Clearing your online browsing history is a simple matter of following the steps, no matter which browser you use, from Chrome, to Firefox, to Apple's Safari, but may have to be repeated on different devices. Yui Mok/PA Images/Getty Images Show Your web browser history is a peek into your inner world, motivations and behaviors. And as such, you might not want your Google digital diary shouting its contents to anyone who peeks over your shoulder at just the wrong moment. You can manage this sensitive history no matter which browser you use, from Chrome, to Firefox, to Apple's Safari, but the steps are all a little different. And keep in mind that if you have multiple devices — and more than one browser on each device — that you may have to repeat some of these processes so that your main squeeze doesn't know that you've been, for example, searching for an engagement ring online. Here's how to view and delete your history in various browsers. We'll start with Chrome, which is made by Google. Google is now such a ubiquitous and powerful search engine that the company's products, such as its Chrome browser, log your previous searches by syncing them between your various devices (laptop, tablet smartphone). However, once you delete your history in one device, it will remove it from all devices. These steps will remove searches using other search engines as well. Contents
In Google Chrome:
For Firefox:
For Safari:For Safari (desktop):
For Safari (mobile):
To delete search activity from Google Maps, YouTube and Other Google products:On your computer:
On your Android phone/tablet:
On your iPhone/iPad:
Originally Published: May 14, 2019 Google History FAQHow do I delete Google searches?Clearing your Google search history is simple. First, open Chrome on your computer, phone or tablet. In the top right corner, tap on the three vertical dots and then on the "History" option. Now click on "Clear browsing data" and select the "Time range" that you want from the drop down menu. Finally, ensure that "Browsing history" is checked and hit "Clear data." How do I see my browsing history?In the Chrome browser or app, click the menu button in the top right corner. Now select "History" and then "History" again to view your browsing history. Alternately, you can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+H or navigate to the URL chrome://history. How do I see deleted activity on Google?To view your deleted activity on Google, open a tab on your Google Chrome browser. Next, enter the link https://www.google.com/settings/. This will take you to your Google Account where you can browse the list of everything that Google has recorded from your activity. Does clearing the history delete everything?Clearing your browsing history does not delete everything. It only deletes the list of the websites and pages that are stored locally on your device. This action doesn't delete the data stored on Google's servers. Google keeps your "deleted" data for audits and other internal uses. |