Startpage, the worlds most private search engine, now has a Search app available for iPhone.  Focusing on privacy, it’s special features are designed to protect your mobile browsing.

If you find yourself worrying about your privacy when searching the Internet, Startpage Search may be just the app for you.

Startpage does not record your location, log your visit or place tracking data on your phone.  They don’t even record any information about it’s users.  Their belief is you have the right to search the Web anonymously without being watched, recorded, or censored.  Startpage, protects you from eavesdropping by your phone manufacturer, mobile carrier and hackers.  Also, you receive Web results from Google, without ever being seen by them.

Regular search engines typically keep search records that can reveal a world of personal information about you.  They capture your location and record your search terms, as well as the time of your visit and the links you click.

While using a typical search engine, everything from your finances to your mental health are at risk of being exposed.  Startpage thinks that’s wrong, so they created the world’s most private search engine to protect your privacy.  

The Startpage Search app has special privacy protecting features so you can search and browse worryfree on your mobile device.  Web sites are provided with a fake “user agent” to keep them from profiling your mobile device.  Searches and Web pages are removed after time passes or you suspend the app, so that nobody else can see them.  Additionally, all tracking cookies are rejected.

With the increasing popularity of searching on mobile devices, comes the threat of someone stealing or confiscating your phone.  With the Page Removal feature, results pages are removed when the app is suspended, or after a selected amount of time of 5, 15, or 30 minutes.  This eliminates the need to worry about someone uncovering your searches.

The Startpage Search app is currently available for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.  According to their website, www.startpage.com, an app for Android is coming soon.

Reggie Leydens, [email protected], is a sophomore mass media major.