Ways to Break the Bubble

Search History
When using search engines such as Google, users search history are save and used by Google using an algorithm to determine future searches. Eli Pariser discussed how and provided examples of this functionality during a TED talk on filter bubbles. To avoid this bubble users can remove their web history, which will prevent search engines from pulling past data.

Targeted Ads
Target Ads are very popular and implemented by companies to display their products wherever users go on the internet. This is commonly seen when users search for a product on Google, then log into their Facebook account and see an ad on the side about what they just searched. Many search engines such as Chrome, Firefox, and Safari offer users with an option to express their desire to have their viewing history be private. By taking the time to turn on this setting it gives the user a better chance of staying out of the bubble. However, companies can choose to ignore users request and track the user anyway.

Web Cookies
One of the biggest influences of the filter bubble are web cookies. These cookies store data which other websites can access and use to influence what to show you. One way users can combat this is to delete their browsers cookies. Users can delete cookies they recently stored or delete all the cookies they ever stored. If users do not want to constantly delete cookies they can disable them on their browsers.

Social Media Information
To avoid being placed in certain filters users should avoid putting personal information online. Despite sites, such as Facebook, claiming information to be private often times companies will find a way to identify you and provide you with ads and information based off of personal information provided. Information such as birthdays, hometowns, locations allow companies to identify users and can be avoided by not including the information on social media.

Choosing a Browser/Browser Mode
Browsers implement many different ways that can put users in filter bubbles. One way to avoid many of their features is to use incognito mode if it is offered. This limits the information that browsers will take from users and will not be used when leaving incognito mode. Certain browsers were designed to allow users to be anonymous such as DuckDuckGo.com. Taking advantage of these modes and browsers will help users avoid the filter bubble.

Browser Extensions
There are many browser extensions that are offered on all main browsers which users can download to do a variety of tasks for them. Extensions can block advertisements, track what companies are tracking them, and remove cookies that are unwanted. Users have to be careful that the extension they add is not taking their information, while blocking others from receiving it.

Choosing Informative Website
If users are unsure if measures that have been taken to avoid the filter bubble have worked certain sites provide information that will be unaffected by filter bubbles. Sites such as allsides.com and hifromtheotherside.com provide users with information from a diverse range of sources and topics. By looking for sites that advertise a wide range of topics, users are more likely to not be affected by filter bubbles.