Which data types does DuckDuckGo retain despite local clearing (bookmarks, search settings, downloads) and why?
Executive summary
DuckDuckGo does not retain identifiable user search histories on its servers, but some data relevant to user experience—settings, bookmarklets, and data stored locally by DuckDuckGo apps or the browser—can persist unless explicitly cleared; DuckDuckGo also admits it may retain certain signals in anonymized, aggregated form for product purposes [1] [2]. The company's Personal Information Removal feature explicitly stores user-supplied data on the user’s device rather than on DuckDuckGo servers, meaning that clearing the service from the cloud won’t erase that locally stored removal data unless the subscription is canceled or the device data is removed [3].
1. What DuckDuckGo says it doesn’t keep — and the important caveat
DuckDuckGo’s privacy posture is built around a “no user tracking” promise and an absence of identifiable search-history storage on its servers, a point repeated across consumer-facing explainers and third‑party summaries [4] [1]. That statement must be read alongside the caveat the company and commentators give: some telemetry or operational signals may be retained in deliberately anonymized and aggregated form for product improvement and engineering, which is different from per-user, identifiable logs [1].
2. Local storage that survives “clearing” unless separately removed
Several categories of data are stored locally—either by the browser itself, by DuckDuckGo’s browser extensions/apps, or by specific DuckDuckGo features—and so are not erased merely by using “clear history” controls on the search engine page. Browser autocomplete, cache, and history are common examples: those records live in the browser and must be cleared there to remove traces of DuckDuckGo searches [1] [4]. DuckDuckGo’s help pages and third‑party guides explicitly recommend clearing browser history and cache because deleting history on DuckDuckGo doesn’t reach browser‑level storage [1] [4].
3. Settings, bookmarklets and saved preferences: intentional persistence for functionality
User settings and bookmarklets are designed to persist for convenience; DuckDuckGo documents ways to save settings or use URL parameters to avoid cookies, and it acknowledges the option to make an exception for duckduckgo.com when clearing browser data so those settings survive a browser‑level clearance [2]. The presence of a “Bookmarklets and settings data” link and discussion of URL parameter alternatives shows that some preferences are expected to be stored locally [2]. Thus, bookmarks and search‑setting preferences can remain after a superficial “clear” unless the user targets those local items or exceptions.
4. Personal Information Removal: local-by-design and subscription implications
The Personal Information Removal service explicitly stores the personal information you provide (names, locations, age) on your device rather than on DuckDuckGo servers, which is a deliberate privacy design choice; DuckDuckGo says canceling the subscription will delete that local removal data and end assistance, with the implication that the data’s persistence is tied to the device and subscription state [3]. This means that even if cloud records are unaffected, the local artifacts of that feature are retained until the user or subscription workflow removes them [3].
5. What reporting does not show (and therefore cannot be asserted here)
The collected sources do not provide independent forensic evidence about retained downloads, nor do they document server‑side logs beyond the company’s stated policy of no identifiable search history and anonymized aggregation; therefore it cannot be asserted from these sources whether “downloads” or other file artifacts are retained by DuckDuckGo servers or how long anonymized aggregates are kept [1] [4] [3] [2]. Similarly, precise retention windows for any anonymized telemetry are not documented in the provided snippets and so cannot be specified here [1].
6. Why DuckDuckGo retains some local and aggregated data — tradeoffs explained
The operational reasons are straightforward in the company’s own framing: local storage of settings and personal‑removal inputs preserves user control and usability [3] [2], browser storage is a product of how browsers work (autocomplete, cache) and must be cleared there [1] [4], and retaining anonymized aggregates is a common engineering tradeoff to improve search relevance and product stability without linking data back to individuals [1]. Critics will argue that “privacy” marketing can obscure these practical tradeoffs; proponents point out DuckDuckGo’s explicit design choices to keep sensitive inputs on the device rather than in central servers [1] [3].