Apple almost rejected Google for this key Safari feature

As part of its ongoing antitrust trial against Google, Apple is defending its decision to make Google the default search engine in its Safari web browser. Now, a fascinating thing has come to light: Safari could actually be much better at protecting your privacy than it is.

In transcripts of the court hearing, it was revealed that Apple considered making DuckDuckGo the default search engine in Safari’s private browsing mode, while keeping Google as a mainstay everywhere else. Despite holding 20 meetings with DuckDuckGo executives between 2018 and 2019, Apple ultimately decided against the move.

This is an interesting revelation because DuckDuckGo is a privacy-focused search engine whose entire purpose is essentially the opposite of Google. DuckDuckGo tries to automatically block things like trackers and user fingerprinting, giving you a far more private experience than Google, Bing, and other mainstream engines.

It seems like it would be a great fit for Apple, a company whose unofficial slogan is “Privacy is a human right.” Yet in the end, Apple decided to stick with Google.

Privacy concerns

According to court testimony, Apple’s search chief John Giannandrea claimed that because DuckDuckGo relies on Bing for its search results (an engine that Apple has apparently considered purchasing), it could potentially transfer some user data to Microsoft. also sends messages to , which means its “marketing regarding privacy is somewhat inconsistent with the description.”

Despite those concerns over sharing user data, Apple chose to continue using Google, a company whose data-gathering policies are both well-known and widespread. Given Apple’s frequent habit of promoting the privacy-protection features of its devices, this may seem like an odd decision.

Yet as claimed in testimony at the ongoing trial, Apple has a very lucrative arrangement with Google, with the search giant reportedly paying Apple at least $8 billion per year for Safari to remain the default search engine. Is paying. Apple’s service chief Eddy Cue has also testified that Apple stuck with Google because it felt it was the best option available.

Regardless, if you want more privacy protection than Google offers, you can still change your default search engine in Safari (and many other major browsers).