How To Disable Websites From Tracking Your Location

While browsing, you must have noticed that some websites ask for permission to access your location. Websites often display this message so they can use that information to show targeted content and enhance user experience.

But isn’t it irritating when you get such prompts, every time you open a website? However, you have a choice to allow or block the access. But do you even know what information is actually shared when you allow access?

When you allow access, you share your IP address, MAC address, and other device details with the website.  But don’t you think, it is way too much? The best practice would be disabling the “Location Tracking “Settings on your browser. Let us see how, you can disable this feature on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Internet Explorer.

Google Chrome:

Follow these steps to disable location on Google Chrome:

1. Launch Google Chrome.
2. Click on the three-dot menu at the top right-hand corner and click Settings.

3. Scroll till the end and click on Show Advanced Settings.

4. Click on Content Settings and under Location subheading, checkmark “Do not allow any site to show notifications” Click Done to save the changes.

Mozilla Firefox:

Unlike Chrome, it is not that easy to disable the Geolocation feature for Mozilla Firefox. But, don’t worry, here is the step by step guide for the same.

1. Launch Mozilla Firefox.
2. Type about: config in the address bar > hit Enter > click I accept the risk

3. You will be redirected to a page. Type ‘geo.enabled’ in the search box.
4. Doubleclick ‘geo.enabled’ to change the Value to ‘false’ and Status to ‘user set.’
5. Tada, it is done! You have disabled the location feature.

Microsoft Edge:

Microsoft Edge’s “location tracking” settings can’t be changed within the browser. To alter Microsoft Edge’s location settings, you have to go to Settings app on Windows 10.

1. Go to the Search bar on taskbar and type Settings.
2. In Settings, go to Privacy and click on Location.
3. You will see the list apps under the heading, “ Choose apps that can use your precise location”
4. Locate Microsoft Edge, and toggle the button to the left side to disable the location tracking settings.

Internet Explorer:

Although Edge has become the de-facto browser for Windows, still some of us use Internet Explorer. To disable location tracking in IE, you need to follow these steps.

1. Launch Internet Explorer.
2. Click on the Gear icon and select Internet Options.

Note: You can also get to Internet Options with this – Press Windows and R to open the Run box and type inetcpl.cpl

3. The Internet Options dialog box will open, it has multiple tabs at the top. Click on Privacy.
4. Checkmark the box beside the option, “ Never allow websites to request your physical location”

6. Click OK to save the changes.

So, in this way you can disable a website from tracking your location on your browser. We hope you found these instructions helpful. Please subscribe to our blog for more and please share your feedback in the comments.