Security and online anonymity should be your main concern when browsing the internet. The right browser can make the difference between private browsing and getting profiled and being targeted by annoying ads or even malware. Unfortunately, with so many browsers available nowadays, it’s hard to determine which one is the most secure.
For those of you who want to stay away from big browsers that have a habit of collecting your data, Vivaldi and Tor are both solid choices. However, which of the two offers better security? Let’s check them out.
What Security Features Does Vivaldi Offer?
The web browser market is full ofChromium-based web browsers, each with a feature that they focus on more than the others. In Vivaldi’s case, that central focus feature is the ability to customize your browser just the way you want it. However, that doesn’t mean that it falls short when it comes to privacy features.
Vivaldi comes with the standard package of security features, which include the ability to block ads, trackers, and third-party cookies. However, Vivaldi takes privacy one step further by providing their users with additional tools that are also private. These include a private calendar, a quick-note tool, a private translator, secure mobile sync, and more.
These protective features are based on Vivaldi’s end-to-end encryption, and according to Vivaldi’s claims, not even they can access your data. Speaking of which, your browsing data is hosted in Iceland, a country with strict privacy and data-sharing laws.
While it is a Chromium-based web browser, compatibility issues can always emerge. This is especially the case between the browser and extensions that receive frequent updates, such as ad-blockers.
That’s why Vivaldi has a built-in ad blocker that’s fully customizable. It allows you to stay completelyprotected from ads without installing Adblock, or any other similar extension. Not only that, but since the ad-blocker is fully integrated, there’s no need to worry about the frequent drawbacks that come with using third-party extensions.
For example, it’s not common for free ad-blockers to profile you in the interest of selling your data to companies. On the other hand, Vivaldi’s proprietary ad-blocker doesn’t do any of that.
Vivaldi Also Offers Extra Security Features
Another neat security feature that Vivaldi has that ties into its customizability is the ability to designate a separate search engine for private windows. As you probably know,some search engines are safer than others. That’s why Vivaldi provides you with the option of making your private windows even more private.
Vivaldi also excels at managing browser permissions. For example, it has an entire subsection in the Settings menu where you can manage Vivaldi’s website permissions. These include permissions to access your camera, motion sensors, MIDI and Bluetooth devices, microphone, and more.
What Security Features Does Tor Offer?
When it comes to protecting user privacy and anonymity, few web browsers can even come close to the Tor browser. However, many consider the Tor browser to be less of an actual web browser and more of an interface to access the actual tool that keeps you private:the Tor Network.
Tor Gives You Access to the Tor Network
When you connect to Tor, you’re joining an entire network of relays (most commonly known as servers). Your traffic is sent through three such relays, and only after the third relay does your traffic actually access the public internet.
For some, this may sound similar to justusing a proxy server. However, the main difference is that regular proxies use single-failure points, while Tor uses three of them. In terms of security, this greatly decreases the chance of anyone monitoring your internet activity.
In the case of a single proxy, the proxy owner knows both who you are, and what you’re trying to access since he has access to both the entry and the exit relay.
However, due to the way Tor works, the owner of the first relay knows very little about who you are, and has no way of finding out what you are doing. Meanwhile, the owner of the third relay has no idea who you are and knows very little about what you’re doing over the internet.
Since Tor’s main purpose is to offer users the most secure browsing experience imaginable, the Tor browser is designed to be as simplistic as possible. In fact, Tor’s user interface is among thesimplest browser interfacesyou’ll ever get to see.
Tor Is Not Without Flaws
Although the Tor browser can support add-ons and extensions, Tor recommends against using them due to security concerns. Thus, customizing the web browser is greatly limited.
Also, because your traffic bounces back and forth between relays placed randomly all over the world, your connection speed is greatly affected. You’ll notice this especially when performing high-traffic activities, such as streaming HD or 4K videos, or when downloading large files.
Vivaldi vs. Tor: The Final Verdict
Both web browsers have their pros and cons, but as far as privacy and protective features are concerned, the Tor browser is by far the superior choice. However, Vivaldi’s toolkit is pretty solid as well, and the fact that it’s also incredibly customizable makes it a better choice for casual users.
All in all, there’s nothing bad about installing and using both browsers. you may use Vivaldi for your everyday browsing activities, and then switch to using the Tor browser whenever privacy and security are of utmost importance. And there are plenty of other anonymous browsers to keep your browsing secure.
