How does DuckDuckGo’s Fire Button interact with iOS background app behavior and when exactly is data fully cleared?
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Executive summary
The DuckDuckGo Fire Button clears local browser data such as cookies, cache, and tabs from the app’s own storage when invoked, and can now be configured to also delete Duck.ai chat history (DuckDuckGo’s Settings > Data Clearing) [1][2]. On iOS the timing of when data is truly removed depends on whether the app process has fully exited: some DuckDuckGo settings and documentation indicate automatic clearing on restart or when the app is explicitly closed, and anecdotal guidance says you must completely quit the app (swipe it away) for the clear to take effect rather than merely backgrounding the app [1][3].
1. What the Fire Button is designed to clear — and what it explicitly leaves alone
DuckDuckGo’s help pages and reviews describe the Fire Button as a one-tap shortcut to purge local browsing artifacts that accumulate on the device — cookies, local storage, cache, and open tabs — providing an app-level erase that most mainstream browsers do not expose by default [1][3]. The company also documents explicit exceptions: first‑party cookies/storage for “Fireproof” sites, bookmarks, downloaded files, DuckDuckGo search settings and associated storage are not cleared by the Fire Button [1]. Recent product notes add the option to extend the Fire Button’s action to Duck.ai chat history via Settings > Data Clearing [2].
2. How iOS background behavior affects when data is cleared
DuckDuckGo’s public guidance and third‑party reviews signal a practical distinction between “tap the Fire Button now” and “automatically clear when you leave the app”: automatic clearing on restart or “when you’re done with a browsing session” will only reliably happen if the app process is actually terminated, not merely moved to the background by switching apps [3][1]. In other words, on iOS the app’s own process must exit for some clearing behaviors intended to run on restart or exit; keeping the app suspended in the background can delay or prevent those actions from occurring immediately [3].
3. What “fully cleared” means in practice — instant vs eventual removal
According to DuckDuckGo’s help pages, the Fire Button removes local browser storage from the app’s on‑device storage, but the company warns there are edge cases and platform bugs that can temporarily prevent instant clearing of fragments of data (notably a referenced WebView2 bug as of May 16, 2024) [1]. Reviews and how‑to guides consistently describe the effect as immediate within the app (tabs closed, cookies purged), but also repeat the caveat that automatic clear‑on‑exit requires a complete app exit to be reliable [3][4]. Thus “fully cleared” usually occurs immediately within DuckDuckGo’s own sandboxed storage, but there are documented exceptions where fragments may persist briefly due to OS/webview behavior [1].
4. User-configurable nuances and the limits of app-side controls
Users can fine‑tune what the Fire Button does — for example, fireproofing sites to keep their first‑party cookies or choosing whether automatic clearing includes tabs and/or data — but the app explicitly cannot clear some items like bookmarks or downloaded files [1]. Community requests to separate “clear data only” from “close tabs” were filed publicly (GitHub issue), and the project maintainers closed the request as not planned, illustrating that the default Fire Button behavior still couples certain actions [5]. Product updates did add features like extending the Fire Button to duck.ai chat history, showing some ongoing evolution in scope [2].
5. Unresolved questions and practical advice based on reporting
Reporting and the vendor’s help pages do not provide low‑level proofs (e.g., file timestamps or OS-level confirmation) of every clearing step, so there’s a factual gap about absolute guarantees across all iOS versions and WebView implementations [1]. The practical takeaway documented by DuckDuckGo and reviewers is straightforward: using the Fire Button clears the app’s local browsing data and tabs within the app sandbox, but to ensure automatic-on-exit behaviors complete reliably on iOS, explicitly quit the app (swipe to close) rather than merely leaving it running in the background; be aware of fireproofed exceptions and known WebView bugs that may temporarily delay full removal [3][1].