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Does DuckDuckGo store any personally identifiable information (PII) and for how long?
Executive summary
DuckDuckGo’s corporate stance is that it does not collect or store personal information tied to users or their searches, and thus does not create searchable user profiles or retain search histories [1] [2]. Independent reporting and audits raise caveats about earlier browser behaviors and certain storage vectors (local/browser storage) that could leave traces on devices or expose technical data unless patched — reporting describes issues through 2024–2025 but does not claim DuckDuckGo sells PII [3] [4] [5].
1. What DuckDuckGo says: “We don’t store PII or search histories”
DuckDuckGo’s public privacy materials and many consumer summaries state plainly that the search engine does not connect queries to personal identifiers, does not create user profiles, and does not save or sell search histories — the product’s privacy promise is “search without being tracked” [1] [2] [6]. Their site also describes use of anonymous cookies, anonymous URL parameters, and local device storage for display settings or experiments, while saying they “never store any information that could identify you or your searches” in those cases [7].
2. Reported technical caveats and historical issues: local storage and tracker exceptions
Security commentary and audits cited in reporting point to concrete technical caveats. Multiple articles say older versions of DuckDuckGo’s desktop browser could leave traces of previous searches in local browser storage on the device, and that HTML5 local storage persists after clearing cookies — a persistence that could expose user activity to someone with access to the device [3] [4]. Other coverage notes a history of a “Microsoft tracker exception” and issues where DuckDuckGo’s mobile protections didn’t block certain Microsoft domains, which critics argued could reduce privacy in practice [3] [5].
3. What that means for personal data retention and duration
Available sources do not supply a single authoritative retention table from DuckDuckGo showing exact retention windows for any potentially stored technical or opt-in information; DuckDuckGo’s published policy language emphasizes non-collection of identifiable search data while acknowledging limited anonymous storage for UI experiments and settings [7] [1]. Independent write-ups interpret browser local-storage traces as persistent on-device artifacts (i.e., until the device storage is overwritten or manually cleared), but do not provide enterprise-style retention timelines from DuckDuckGo itself [3] [4]. Therefore, the most concrete claim backed by DuckDuckGo documents is that they do not retain PII connected to searches; the most concrete claim from external reporting is that some client-side storage can persist on devices unless fixed or cleared [7] [3] [4].
4. Conflicting perspectives and hidden trade-offs
Privacy advocates and consumer guides present two competing takes: several consumer-facing reviews and guides repeat DuckDuckGo’s no-tracking promise and recommend it as a privacy-forward alternative [1] [8] [6]. By contrast, skeptical analyses emphasize that implementation details — local storage persistence, browser fingerprinting vulnerabilities, or third-party tracking nuances — can undermine practical privacy even when a company asserts non-collection [3] [4] [5]. Those critiques highlight an implicit agenda: companies market a privacy promise (a competitive product position), while outside critics probe whether edge-case technical behavior or partnerships (e.g., with Microsoft domains) create de facto data exposures [3] [5].
5. Practical advice based on current reporting
If your goal is to avoid any persistent device-level traces, reporting suggests treating browser local storage as a potential vector and using the browser’s “fire” or history-clearing features plus OS-level cleanups; some analyses recommend additional measures like device encryption or separate profiles for sensitive activities [5] [4]. For users who only care that a provider does not build a server-side profile or sell search histories, DuckDuckGo’s stated policy and mainstream consumer reporting affirm that server-side PII collection tied to searches is not part of their business model [1] [2].
6. Limitations of available sources and unanswered questions
Available sources do not include a detailed, dated retention schedule from DuckDuckGo listing every technical datum and its retention window; they also do not include primary audit logs proving the absence of any PII storage beyond DuckDuckGo’s policy statements [7] [1]. Independent reports document past technical issues and raise plausible scenarios for on-device traces, but they do not show that DuckDuckGo intentionally retained or sold personally identifiable information [3] [4]. For definitive legal/forensic answers about retained PII, current reporting is inconclusive: the company’s policy denies it, and external reporting documents technical weaknesses rather than documented server-side PII retention or monetization [7] [3] [1].
Conclusion: DuckDuckGo’s published position is that it does not collect or store PII tied to users or searches [1] [2]. Independent analyses documented browser-level storage and implementation caveats that could create persistent on-device traces unless addressed — those are technical risks, not direct evidence in the provided sources that DuckDuckGo retains user-identifying data on its servers [3] [4] [5].