There is a reason why everyone wants to keep their Chromebook secure. For the most part, they want to keep their data safe from foreign hands or scammers. There are multiple instances when you have to share your device with your colleagues, family or relatives. All your data – personal or impersonal – is in it and you can’t lose it. Sometimes there is important data from your office that you cannot let the other colleague get ahold of. Sometimes you just need to secure your personal data from hackers for your data is not solely yours, it is also your company’s property. If it gets in the hands of hackers, you may lose your job. The point being, there are simply many reasons why you should secure your data from outside control for the consequences could be unmanageable for you or the company you work for.
Given that, being the responsible person, you should know the easy ways that could save you from the situation where you have to avoid giving your device to somebody or keep biting your nails when you do share your device with somebody. But before we mention those steps, make sure you do the part that is under your control i.e. save all your data and keep a backup separately.
Here are a few things that you can do to avoid breaching of your personal content:
Turn on the Guest Mode
The main purpose of Guest Mode is to keep your data safe when it is in somebody else’s hands. This mode avoids using your personal Google account so that there is no history of your search engine saved on your system where other people could intervene. It’s like giving your Chromebook to anybody without any fear of being hacked. It often happens that there is nothing important on your system that you need to protect from other people, yet you should keep your devices locked lest the other is tempted, or at least try to prevent the other from being too easy on using your device.
Going back, while guest mode restricts the other from accessing your personal content yet it does not fully secure the system as Google still keeps some of the searches saved on it whether it was an application you downloaded against your Google Account or visited a particular website of your interest – Google will not seize from showing you the relevant content of your interests and this way any outsider would know what’s been followed from your device. In a situation as such, what you can do is use the Guest Mode for the content that you don’t want Google to keep tracked in its system. Doing this, it makes sure that all of your content is safe from the prying eyes. Incognito mode may be a good solution to this as well but it still connects your user profile with the Chromebook. It means that some content will be saved that may allow an opportunity to the other to breach through.
How can you use the Guest Mode?
Here are a few simple steps to enable Guest Mode on your system:
You have to press Ctrl + Shift + Q in case you are logged in already. The other method is to select “Browse as Guest” from the main login screen. And in case none of this works, you can select “Settings”, then “People”, then “Manage Other Users” and in the end select “Enable Guest Browsing”. This way Guest mode will be on, on your Chromebook.
Shift to a Different Search Engine
If going to Guest Mode seems like a long process and feels inconvenient, you have another option which is more easy and convenient i.e. changing the default search engine for the outsider.
Let’s lay it down: you don’t want your searched content to be saved and explored by an outside user. Given your requirements, the easiest solution is to go for a different search engine that does not track you or stores your IP address. You are also asked such questions by multiple websites if you want to keep getting their updates and news alerts, you can simply disapprove of them by selecting “No” upon asked for permission. Some of these search engines are “DuckDuckGo” and another one is “Startpage”. The advantage of keeping DuckDuckGo is the fact that it draws the search results from some of the most advanced sources; and the advantage of using “Startpage” is that it removes all your identifying information. Once it removes your personal searches, it directs the request directly to the Google search engine. This way Google does not keep any of your searched content saved in its cave of data.
How can you change the default search engine?
Here is the simple method:
You have to go to the homepage of the search engine that you want to add. Then you should try any word or phrase just to see if it tracks your content for later use. This way you have enabled your required search engine to your browser’s list. Then you have to right-click in the search engine address bad and click on “Edit Search Engines”. There, you will see a list of domains through which you can select from “Other Search Engine” the one that you are looking for. There, press “Make Default” and you have done your job.
Both of these methods are highly convenient as they both involve some basic easiest steps that you can do in a matter of 5 minutes. However, whichever of these methods you choose, it really matters which one of it serves your purpose well. You have to figure out the exact purpose of installing these features on your device. Once that is defined, it will be extremely easy to select the one that has got your needs covered. But before you get yourself in the hassle of that, make sure your internet fulfills your work requirements. A good service will not only make your work possible but all other features that are dependent on it.
