We have seen how to start Private Browsing and how it enables you to surf the web without leaving a trail. As already mentioned, Private Browsing is referred to as InPrivate Browsing in Internet Explorer, Icognito Mode in Chrome and Private Browsing in Firefox. While there is no need to disable private browsing and this is also not recommended, some folks may want to disable private browsing in their browsers. One reason could be that you want to keep a watch on what others on your computer are browsing.
Disable Private Browsing
In this post, we will us see how to disable private browsing in Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox.
Disable InPrivate Browsing in Internet Explorer
If your version of Windows has Group Policy Editor, type gpedit in Run box and hit Enter to open it. Navigate to the following setting:
Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Internet Explorer > Privacy.
In RHS pane, double-click Turn off InPrivate Browsing, and select Enabled. Click Apply/OK.
This policy setting allows you to turn off the InPrivate Browsing feature. InPrivate Browsing prevents Internet Explorer from storing data about a user’s browsing session. This includes cookies, temporary Internet files, history, and other data. If you enable this policy setting, InPrivate Browsing is turned off. If you disable this policy setting, InPrivate Browsing is available for use. If you do not configure this policy setting, InPrivate Browsing can be turned on or off through the registry.
Alternatively, you could type regedit in Run box and hit Enter to open the Registry Editor. Navigate to the following key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Privacy
Create a new DWORD value and name it EnableInPrivateBrowsing. Set it to 0.
To re-enable InPrivate Browsing, change its value to 1 or delete the EnableInPrivateBrowsing key.
Disable Private Browsing in Firefox
Disable Private Browsing Plus is a free add-on for Firefox that lets you disable private Browsing in Firefox easily and quickly. It removes the New Private Window option from the menu. It will also disable the Ctrl+Shift+P keyboard shortcut and deletion of browsing history.
To disable this plugin, you will have to start Firefox in Safe Mode, by holding down the Shift key and clicking on the Firefox icon, and then go on to disable and uninstall it. To do this, click on Menu > Add-Ons to open the Add-ons Manager. On the left side, you will see Add-ons & Extensions section. Here you will be able to disable plugins.
Disable Icognito Mode or Private Browsing in Chrome
Incognito Gone is a small free tool that lets you disable private browsing or Icognito Mode in Google Chrome browser.
This tool lets you disable private browsing in Chrome as well as Internet Explorer and Firefox, as well.
Edge user? This post will show you how to Disable InPrivate browsing mode in Edge.
As I said earlier, unless you have specific reasons for wanting to disable private browsing, it might be a good idea to let things be as they are.
on firefox, ive gotten to the safemode part but i need the specifics for the disable part
This has made me re-think some stuff. If you don’t want to get your information stolen easily while on free Wi-Fi then you need a VPN. Go here to see the best ones compared to each other http://thebestproxyserver.com/cyberscrub/
What if in the new updates of firefox there is no such firefox symbol? What can I do then?
incognito gone has no link to download please update
thanks
how in operA
Incognito gone is stating it is getting updated any idea when it will be available again?
Incognito Gone is unavailable at the site.
Thanks so much, Anand, it was very helpfull, i’m gonna stick with the gpedit option.
Greetings from México!
Link changed.
That program is a life saver. Thanks!
MS updated ie 10 – took about 4 hours – they do not warn you ahead of time – disgusting
they turned private browsing on in all my browsers – i do not want it and it is a change
they put a little MS edge tab next to the new tab button on my IE explorer – so it is easy to mistakenly open edge – which i tried and do not want – disgusting – I dont want Cortana either but there is no getting rid of some of their components…. and apparently no law that makes them tell you what they are doing – this version cannot run gpedit either…so far I am stuck – of course we hate MS