Latest DuckDuckGo News, Updates, Users and More – December 2024

The latest DuckDuckGo news reports indicate that DuckDuckGo has donated $1.1 million to organizations advocating for privacy and digital rights.

The European Union is being asked by DuckDuckGo to widen its investigation into whether Google is complying with the Digital Markets Act.

The company says Google is not complying fully with requirements, such as sharing anonymized click and query data, as well as allowing users to switch easily between search engines.

DuckDuckGo recently has rolled out a new feature that blocks the Sign in with Google pop-up to reduce interruptions from unwanted sign-in requests while browsing websites, thus improving user experience.

Indonesia has officially banned the search engine DuckDuckGo citing pornography and online gambling content as reasons. This is a result of many public complaints and is part of an initiative that enforces strict regulations against obscene online content, similar to what was done against platforms such as Reddit and Vimeo.

According to the testimony of Gabriel Weinberg, CEO of DuckDuckGo, the company’s market share growth is obstructed by Google’s financial influence as it pays billions to maintain its default status on various devices.

The US Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against Google, accusing it of abusing its dominance in the online search market through financial incentives to device manufacturers and browser developers.

Like other European search engines, DuckDuckGo is campaigning for action under the EU Digital Markets Act to have a level playing field on the search engine market against the dominance of Google.

About DuckDuckGo Browser

DuckDuckGo is a private search engine established by Gabriel Weinberg in 2008. The company officially launched February 29, 2008, and is located in Paoli, Pennsylvania.

Weinberg, being the CEO, founded DuckDuckGo to address concerns over privacy policies of existing search engines that track user data and personalize search results based on individual profiles.

DuckDuckGo is primarily known for its private search engine, but it also offers a browser, available on multiple platforms such as iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows.

Private Search by Default integrates DuckDuckGo’s private search engine so that users can search online with their activities not being tracked.

This browser blocks most third-party trackers before they load to augment the privacy of its user much beyond what many popular browsers provide.

Users can obtain @duck.com email addresses in order to block trackers for their personal email address.

Encryption Enforcement automatically makes a website use an HTTPS connection so that the snoopers cannot see its data.

Fingerprinting Protection makes it more difficult for companies to track people based on their device and browser information.

Fire Button: A unique feature that will clear your tabs and browsing data quickly.

DuckDuckGo’s browser may be known for its excellent privacy features, but DuckDuckGo has drawn criticism for its limited functionality compared to competitors like Brave.

It doesn’t enable browser extensions and offers fewer of the advanced features generally found. Users have noted it might feel like one of the leanest browsers out there, something akin to Firefox Focus or possibly a reskin of popular browsers like Microsoft Edge, Safari on macOS, among others.

As of this writing in 2024, DuckDuckGo performs an average of 100 million daily searches and this translates to around almost 3 billion monthly, or about 36 billion per year.

Today, the number of users reached by DuckDuckGo exceeds 46 million with approximate stats of around 49 percent that traffic is generated from within the United States.

DuckDuckGo accounts for almost 1.96% of the US-wide market share of search engines and thus ranks as the second most used search engine next to Google.

Market Share on Desktops has marginally higher percentage levels, that is 2.14%, while for mobile, it has nearly 1.8%.

It has a market share of about 0.54% in the entire world, which makes it the fourth most popular search engine.

It is mainly dominated by males, as more than 60% traffic is coming from male users. The age group that dominates the user base of DuckDuckGo includes most users who are less than 34 years of age.

Comparison Between DuckDuckGo Browser and Brave Browser

Features of DuckDuckGo’s News Search

DuckDuckGo does not track users in the same way that traditional search engines like Google do. It does not store personal information or associate searches with IP addresses, which helps prevent personalized ads based on user behavior.

The platform blocks many third-party trackers from loading on websites. It includes trackers from major companies like Facebook and Google and recently, it has expanded its blocking to include Microsoft trackers as well. Users can also disable ads in their settings to avoid all trackers entirely.

DuckDuckGo employs encryption to prevent search leakage, ensuring that the search terms entered do not get sent to the websites visited afterward.

Unlike Google, which personalizes search results based on user data, browsing history, and location, DuckDuckGo gives the same search results to all users querying the same terms.

This approach plans to eliminate the filter bubble effect where users are only exposed to information that aligns with their previous interests and beliefs.

Studies indicate that while Google personalizes about 40% of the search results, DuckDuckGo’s personalization rate is relatively lower, which is around 20%.

Comparison of DuckDuckGo and Google News

Privacy and Data Handling

DuckDuckGo values the privacy of users by not tracking the personal data or search history. This way, one can search for news without their queries being stored and used for targeted advertisements.

Google gathers information on the behavior of users, which enables it to tailor news results based on past searches and interactions. Although this may make it more relevant for some users.

Search Algorithm and Results

DuckDuckGo utilizes a more straightforward algorithm that does not personalize results based on user profiles. This can lead to a wide range of news articles appearing in search results, as it does not filter content based on previous user behavior. Users might find unexpected but relevant articles that they would not see on Google.

Google News uses intricate algorithms to prioritize popular and trending news stories that are often inclined towards the content from sources owned or with whom Google partners. It might give a narrow view of the news niche as users might feel their results are biased toward their social circle or previous searches.

User Experience

DuckDuckGo has a simple interface with minimal clutter. It allows users to easily find news without the need for personalized ads or recommendations. Some users will find the lack of personalized content less convenient when searching for specific topics.

Google News offers a wide array of features such as news feeds tailored to individual needs, topic categorization and integration with other Google services.

DuckDuckGo News Comparison with Bing and Yahoo

Search Results Quality

DuckDuckGo does not track user data. This results in a more straightforward search experience without personalized results based on past behavior. It often prioritizes news articles relevant to the search term at the top of the results page, even if the topic isn’t trending. However, it lacks certain features like custom date searches that are available on Bing and Google.

Bing generally provides a rich search experience with good-looking results. It features answer boxes and, through its Copilot feature, it leverages AI to enhance the search experience, summarizing results and maintaining context across queries.

Yahoo: While Yahoo is primarily an internet portal with a search engine powered by Bing, it has a more cluttered interface that focus news and trending topics. Its search results are less frequently updated than those of Google or Bing, which can lead to less relevant results over time.

User Experience and Interface Design

DuckDuckGo Interface is minimalistic, focused at bringing search results without the fluff. The user loved not seeing advertisements based upon the previous search.

Bing brings a very visualized experience with full-screen wallpapers and interactive elements. Also, it features news headlines and trending topics front-page.

Yahoo offers a more classic web portal layout, with many services integrated directly into the homepage. It is great for getting answers to questions very quickly, but the design does feel a bit cluttered compared to the cleaner designs of DuckDuckGo and Bing.

DuckDuckGo Regulatory and Legal News

DuckDuckGo has taken a strong stance toward data privacy, aligning itself to various data protection laws, among which are the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).

Commitment to Privacy

No Data Tracking: DuckDuckGo doesn’t track user searches or collect any personal data. This implies that it doesn’t make profiles of the users and stores search histories like other search engines do, such as Google. Consequently, the user can browse without worrying that their data will be harvested or sold.

Global Privacy Control (GPC): DuckDuckGo enables GPC, which gives users the ability to indicate their data collection preferences to websites.

Anonymous Localized Results: For local searches, DuckDuckGo uses techniques to preserve user location information. DuckDuckGo uses a randomized location that is not stored, so that no precise location information is logged or shared.

Compliance with Regulations

Transparency and User Control: The search engine promotes transparency in how it handles data. Users are informed about what information is collected and how it is used. This approach is consistent with the requirements of both GDPR and CCPA.

GDPR and CCPA Compatibility: DuckDuckGo’s operating model inherently supports compliance with the principles of GDPR and CCPA by reducing data collection and ensuring that any information collected voluntarily is dealt with in a secure manner and deleted when no longer required.

Growth of DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo Daily Search Growth

DuckDuckGo announced that it had passed 100 billion searches all-time. DuckDuckGo reached over 110 million searches in a day.

The search engine processed approximately 35 billion queries in 2021 alone and as of late 2023, it has processed around 112 billion searches overall.

As of December 2024, DuckDuckGo holds a 0.54% share of the global search engine market, making it the 5th most popular search engine worldwide.

In the United States, DuckDuckGo has a higher market share at 1.96%, ranking it as the 4th most used search engine in the country.

Device Usage for DuckDuckGo Users

About 80 million people use DuckDuckGo worldwide with engagement on both mobile and desktop platforms. The search engine processes over 110 million searches daily, although this number has seen fluctuations recently.

Device Usage Statistics

More than 15 million users in the United States access DuckDuckGo on both desktop and mobile devices, while less than 5 million use it exclusively on one device.

DuckDuckGo claims a 1.81% market share in the US mobile search market, making it the second most popular mobile search engine after Google.

Among all users on their desktops in the United States, DuckDuckGo possesses 2.14% of the market share, ranked fourth behind Google, Bing, and Yahoo.

App and Extension Downloads

The DuckDuckGo app has been downloaded over 10 million times through the Google Play Store, and by ratings, it’s roughly the same on the Apple App Store. The app has an excellent rating across all the platforms with an average score of around 4.5 to 4.8 out of 5 stars.

Chrome Extension: The DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials extension has had more than 5 million installations.

User Demographics

A majority of DuckDuckGo users are male, with a share of around 73%, and belong to the age group of 25 to 34 years, which represents around 26% of all users.

Popular Categories on DuckDuckGo

• News
• Adult Content
• General Information
• Specialized Searches
• Technology and Software

Geographic and Demographic Profiles of DuckDuckGo Users

Geographic Distribution

Around 58% of searches from DuckDuckGo are coming from the United States, which is also the biggest market for the search engine.

The next significant markets include Germany (about 7%), the United Kingdom (approximately 5%) and Canada (approximately 3%. DuckDuckGo also acquired a small amount of traffic from other countries including France and Australia.

DuckDuckGo is known as the second most popular mobile search engine in North America.

Demographic Insights

The base of users skews to male, with approximately 62.78% males compared to 37.22% females.

The largest demographic group of users of DuckDuckGo is people aged 25-34, followed by those in the 18-24 age range.

In general, the age demographics of DuckDuckGo are quite similar to those of other major competitors like Google and Bing.

DuckDuckGo attracts a rather affluent audience, with over 85% of users earning more than the median US income of $44,000, and more than 60% of them making at least $100,000 annually.

User Behavior and Preferences

One of the primary reasons for using DuckDuckGo is privacy; most people have deserted traditional search engines because of data collection issues. Surveys reveal that more than 30% of adults in the US would change their search engine for better data privacy.

DuckDuckGo users are less likely to use Google or Bing, and about 75% do not use Google at all.

Why DuckDuckGo is bad

DuckDuckGo does not track user behavior or collect personal data, so it cannot tailor search results based on individual preferences or past searches.

This lack of personalization can result in less relevant search results compared to its competitors, such as Google. Users may find themselves receiving generic results that don’t align with their specific interests or needs.

Dependence on a reduced index along with data culled from Bing may ensure fewer often incomplete answers especially for minor topics of study. This deficiency can create disappointments in terms of customers’ expectations when they hope to find diversified information pertaining to different themes.

Being less rich in terms of results and their diversity from major searchers, their experience is generally less satisfied while searching for something using DuckDuckGo.

DuckDuckGo has been criticized for its lack of built-in protections against malware and other online threats. It does not possess an integrated anti-virus mechanism, which puts the users at risk while accessing potentially harmful websites.

Also, an agreement with Microsoft allows some level of data tracking through advertising, thus questioning the effectiveness of its privacy promises.

The simplicity of the design may make the usability somewhat lose to other search engines. For example, some users find that the interface is less intuitive compared to established search engines.

Another performance problem is slow response times. This affects the overall experience of a user, particularly those accustomed to the speed and efficiency of competitors.

DuckDuckGo addresses the anonymity of users, yet it has its misconceptions regarding the security level that other platforms possess.

Users may think that their actions are entirely hidden from tracking, but vulnerabilities remain at the local device level and also through external sites which can track user interactions when personal information is shared.

Other Latest DuckDuckGo News 2024

DuckDuckGo revealed a decline in daily searches, falling below 100 million for the first time since January 2021.

DuckDuckGo faces criticism over its privacy policy after it was revealed that Microsoft is allowed to track users through domains associated with Bing and LinkedIn.

DuckDuckGo, along with other European search engines like Ecosia and Qwant. It is urging lawmakers to enforce competition in the search engine space under the EU Digital Markets Act.

DuckDuckGo has pledged $1.1 million in 2024 to organizations that support those causes. Some of the recipient organizations are the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Tor Project.

The Indonesian government has reportedly banned DuckDuckGo because it contains pornography as well as online gambling information.

DuckDuckGo added a feature that blocks the “Sign in with Google” pop-up in its browser.

Users have mixed experiences with DuckDuckGo compared to Google, especially with regards to local search results. For example, some searches for hotels near locations sometimes return irrelevant results miles away from the desired location.

Since 2011, DuckDuckGo has donated a total of $6.95 million to various privacy-focused organizations.

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