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<title>Why use a private instance? — SearXNG Documentation (2024.11.14+abd9b271b)</title>
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<li class="nav-item nav-item-this"><a href="">Why use a private instance?</a></li>
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<section id="why-use-a-private-instance">
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<h1>Why use a private instance?<a class="headerlink" href="#why-use-a-private-instance" title="Link to this heading">¶</a></h1>
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<aside class="sidebar">
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<p class="sidebar-title">Is running my own instance worth it?</p>
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<p>...is a common question among SearXNG users. Before answering this
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question, see what options a SearXNG user has.</p>
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<nav class="contents local" id="contents">
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<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#how-does-searxng-protect-privacy" id="id1">How does SearXNG protect privacy?</a></p>
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<ul>
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<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#what-are-the-consequences-of-using-public-instances" id="id2">What are the consequences of using public instances?</a></p></li>
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<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#i-see-what-about-private-instances" id="id3">I see. What about private instances?</a></p></li>
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</ul>
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</li>
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<li><p><a class="reference internal" href="#conclusion" id="id4">Conclusion</a></p></li>
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</ul>
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</nav>
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<p>Public instances are open to everyone who has access to their URL. Usually, they
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are operated by unknown parties (from the users’ point of view). Private
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instances can be used by a select group of people, such as a SearXNG instance for a
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group of friends, or a company which can be accessed through a VPN. Instances can also be
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single-user instances, which run locally on the user’s machine.</p>
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<p>To gain more insight on how these instances work, let’s dive into how SearXNG
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protects its users.</p>
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<section id="how-does-searxng-protect-privacy">
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<span id="searxng-protect-privacy"></span><h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id1" role="doc-backlink">How does SearXNG protect privacy?</a><a class="headerlink" href="#how-does-searxng-protect-privacy" title="Link to this heading">¶</a></h2>
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<p>SearXNG protects the privacy of its users in multiple ways, regardless of the type
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of the instance (private or public). Removal of private data from search requests
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comes in three forms:</p>
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<blockquote>
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<div><ol class="arabic simple">
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<li><p>Removing private data from requests going to search services</p></li>
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<li><p>Not forwarding anything from third party services through search services
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(e.g. advertisement)</p></li>
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<li><p>Removing private data from requests going to the results pages</p></li>
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</ol>
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</div></blockquote>
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<p>Removing private data means not sending cookies to external search engines and
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generating a random browser profile for every request. Thus, it does not matter
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if a public or private instance handles the request, because it is anonymized in
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both cases. The IP address used will be the IP of the instance, but SearXNG can also be
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configured to use proxy or Tor. <a class="reference external" href="https://github.com/asciimoo/morty">Result proxy</a> is supported, too.</p>
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<p>SearXNG does not serve ads or tracking content, unlike most search services. Therefore,
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private data is not forwarded to third parties who might monetize it. Besides
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protecting users from search services, both the referring page and search query are
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hidden from the results pages being visited.</p>
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<section id="what-are-the-consequences-of-using-public-instances">
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<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id2" role="doc-backlink">What are the consequences of using public instances?</a><a class="headerlink" href="#what-are-the-consequences-of-using-public-instances" title="Link to this heading">¶</a></h3>
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<p>If someone uses a public instance, they have to trust the administrator of that
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instance. This means that the user of the public instance does not know whether
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their requests are logged, aggregated, and sent or sold to a third party.</p>
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<p>Also, public instances without proper protection are more vulnerable to abuse of
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the search service, which may cause the external service to enforce
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CAPTCHAs or to ban the IP address of the instance. Thus, search requests would return less
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results.</p>
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</section>
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<section id="i-see-what-about-private-instances">
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<h3><a class="toc-backref" href="#id3" role="doc-backlink">I see. What about private instances?</a><a class="headerlink" href="#i-see-what-about-private-instances" title="Link to this heading">¶</a></h3>
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<p>If users run their <a class="reference internal" href="admin/installation.html#installation"><span class="std std-ref">own instances</span></a>, everything is in their
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control: the source code, logging settings and private data. Unknown instance
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administrators do not have to be trusted.</p>
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<p>Furthermore, as the default settings of their instance are editable, there is no
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need to use cookies to tailor SearXNG to their needs and preferences will not
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reset to defaults when clearing browser cookies. As settings are stored on
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the user’s computer, they will not be accessible to others as long as their computer is
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not compromised.</p>
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</section>
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</section>
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<section id="conclusion">
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<h2><a class="toc-backref" href="#id4" role="doc-backlink">Conclusion</a><a class="headerlink" href="#conclusion" title="Link to this heading">¶</a></h2>
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<p>Always use an instance which is operated by people you trust. The privacy
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features of SearXNG are available to users no matter what kind of instance they
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use.</p>
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<p>For those on the go, or just wanting to try SearXNG for the first time, public
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instances are the best choice. Public instances are also making the
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world a better place by giving those who cannot, or do not want to, run an
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instance access to a privacy-respecting search service.</p>
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<h3><a href="index.html">Table of Contents</a></h3>
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<ul class="current">
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<li class="toctree-l1"><a class="reference internal" href="user/index.html">User information</a></li>
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<li class="toctree-l1 current"><a class="current reference internal" href="#">Why use a private instance?</a><ul>
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<li class="toctree-l2"><a class="reference internal" href="#how-does-searxng-protect-privacy">How does SearXNG protect privacy?</a><ul>
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<li class="toctree-l3"><a class="reference internal" href="#what-are-the-consequences-of-using-public-instances">What are the consequences of using public instances?</a></li>
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<li class="toctree-l3"><a class="reference internal" href="#i-see-what-about-private-instances">I see. What about private instances?</a></li>
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</ul>
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<li class="toctree-l2"><a class="reference internal" href="#conclusion">Conclusion</a></li>
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<li><a href="https://github.com/searxng/searxng/tree/master">Source</a>
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<li><a href="https://searx.space">Public instances</a>
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