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It's tough to stay private on the internet. It's hardly an even playing field: If you use apps and websites as they're designed, your every move is almost guaranteed to be tracked so that companies can compile a profile to target you with ads. That even extends to simple tasks like sharing links with friends: You might think you're simply communicating in private, but as soon as you click "copy" on that link, trackers attach themselves to the URL and come along for the ride.

It doesn't have to be this way. There are many steps you can take to prevent trackers from stalking you across the internet—some more intense than others. And while stripping tracking URLs from links isn't new, it isn't exactly common knowledge, either. That's why whenever a company makes it a bit easier, I'm all for it, so today I'm celebrating DuckDuckGo.

DuckDuckGo now makes it easier to strip trackers from links on iPhone

As highlighted by fellow CNET Group site ZDNet, DuckDuckGo's iOS app now includes a feature that automatically eliminates tracking elements from links. That way, you can share links with friends, family members, and coworkers without worrying about trackers following along.

The feature, "Copy Clean Link," doesn't do anything you couldn't do yourself. As ZDNet explains, the feature cuts out everything in the URL in question from the "?" on; essentially, all of the tracking information. Without that data, you turn the URL into a "clean" link, so trackers won't necessarily know you're the user who shared that URL in the first place. You can do this yourself by opening the URL and deleting this text manually, but tapping Copy Clean Link is certainly more convenient.

Interestingly, the feature doesn't pop up when you select a link the usual way, or even when you hit the Share button. Instead, you'll need to open the link in DuckDuckGo, long-press the address bar, and choose "Copy Clean Link." You'll find the same option if you tap the three lines in the bottom right, then scroll down and choose "Copy Clean Link." If you simply select the URL and use iOS' built-in "Copy" option, you'll grab the full URL—trackers and all.

DuckDuckGo's Copy Clean Link is an iOS-only feature for now

At this time, only iPhone users can use "Copy Clean Link" in DuckDuckGo. That doesn't mean that users of other platforms are out of luck: As previously mentioned, you can manually delete all characters in a URL starting with the "?" to achieve the same effect. That's easier done on desktop than mobile, of course.

If you need an alternative, Brave has a "Copy Clean Link" option as well. It works similarly to DuckDuckGo's—you can long-press the address bar on a webpage you're already visiting or, uniquely, you can long-press any link in the browser to get the option too.