DuckDuckGo Privacy Extension

Know how sites that you visit use your private information.

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The Problem

 

The DuckDuckGo privacy extension and iOS app blocks web trackers from collecting data about the user. t also grades sites that the user visits based on the site’s encryption, web trackers, and privacy practices. 

However, engagement with the application is low. We wondered what design problems were leading to this low engagement

Opportunities

 

We did a design audit of the potential issues with the current app.

 
 
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Nearly every site I tried had either a B or B+ after being enhanced. However, we know that news/media sites are using significantly more trackers than DTC Ecomm site. 

For example, vox.com had nearly 700 trackers compared to 46 for allbirds.com

 

Users aren’t shown which trackers are left when the privacy protection is on.

Consider displaying both pieces of information for the user’s benefit.

 

Most (if not all) trackers will have a privacy policy that users could view to see what is being tracked. 

While we can be certain nearly all users won’t read these, consider giving transparency to the privacy policies for those users who do care. 

Experiment 1

Survey with 19 Participants

I had two assumptions I wanted to test before moving forward with creating mockups. 

  1. Users are okay with being tracked on websites for the purpose of product/service level improvements on the site.

  2. Users have a more nuanced view of privacy and tracking online than just the binary “good or bad.

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Users are overwhelmingly okay with a website collecting data to improve their own products/services!

Potential new assumption for further research:

Users are okay with tracking on sites that they love over other sites

Users are generally okay with a website collecting data however users don’t want their data sold to advertisers.

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Users seem to be nuanced with their approach to tracking. 

Given the option to opt out of tracking across all of the given categories, only 1 (5.3%) person selected.

Users might appreciate the ability to choose which trackers were allowed / not allowed on specific sites. 

User Interface Design

We approached the design as a support of the DuckDuckGo mobile app.


We also kept the interface simple to help our developers as they took this from mockup to MVP in just 8 weeks.

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Explore the prototype

Hit the green score to begin

Outcome

 

“I don’t wanna do the work of knowing what the site is before the enhanced grade. I just want to know that you’re protecting me.” - Will

Above is a key finding from the beta test of the redesign. DuckDuckGo’s privacy extension works so well that it is almost irrelevant to tell users what the bad practices are on sites they visit.

However, we know that if users don’t know what to avoid they’ll end back up on the social networks and search engines that are tracking them.

Key learning: redesign DuckDuckGo’s privacy app to show users a more nuanced approach to privacy on the web. It should neither be a firehose or a glass of water. Make scoring more gradated and simple so that users can better see the danger ahead.