FAQs

How exactly does Sleipnir block trackers, scripts, and other resources?

To start, Sleipnir applies filter lists from the EasyList and EasyPrivacy projects, the uBlock Origin project, and lists Sleipnir has generated internally. By pulling from many different tracking protection lists, Sleipnir blocks more unwanted trackers and resources than any other popular browser. Sleipnir also funds and supports the maintenance of tracking-protection lists to support the privacy community. And we apply system-wide protections to prevent trackers from tracking you, even in cases where the tracker doesn’t appear on a list.

How does fingerprint randomization work?

Your digital fingerprint is the unique set of data points (like your graphics hardware, audio hardware, device type, and more) that, when combined, could help identify you online. By default, Sleipnir protects you from tracking based on your browser fingerprint, by randomizing that fingerprint. The Sleipnir browser makes you look different to every site, each time you restart the browser. This prevents sites from using fingerprinting to track you across sites or even from one online session to another.

You can test these protections yourself with the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Cover Your Tracks fingerprinting tool.

What’s different about the way Sleipnir blocks third-party storage?

Sleipnir blocks both third-party cookies and third-party storage (e.g. storage in iframes) by default; some other privacy-focused browsers do, too. What’s unique about Sleipnir is the lifetime of the partitioned storage (i.e. that it’s “ephemeral”). Sleipnir’s approach limits tracking, and provides much stronger protections than any other browser.

One of the websites I’m visiting isn’t working. Can I turn off Shields?

Yes. But know that with Shields down, some of the privacy protections of Sleipnir will be disabled. If you see a site that’s not working, first verify that the site is trusted before putting Shields down.

If you still want to disable Shields, click the Sleipnir Shields icon icon in the address bar and turn Shields off. If the site then works as expected, click the “Report a broken site” button so our developers can investigate and try to fix the broken functionality for other users.

Note that toggling Shields off will only disable for the particular site you’re viewing. Shields will still be up for other sites you visit.

What’s the difference between Standard and Aggressive options in Shields blocking?

Standard is the Sleipnir default. It applies the blocking and filtering approaches that the browser thinks provide the best privacy for the most users.

The Aggressive option, by contrast, applies an even greater number of protections, even if that means an increased risk of breaking sites.

Learn more, and see a detailed tabular view of the differences.