ClearURLs

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ClearURLs is an add-on based on the new WebExtensions technology and is optimized for Firefox and Chrome based browsers.

This extension will automatically remove tracking elements from URLs to help protect your privacy when browsing through the internet.

Many websites use tracking elements in the URL to mark your online activity. All that tracking code is not necessary for a website to be displayed or work correctly and can therefore be removed — that is exactly what ClearURLs does.

Another common example are Amazon URLs. If you search for a product on Amazon you will see a very long URL, such as:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/exampleProduct/ref=sxin_0_pb?__mk_de_DE=ÅMÅŽÕÑ&keywords=tea&pd_rd_i=exampleProduct&pd_rd_r=8d39e4cd-1e4f-43db-b6e7-72e969a84aa5&pd_rd_w=1pcKM&pd_rd_wg=hYrNl&pf_rd_p=50bbfd25-5ef7-41a2-68d6-74d854b30e30&pf_rd_r=0GMWD0YYKA7XFGX55ADP&qid=1517757263&rnid=2914120011

Indeed most of the above URL is tracking code. Once ClearURLs has cleaned the address, it will look like this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/exampleProduct

• Removes tracking from URLs automatically in the background
• Blocks some common ad domains (optional)
• Has a built-in tool to clean up multiple URLs at once
• Supports redirection to the destination, without tracking services as a middleman
• Adds an entry to the context menu so that links can be copied quickly and cleanly
• Blocks hyperlink auditing, also known as ping tracking (see also this article)
• Prevents ETag tracking
• Prevents tracking injection over history API (see also: the replaceState() method)
• Prevents Google from rewriting the search results (prevents the insertion of tracking code)
• Prevents Yandex from rewriting the search results (prevents the insertion of tracking code)