How to clear browsing history on exit
Clearing browser history on exit is ideal for public computers. It helps prevent users from accessing private data, like usernames, passwords, and other sensitive information entered by the person who previously used the computer.
Although this may help protect your privacy, please note that it slightly slows down your overall Internet experience because clearing history also deletes cached files and cookies.
If you're using a public computer, you may also open an incognito or InPrivate window to keep your browsing history anonymous. For further details, see this page: How to set a browser to Incognito or private mode.
Select your browser in the list below and follow the steps to make your Internet browser automatically delete the history recorded during your current session each time it's closed.
Unfortunately, Google Chrome, Safari, and Opera DO NOT currently support this feature. If you want your history cleared when you exit, you must choose a different browser. For steps on manually deleting history data in many major browsers, see our history page for a list of links.
Mozilla Firefox
- Open the Mozilla Firefox browser.
- Click the menu icon in the upper-right corner of the browser window.
- Select Settings from the drop-down menu.
- In the new window, click the Privacy & Security option in the left navigation pane.
- Scroll down to the History section and click the down arrow on the right side of the box next to the Firefox will entry.
- Select Use custom settings for history from the drop-down menu.
- Check the box next to Clear history when Firefox closes.
- For further customization, click the
button. In that menu, you may choose specific history items to clear upon exit.
- When you're finished, close the Settings tab.
Microsoft Edge
- Open the Microsoft Edge browser.
- Click the Settings and more icon in the upper-right corner of the browser window.
- In the drop-down menu, near the bottom, select Settings.
- Under the Settings section on the left, click Privacy, search, and services.
- In the Clear browsing data section, click the arrow to the right of Choose what to clear every time you close the browser.
- Click the toggle switch next to Browsing history to be in the on
position.
- Now your browser history is cleared each time you close Edge.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
- Open the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser.
- Click Tools in the upper-right corner.
- Select Internet options from the drop-down menu.
- In the Internet Options window, make sure the General tab is selected.
- In the Browsing history section, check the box next to Delete browsing history on exit (A). Click Apply (B), then click OK (C).
- Now your browser history is cleared each time you close Internet Explorer.