknowledge that comparable features may already exist in other browsers. However, they argue that such solutions may prove challenging for the average user to navigate and may require a high level of user proficiency or strict adherence to specific settings in order to be effective.

In contrast, the Forgetful Browsing feature in Brave aims to provide a more user-friendly and accessible approach to enhancing online privacy, minimizing the need for users to master complex settings or achieve flawless execution in order to safeguard their information.

How to enable Forgetful Browsing on Brave browser?

The solution offered by the company involves leveraging Brave Shield, their existing ad and tracker blocking solution located in the URL bar. Users have the flexibility to enable Forgetful Browsing either on specific websites or as the default setting across all websites they visit. Brave recommends setting it as the global default and then customizing exceptions for sites that require the retention of certain data, such as email or social media accounts.

  • Open Brave Browser and go to the URL bar.
  • Type in "brave://settings/shields" and press Enter. This will take you to the Shields settings page.
  • On the Shields settings page, locate the "Forget me when I close a site" option.
  • Toggle the "Forget me when I close a site" option to enable it. This will make Forgetful Browsing the global default setting.
  • To make exceptions for specific sites, go to the website you want to customize.
  • Look for the Shields icon in the address bar (it looks like a lion's head).
  • Click on the Shields icon. This will open the Shields menu.
  • In the Shields menu, click on "Advanced controls" to access additional settings.
  • Locate the "Forget me when I close this site" toggle within the Advanced controls.
  • Disable the "Forget me when I close this site" toggle for the specific site you want to exempt from Forgetful Browsing.
Image courtesy of Brave

Forgetful Browsing takes a comprehensive approach by completely clearing various elements such as HTTP/DNS cache, cookies, localStorage, and more. This thorough deletion ensures that there is no room for any form of first-party reidentification. By implementing this solution, individuals who value enhanced online privacy will find it simpler to protect themselves from companies that continuously seek out new methods of tracking online activities.

Users of Brave Browser can look forward to accessing the Forgetful Browsing settings with version 1.53 on the web and version 1.54 on Android. While the introduction of this new feature may require a brief period of waiting, it demonstrates the commitment of Brave Browser to continuously enhance privacy features for its users.

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Comments

  1. Bruno said on August 27, 2023 at 6:54 pm
    Reply

    Hi there, can anyone tell me to disable this forgetful browsing please? thanks

  2. Anonymous said on May 25, 2023 at 11:06 pm
    Reply

    First, the description of this Brave feature by Brave looks very much like what the Firefox extension Cookie AutoDelete does, more than the Firefox feature “clean all storage on exit”.

    Next, as the Brave link explains, similar features already exist : browser extensions such as Cookie AutoDelete on Firefox, cleaning all site storage after a site is closed ; clearing all storage at the browser level (manually or at browser exit automatically) ; and site cookie permissions, that actually imply all other storage permissions.

    They explanation for those features not being enough is either that the existing cleaning will not be full enough (debatable considering the rather far fetched counter examples they give), or that they kill identifiers for all sites even when it’s not desired for all, or that they require manually choosing the sites that are cleaned.

    However I do not understand those last two arguments either because this is also exactly how their feature works. Either their feature is manually activated for a single site, which means micromanaging sites. Or it’s set as a global default, which means clearing for all sites even if it’s not desired for all. It looks like whoever the “privacy engineer” in charge was had a hard time finding convincing arguments for this being a brand new Brave only thing and so had to invent bad arguments he knew as bad, being a “privacy engineer”.

    So only the first argument remains, what does this clean that eg Cookie AutoDelete doesn’t. DNS cache and HTTP cache. Maybe more, they don’t say in the link so I can’t judge. Far fetched examples for tracking, again. But anyway it’s very possible that Firefox extensions already exist to clean that, I may even have bookmarked some but won’t care about checking now. Not allowing HTTP cache at all (try that at home and notice that the only performance difference will be for them, not for you), I didn’t check, but I use the approach of eliminating as many tracking vectors a possible even when knowing that they aren’t used in practice, which is why I still called this far fetched in this context in spite of being much more radical in eliminating http cache for potential tracking reasons. As for DNS cache, a site has to be rather cunty to try to use that for tracking. I know one or two ways to do that but I doubt that they are actually used anywhere.

    Depending on how many more possible identifiers are actually cleared by this feature, the benefit may be to have several cleaning extensions in one, which for that type of extensions is exactly what one is looking for, the ultimate one taking care of all. And furthermore built in in the browser. Not bad, but a little less new than they claim.

    Generally speaking one can’t deny that Brave makes efforts of that type in privacy, more than many (most ?). However. This often involves simply doing what truly pro-user tools such as trustworthy extensions already do, and usually less well (maybe not so in that case), the only Brave benefit being that it’s here by default because they own a browser. Which can’t be blamed on extension developers, however being less good than the extension, often for bad reasons, should be blamed on Brave. And also, more importantly. This comes from a filthy for profit spyware shit scum company that is pushing very hard new intrusion methods for adtech as privacy positive. So they can burn in hell for that. I will always stick with my Firefox forks that were never pro-active in pushing more privacy rape in a landscape that is already nightmarish rather than installing that Brave crap.

  3. George said on May 17, 2023 at 12:16 am
    Reply

    I’ve been using Brave on Android, and this is a very welcome addition.

  4. Skeletor said on May 16, 2023 at 11:03 pm
    Reply

    I’m using Brave Nightly and the toggle isn’t available in the settings or
    the Shields URL icon.
    I’m just guessing that “Enable First Party Storage Cleanup support” in
    Brave flags does the same thing, yes?

  5. owl said on May 15, 2023 at 11:41 pm
    Reply

    This feature has already been available in Firefox for 12 years, but Brave’s early implementation of this in Chromium is a welcome topic.
    Google will not tolerate the ability to erase such persistent cookies, so it is time to use this topic as an opportunity to consider the issue of chromium.
    I would add this just in case, I am a Safari user (with AdGuard Pro + AdGuard VPN applied).

    1. Iron Heart said on May 16, 2023 at 9:15 am
      Reply

      @owl

      > This feature has already been available in Firefox for 12 years, but Brave’s early implementation of this in Chromium is a welcome topic.

      Except no, Firefox does not have this functionality without third party add-ons. It can only clear cookies and other site data on shutdown, which Brave also can.

      > Google will not tolerate the ability to erase such persistent cookies, so it is time to use this topic as an opportunity to consider the issue of chromium.

      Google does not control the downstream fork of the code that is Brave, what can they do about it?

      > I would add this just in case, I am a Safari user (with AdGuard Pro + AdGuard VPN applied).

      Enjoy your closed source environment.

      1. Anonymous said on May 16, 2023 at 5:04 pm
        Reply

        @Iron Heart
        Have you put a Brave setup guide together recently? I know that you did one over a year ago. Would like to see how you set up Brave now with some of the newer features added.
        Thanks

  6. too said on May 15, 2023 at 8:54 pm
    Reply

    perfect move, that’s what ff should do.
    brave is still too bloated to use

    1. Iron Heart said on May 17, 2023 at 11:14 am
      Reply

      Except it actually uses less RAM and CPU than Firefox, all else being equal.

  7. Bing Bong said on May 15, 2023 at 6:02 pm
    Reply

    Laughs in firefox’ng.

    1. Iron Heart said on May 16, 2023 at 9:11 am
      Reply

      It’s on its way out, 3% market share down from 30% peak market share (2010 / 2011).

      Besides, Firefox does not have this functionality without third party add-ons.

      1. Bing Bong said on May 17, 2023 at 4:40 am
        Reply

        I don’t need market share data. That data doesn’t mean anything for me, LOL. I prefer FF over any chromium based browser with bloated features. My main use case of using FF is to give me control over my daily browser than using features pre-built onto a browser, obviously the most useless privacy-focused browser like Brave.

        Maybe Brave suitable for normal users. But for power users, FF FTW.

      2. basingstoke said on May 17, 2023 at 10:12 am
        Reply

        I agree! The amount of customisation in Firefox is unmatched by any kind of browser – if you don’t like something, you can really just remove it entirely as if it never existed.

      3. Iron Heart said on May 17, 2023 at 11:13 am
        Reply

        @Bing Bong

        > I don’t need market share data. That data doesn’t mean anything for me, LOL.

        Except yes it does, because when web devs stop testing on Firefox due to its irrelevance, it will become harder to use it. Very shortsighted remark on your part.

        > My main use case of using FF is to give me control over my daily browser than using features pre-built onto a browser, obviously the most useless privacy-focused browser like Brave. Maybe Brave suitable for normal users. But for power users, FF FTW.

        You mean the most privacy-friendly browser short of Tor: https://www.ghacks.net/2020/02/25/study-finds-brave-to-be-the-most-private-browser/

        Using extensions and user.js files alters your fingerprint. It’s a horrible approach, and does not mean you are a power user (whatever that means, can mean all or nothing after all).

        @basingstoke

        > I agree! The amount of customisation in Firefox is unmatched by any kind of browser

        Unmatched except by Vivaldi, I guess. Firefox’s customization is a joke compared to the XUL days. You can fiddle with the interface via CSS and you can install WebExtensions… guess what, Vivaldi can also do that.

        > if you don’t like something, you can really just remove it entirely as if it never existed.

        Hiding shit is not the same as actually removing it.

      4. Bing Bong said on May 17, 2023 at 1:20 pm
        Reply

        Look @Iron Heart kid,

        I actually scanned through your enthusiasm in defending brave. But FF users mostly prefers not to argue with people who sharing some ridiculous research by citing them on comment section. For normies, Brave seemed as a savior for their privacy, for FF users, Brave is just another useless browser that riding on the name of privacy? Crypto wallet embedded browser? Yeah right.

        Again, to ensure users to use Brave in the best mode so called ‘privacy’, user needs to tweak the settings, i.e., disabling certain features. Now, how many people knows this trick?

        The reason why I said I don’t care about the statistic because it is completely useless for FF users. FF users are more privilege to tweak FF according to their preferances. People who using FF knows the tips and hack of the browser. FF can be hardened further, something that Brave browser…ehem…lacks? It seems that somehow you’re affiliated with Brave (fanboi), looking at how you defending the rubbish browser in several browser related articles.

        Well kid, good luck. Makesure you collect the payment from Brave team ya.

      5. Iron Heart said on May 17, 2023 at 2:05 pm
        Reply

        @Bing Bong

        > For normies, Brave seemed as a savior for their privacy, for FF users, Brave is just another useless browser that riding on the name of privacy? Crypto wallet embedded browser? Yeah right.

        If Firefox is so private by default, why are there all those nice fingerprint-altering user.js files for it? Care to explain? Crypto Wallet has nothing to do with privacy. I could say the same about e.g. Pocket that – funnily enough – has a separate privacy policy and comes with analytics, it’s included and promoted in Firefox.

        > Again, to ensure users to use Brave in the best mode so called ‘privacy’, user needs to tweak the settings, i.e., disabling certain features. Now, how many people knows this trick?

        That’s even more so the case for Firefox, hence all those user.js hobby projects.

        > The reason why I said I don’t care about the statistic because it is completely useless for FF users.

        Again, that is false. If web devs no longer test for your browser as no one uses it, your experience is drained down the gutter as well.

        > People who using FF knows the tips and hack of the browser.

        They know how to alter their fingerprint believing they are “private” now. I know about all those about:config settings, and I am unconvinced.

        > FF can be hardened further, something that Brave browser…ehem…lacks?

        Why do you think your detectable and so called “hardened” setup is better than Brave? Brave does that stuff by default and without a risk of the user sticking out with all those modifications. Nonsense take.

        > It seems that somehow you’re affiliated with Brave (fanboi), looking at how you defending the rubbish browser in several browser related articles.

        LOL, you call me a fanboy, and yet, under every article including those unrelated to Firefox (like this one), I see you shilling for it. At least stick to the articles discussing the dying browser then, would you be so kind? And you are parroting the usual incorrect trash too, I mean try to be more creative for once.

        > Well kid, good luck. Makesure you collect the payment from Brave team ya.

        Actually I expose your trash takes for free, because it’s fun and easy to do so.

      6. Bing Bong said on May 17, 2023 at 4:07 pm
        Reply

        @Iron Heart

        (yawn)… Yea kid. You exposed me. Oh no.. {see no body cares}.

      7. Iron Heart said on May 17, 2023 at 4:30 pm
        Reply

        @Bing Bong

        I accept your surrender, you troon. Consider limiting your trolling attempts to FF-related articles.

      8. Sajadi said on May 16, 2023 at 7:46 pm
        Reply

        @Iron Heart That is why Brave rocks and Mozilla sucks. From a sell-out company which betrayed their own core user group and it’s add-on/theme developers… there is not much what one can expect.

        Brave: 1
        Mozilla: 0

  8. Almost There said on May 15, 2023 at 3:43 pm
    Reply

    Great. Now implement forget rewards/crypto wallets and we’ll talk.

    1. Anonymous said on May 16, 2023 at 4:00 am
      Reply

      You already can do that by not using them…. because it is opt-in, not opt-out… duh?

      So, maybe you should stop clowning around and stop talking about something that is not an issue, especially when you can use Flags to disable it even more, if that makes clueless people sleep better at night.

    2. Anonymous said on May 16, 2023 at 3:20 am
      Reply

      are you actually dumb? Those features are opt-in, as in they are turned off by default, and you have to turn it on to use it, otherwise it won’t even work.

      1. Almost There said on May 17, 2023 at 1:29 am
        Reply

        I want a car with 4 wheels. Not a car with 88 wheels where you can lift 84 of them so they won’t touch the ground. That’s still a 88-wheel car.

        All this “YOU CAN DISABLE!!!!! YOU DON’T HAVE TO USE!!!!!! – mentally unstable ranting needs to stop. I don’t want to disable things I never asked for in the first place. Period.

        Solution: I don’t use Brave.

        I use Ungoogled Chromium.

        And you can kiss my a**.

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