Do DuckDuckGo browser extensions enable encrypted DNS by default?
Executive summary
DuckDuckGo’s browser extension is designed to block trackers and improve search privacy, but there is no evidence in the provided reporting that the DuckDuckGo browser extensions turn on encrypted DNS (DoH/DoT) by default; encrypted DNS behavior is described in the context of DuckDuckGo’s VPN and DNS services rather than the extension itself [1] [2] [3].
1. What the question actually asks and why it matters
The user is asking whether installing DuckDuckGo’s browser extension will, out of the box, change how the browser resolves domain names by enabling DNS-over-HTTPS or DNS-over-TLS (encrypted DNS), which matters because DNS encryption prevents passive on‑network observers from seeing the hostnames a device looks up and can affect parental filtering and enterprise controls (the sources explain DNS-level effects in other contexts such as VPNs and DNS filters) [2] [4].
2. The extension’s documented purpose — tracker protection, not DNS encryption
DuckDuckGo publishes a help page for its Search & Tracker Protection extension that explains installation and tracker-blocking behavior, and comparisons that list protections provided “by default,” but the materials provided focus on tracker blocking and search privacy rather than enabling system DNS encryption from the extension itself [1] [3].
3. Where encrypted DNS does appear in DuckDuckGo’s product family — the VPN and DuckDuckGo DNS
DuckDuckGo explicitly documents encrypted DNS behavior and DNS-level blocking as features of its VPN/product-level DNS servers: the DuckDuckGo VPN is preconfigured to use DuckDuckGo’s DNS, applies a daily-updated scam blocklist, and lets users choose custom DNS under VPN settings [2]. Those statements show DuckDuckGo manages DNS functions inside its VPN product, not necessarily within the browser extension [2].
4. Signals from community and issue trackers: users ask for a secure-DNS feature for the browser
Public user requests and issue threads show demand for a built-in “Secure DNS” feature in DuckDuckGo’s mobile browser and apps, indicating that, as of those discussions, encrypted DNS was not a default capability of the browser or extension and users were explicitly requesting it [5]. That absence in feature-requests supports the conclusion that the extension does not already enable encrypted DNS by default.
5. Practical implications and edge cases seen in reporting
Because DNS is handled in many ways (system resolver, router, VPN, or browser-level DoH), real-world behavior can vary: the DuckDuckGo VPN will return blocked responses for names on its blocklist and other DNS providers can produce different behavior [2], and third-party DNS configurations may cause access issues for duckduckgo.com in isolated cases reported by users when different DNS providers interact [6]. Those examples illustrate that DNS behavior is governed by where DNS resolution is implemented — not automatically by the extension.
6. Alternative viewpoints and limits of available reporting
DuckDuckGo’s public comparison chart states it evaluates protections “by default” for browsers and extensions [3], which means readers should check the specific “Learn More” pages for up-to-date platform details; however, the specific sources provided do not assert that the browser extension activates encrypted DNS by default [3] [1]. Reporting here is limited to the supplied pages and community threads — if DuckDuckGo has rolled out a later change to the extension that enables DoH/DoT by default, that change is not documented in the provided sources and therefore cannot be asserted.
7. Bottom line — direct answer
Based on the provided documentation and public issue threads, DuckDuckGo’s browser extension does not enable encrypted DNS by default; encrypted-DNS and DNS-level protections are described in relation to DuckDuckGo’s VPN/DNS services and are the subject of feature requests for the browser, not listed as default extension behavior in the supplied sources [1] [2] [5] [3].