DuckDuckGo Browser's Scam Blocker now protects you from scams, scareware

[harlan4096]

DuckDuckGo has announced some new features for its browser's Scam Blocker. It can now detect potentially dangerous scareware, scams, etc.

You may be aware of Google's Safe Browsing. DuckDuckGo's feature is similar, but in addition to blocking phishing sites, malware, the Scam Blocker now protects users from fake cryptocurrency exchanges, scareware tactics, and fraudulent/sham e-commerce sites.

The announcement says that DuckDuckGo's Scam Blocker works anonymously, without sending information to Google, because it doesn't rely on Google's Safe Browsing. The company gets a feed of malicious site URLs from Netcraft, an independent cybersecurity company. This list is updated every 20 minutes by your browser. That sounds similar to how an ad blocker's filters get updated.

Once DuckDuckGo Browser downloads the list, it checks sites against those in the list on your device, and if a dangerous website is detected, it warns you about the risks. All of this is done anonymously, i.e. your data is not sent to third parties, and the protection does not require you to sign in or register for an account, that's impressive.

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