FAQ: Norton Private Browser (2024)

In response to users' increasing interest in maintaining control over the information they share with advertisers, we've rebranded our trusted browser as Norton Private Browser.

The functionality and features of the browser will remain the same. The only change is the name itself. Norton Private Browser will continue to provide the same level of security, privacy, and protection from Norton.

The name change will not affect your existing Norton Secure Browser installation. The browser will automatically update to the new Norton Private Browser on Windows through regular software updates. All your existing settings, bookmarks, and preferences will be retained during the transition to Norton Private Browser.

Norton Private Browser is a web browser with built-in security and privacy features to help keep you safe online. The distinctive Security & Privacy Center includes a collection of tools and features that allow you to manage your online privacy, identity, and personal data.

You can download Norton Private Browser directly from the Norton website.

Norton Private Browser comes packed with features and tools that are designed to maximize your online security, including Anti-Phishing, Anti-Tracking, and HTTPS Encryption. All built-in security and privacy features are available in the Security & Privacy Center.

Norton Private Browser helps block ads and hides your digital identity, which also helps keep your browsing running fast.

To install Norton Private Browser, your computer must meet the following minimum system requirements:
Windows:

• Windows 11/10 (all versions)
• Does not work with Windows in S Mode

Mac

• Apple macOS X 11.x (Big Sur) or later
• Intel-based Mac with 64-bit processor or ARM processor

You can download Norton Private Browser directly from the Norton Private Browser website.
For detailed instructions, read Download and install Norton Private Browser.

To open Norton Private Browser, do one of the following:

• Windows: Double-click the Norton Private Browser icon on your desktop.
• Mac: Click the Norton Private Browser icon in your Dock.
  You may also launch Norton Private Browser by clicking Go > Applications in your Apple menu bar, then double-click Norton Private Browser.

The Security & Privacy Center is a console of tools and features that allows you to manage your online activity. Most features are enabled by default to offer our highest level of security and privacy. Via the Security & Privacy Center, you can personalize Norton Private Browser by manually enabling or disabling certain features and access tools such as Private Mode and Privacy Cleaner.

To open the Security & Privacy Center, in the top-right corner of the Norton Private Browser screen, click the Security & Privacy Center icon.

Password Manager allows you to select a password manager to use in Norton Private Browser. A password manager stores your passwords in one location more securely, while you only have to remember one master password. By default, Norton Private Browser uses its own password manager to save your passwords. You can also use another password manager, such as Norton Password Manager.

To select a password manager, go to the Security & Privacy Center and click the Password Managers tile. From the drop-down menu, select the password manager that you want to use.

Web Shield is designed to block malicious websites and phishing attempts while you browse the web. It also prevents you from downloading potentially malicious content from the web, which may try to infect your PC. Web Shield is enabled by default.

To disable this feature, go to the Security & Privacy Center, and click the slider on the Web Shield tile so that it changes from blue (ON) to gray (OFF).

Private Mode is a privacy feature that prevents your browsing history from being stored, and deletes any tracking cookies or web caches you acquire during your Private Mode browsing session.

To open a web page in Private Mode, go to the Security & Privacy Center and click Launch Window on the Private Mode tile.

HTTPS (Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure) is a more secure version of the standard HTTP connection. HTTPS adds encryption that prevents others from eavesdropping and helps ensure that you are connected to the intended server.

The HTTPS Encryption feature in Norton Private Browser ensures that each website you visit uses an HTTPS connection where supported.

Privacy Cleaner clears your browsing history and other data stored in your browsers, such as cached images and cookies. This helps protect your privacy and clears disk space on your PC.

To use Privacy Cleaner to clear your history, go to the Security & Privacy Center and click Launch Cleaner on the Privacy Cleaner tile. Choose the browser data that you want to delete and then click Clear data.

Extension Guard prevents untrusted extensions (also known as add-ons and plug-ins) from being installed in Norton Private Browser. This feature is enabled by default.

To disable Extension Guard, go to the Security & Privacy Center and click the slider on the Extension Guard tile to change it from blue (ON) to gray (OFF).

The Video Downloader extension lets you easily download video and audio content from your favorite sites.

To install this extension, open the Norton Video Downloader extension page in your Norton Private Browser and click Add Extension.

Once you install the extension, open the webpage in Norton Private Browser with the video that you want to download. Hover your mouse cursor over it, and select Download.

Video Downloader may not be compatible with all websites.

Coupons is a free extension to your browser that finds you better deals when you shop online. It does the hard work for you, scanning store homepages, newsletters, and the web daily to find relevant and up-to-date coupon codes. In one click, Coupons can find, test, and apply the best codes without you having to leave the checkout page.

Coupons appears automatically at checkout at thousands of the most popular e-commerce stores. Click Apply all codes to get started. You can run the automatic application of coupons again at any time by clicking the Coupons icon in your browser toolbar and selecting Apply all codes again.

Coupons feature is currently available only in United States.

The Performance Settings section in Norton Private Browser allows you to boost the performance of your PC by suspending inactive tabs in Norton Private Browser. To access this feature, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser.
2. Click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
3. Scroll to the Performance section. Configure the options below according to your needs:
   • Memory Saver: It saves your computer's memory and boosts the performance of your PC by suspending inactive tabs.
     To enable, next to Memory Saver, click the gray (OFF) slider to change it to green (ON).
     If you want to exclude a website from being closed by Memory Saver, you can create an exception. Next to Always keep these sites active, click Add. Enter the website address (for example, google.com) and click Add.

     A suspended tab is not permanently removed unless you manually close it. Click a suspended tab and click the refresh icon to reload the content.

   • Energy Saver: It automatically reduces Norton Private Browser's image capture rate and other background tasks when your device is unplugged, or your battery is low.
     To enable, click the gray (OFF) slider so that it changes to green (ON), then choose when Energy Saver should automatically turn on.

When visiting different websites with Norton Private Browser, you can check the security of a website's connection:

1. Open Norton Private Browser and navigate to a website.
2. Locate the icon that appears to the left of the web address:
   • Lock icon: Indicates that the site's connection is secure.
   • Information icon: Indicates that the site is potentially not secure or more information is available.
   • Warning icon: Indicates that the site is potentially not secure or dangerous.
3. Click the icon you see to view a summary of the website's connection.

Privacy Guard prevents ads from loading on the web pages you visit and trackers from downloading tracking scripts onto your device, improving your online activity's privacy and safety. Every time you visit a website, Privacy Guard compares the script that the website runs against filter lists to determine what content the website can load or download.

To disable this feature, go to the Security & Privacy Center and click the blue (ON) slider on the Privacy Guard tile so that it changes to gray (OFF).

To determine the strength of Privacy Guard, click the Privacy Guard icon to the right of the address bar, then click thesettings icon.

The following blocking options are available:

• Basic Blocking: Blocks known trackers and ads that follow you while surfing the web.
• Balanced Blocking (recommended): Blocks the same ads and trackers as the Basic Blocking in addition to social media ads, helping improve the speed of your browser and keeping your online identity safer while you surf the web.
• Strict Blocking: Is the highest level and even blocks browser notification, helping prevent browser fingerprinting in addition to what is blocked by Balanced Blocking. We do not recommend this level of blocking, as it may cause websites not to load properly or even make certain websites completely inaccessible.

The filter lists that Privacy Guard uses differ according to your chosen blocking state. The table below shows which filter lists are used by each available state:

Yes. Privacy Guard allows you to set your own level of privacy according to your preferences while you surf the web.

To always allow ads on a particular website:

1. Open Norton Private Browser and navigate to the website that you want Privacy Guard to ignore.
2. Click the Privacy Guard icon to the right of the address bar, and then click the slider next to Ads & trackers blocked to change it to gray (OFF).

Privacy Guard no longer blocks ads or trackers when visiting this site.

Alternatively, you can completely turn off Privacy Guard by following the steps below:

1. Click the Privacy Guard icon to the right of the address bar, and then click the Settings icon to open the Privacy Guard Settings.
2. Under Privacy Guard, click the slider to change it to gray (OFF).

The browser fingerprint method (also known as device identification) collects specific data about your entire online activity, your browser type/version, operating system, add-ons, screen resolution, and various other active settings on your device. Browser fingerprinting can be active even if cookies are off or tracking protection is enabled.

Additionally, browser fingerprinting can be used to fully or partially identify individual users for security reasons, such as accessing your online bank account. Most banks use browser fingerprinting to protect you from fraud or identity theft; therefore, the Remember my device option will not work if Privacy Guard is set to Strict Blocking.

Browser fingerprinting in Norton Private Browser is only available if Privacy Guard is set to Strict Blocking. When you set Privacy Guard to Strict Blocking, Browser fingerprinting blocking is enabled by default.

To enable Strict Blocking, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser and navigate to the website for which you want to enable Browser fingerprinting.
2. Click the Privacy Guard icon to the right of the address bar and then click the Settings icon.
3. In the Privacy Guard Settings window, select Strict Blocking.
4. Click Go to Strict to confirm.

To disable Browser fingerprinting blocking for a specific website, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser and navigate to the website for which you want to disable Browser fingerprinting blocking.
2. Click the Privacy Guard icon to the right of the address bar, and then click the Browser fingerprinting blocked slider to change it to gray (OFF).

To change your default search provider, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser,
2. Click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
3. Scroll to the Search engine section.
4. Click the drop-down menu next to Search engine used in the address bar and select your preferred search engine.

To reset the Norton Private Browser settings to default, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser,
2. Click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
3. In the left menu, click Reset settings.
4. Click Restore settings to their original defaults, then select Reset settings to confirm.

To change the language of Norton Private Browser, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser.
2. Click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
3. In the left pane, click Languages.
4. Under Preferred Languages, click Add Languages.
5. From the list of languages, select your preferred language and select Add.
6. From the list of languages, click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon next to the added language and select Display Norton Private Browser in this language.
7. Click Relaunch to start a new Norton Private Browser session in your preferred language.

To clear your Norton Private Browser history, cookies, and cache, do the following:

1. Open Norton Private Browser and go to the Security & Privacy Center.
2. Click Launch Cleaner on the Privacy Cleaner tile.
3. In the new Privacy Cleaner window that appears, select your preferences.
4. Click Clear data.

To make Norton Private Browser your default browser, go to the Security & Privacy Center. If a banner appears at the top of the screen, click Make Default. If a banner does not appear, Norton Private Browser might already be your default browser.

To ensure Norton Private Browser is your default browser:

1. Open Norton Private Browser, click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
2. Scroll to the Default browser section, where Norton Private Browser is your default browser should be visible.
3. If Norton Private Browser is not your default browser, click Make default.

Some websites cannot function or load correctly unless cookies are enabled. You can add individual websites to your list of websites that are always allowed to use cookies:

1. Open Norton Private Browser.
2. Click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
3. Go to Privacy and Security > Site settings.
4. Under Content, click Cookies and site data.
5. Click Add next to Sites that can always use cookies.
6. Type the web address for the website that you want to allow (for example, www.example.com).
   If you type [*.] before the domain name, you add all web pages included in that domain.
   For example, when you type [*.]norton.com, you add all web pages that are part of the Norton domain (such as www.norton.com/store and www.norton.com/products).
7. Click Add.

The website now appears on your list of Sites that can always use cookies.

Some websites and media cannot run unless JavaScript is enabled. You can add individual websites to your list of websites that are always allowed to use JavaScript:

1. Open Norton Private Browser.
2. Click the Customize and control Norton Private Browser icon in the top-right corner, and click Settings.
3. Go to Privacy and Security > Site settings.
4. Under Content, click JavaScript.
5. Click Add next to Allowed to use Javascript.
6. Type the web address for the website that you want to allow (for example, www.example.com). If you type [*.] before the domain name, you add all web pages included in that domain. For example, when you type [*.]norton.com, you add all web pages that are part of the Norton domain (such as www.norton.com/store and www.norton.com/products).
7. Click Add.

The website now appears on your Allow list.

For more help with Norton Secure Browse, contact Member Support and Services.

If Norton Private Browser crashes or doesn't open, try the troubleshooting steps below:

1. Close Norton Private Browser and reopen it.
2. If the issue persists, close Norton Private Browser and restart your PC.
3. If Norton Private Browser still doesn't open, try uninstalling and then reinstalling it.

When downloading a file from the internet, Norton Private Browser may ask you for further verification or block the suspicious download completely. The download requires your attention if one of the following icons appears in the download bar at the bottom of the browser window:

• File not verified: Indicates Norton Private Browser cannot verify the download and requires your verification. To verify the download and keep the file, select Keep. To remove the file, select Discard.
• File blocked: Indicates that Norton Private Browser has detected a potentially dangerous file and blocked the download. To avoid this, ensure you only download files from a safe and legitimate online source.

Norton Private Browser automatically blocks downloads that may cause problems on your computer or online accounts. When trying to download a file, you may see the message that the file can't be downloaded securely.

The file download may be blocked for one of the following reasons:

• Malicious: A virus or malware.
• Unwanted: A deceptive file that may make unexpected changes to your computer.
• Uncommon: An unfamiliar file that is potentially dangerous.
• Insecure: A file that is not secure or the website it is downloaded from is unsafe.
• Web Shield: Built-in anti-phishing protection.