Can’t Clear Your Browser History? How to Fix it

“Can’t Clear Your Browser History?” – If you’ve ever encountered this issue, you’re not alone.

Many people face difficulties when attempting to remove their browsing history, which can be crucial for maintaining privacy, improving browser performance, and keeping a tidy digital workspace.

Over the next 300 words, we’ll delve into the possible causes behind this problem and provide you with easy-to-follow, step-by-step solutions to ensure you can successfully clear your browser history without any hassles.

There are several reasons why you might struggle to clear your browser history, ranging from software glitches and outdated browser versions to more complex issues involving malicious software or security settings.

No matter the cause, it’s essential to identify the underlying problem and apply the appropriate fix to regain control over your browsing data.

In this article, we will discuss various troubleshooting techniques, from simple browser settings adjustments to more advanced solutions that involve delving into your device’s system settings.

We’ll cover the most popular web browsers, including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Safari, ensuring that you have the information you need, regardless of the browser you use.

Troubleshooting Can’t Clear History

While the specific steps to resolve this issue can differ across various devices, the overall approach remains consistent.

First and foremost, give closing your browser and reopening it a shot. If you find that your history still won’t clear, go ahead and restart your device.

Oftentimes, a simple reboot can work wonders by allowing your system to automatically address the problem. If these initial attempts don’t do the trick, fear not!

We’ve outlined some browser-specific methods below to help you tackle the issue head-on.

Fix for Safari

Turn Off Web Restrictions on iPhone

The Content & Privacy Restriction feature on iPhones could be the culprit behind your inability to clear your browsing history. By either disabling the restriction for web content or allowing access to all websites, you should be able to resolve this issue. Here’s a quick guide on how to make these changes:

1. For iOS 12 or later, launch Settings and go to Screen Time > Content & Privacy Restrictions.
2. You can turn off Content & Privacy Restrictions by tapping on the option. 
3. The better way would be to only change the settings for web access. Navigate to Content Restrictions > Web Content inside the restrictions settings. Then enable the Unrestricted Access option.
4. For iOS 11or earlier, the restrictions is present in the location Settings > General > Restrictions.
5. And you can change the settings for web access at Allowed Content > Websites inside the Restrictions settings. Please set it to All Websites.

Disable Syncing Over iCloud

If you have iCloud sync enabled for Safari on an Apple device, your deleted data may still reappear in your browsing history. To disable it, follow these steps:

1. Open Settings and navigate to the iCloud option within your Apple ID Profile.
2. From there, toggle your browser Off. If it’s already off, enable it, click merge, and then disable it again.
3. Remember to disable iCloud sync for all devices connected to your iCloud account.
4. On a Mac, right-click the Apple icon, then go to System Preferences > Apple ID > iCloud or System Preferences > iCloud.
5. Within iCloud, find and disable Safari.

Reset Settings on iPhone

If the previous solutions haven’t resolved your issue, you can try resetting your iPhone’s network settings. Keep in mind that this will cause the device to forget all WiFi connections and passwords. To reset network settings, follow these steps:

1. Open Settings and navigate to General > Reset.
2. Choose Reset Network Settings and confirm when prompted.

If resetting network settings doesn’t help, you can consider resetting all settings, which only affects the settings themselves, leaving apps and other files untouched. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Launch Settings and go to General > Reset.
2. Select Reset All Settings and confirm when prompted.

Delete Library History Files

Deleting specific websites from your history. In such cases, consider scanning your system with antivirus software.

Additionally, you can manually remove history files from the library, but we recommend creating a backup of those files first. Here’s the process for manually removing history files:

1. Open Finder on your Mac.
2. Hold the option key while clicking on the Go menu, and then select Library from the drop-down list.
3. Launch Safari and find files beginning with “History.”
4. Move these files to a different location or rename them.
5. Restart your Mac and check if the issue persists.

If you can clear your history, go ahead and delete the files you moved. If not, move the files back and overwrite the new ones. If you renamed them, delete the newly created files and restore the previous files to their original names.

Fix for Google Chrome

In cases where the clearing process fails to stop, it’s likely caused by a bug within the application. Chrome may enter a loop, attempting to clear history but failing to finish the process.

Fortunately, Google has addressed this issue in later stable versions of the browser. So, ensure that you update to the latest version.

As an alternative, you can delete history files using the file explorer or clear the cache to resolve the issue.

• Navigate to the “Default” folder by directly entering the following path in the address bar:
• Windows: %localappdata%\Google\Chrome\User Data\Default
• Mac: ~/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default/
• Delete the “History” file and the contents of the “Cache” folder.
• Restart your computer.
• If the issue remains unresolved, try these additional steps:
• Delete the “History Provider Cache” and “History-journal” files found in the same location.
• Restart your computer once more.

Fix for Mozilla Firefox

Troubleshooting Database Issues Using Verify Integrity

Mozilla Firefox offers a troubleshooting feature that scans for database files containing errors.

The browser checks for these problematic files and creates a default one when they’re missing. Removing those files might resolve the issue.

To do this, follow these steps:

1. Start by typing about:support in the address bar, or click the 3-bar menu button and navigate to Help > More Troubleshooting Information.
2. In the troubleshooting page, locate “Places Database” and click on “Verify Integrity.”
3. Review the report for files containing errors. The issue may be related to the favicons.sqlite file or another database file.
4. Close the browser and go to the location of the problematic file. Typically, Mozilla profile folders are located at %appdata%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profile.
5. Open your profile folder and either rename or delete the problematic SQlite file.
6. Launch Mozilla Firefox again and visit a bookmark if you removed the favicons file.
7. If the issue continues, consider moving, renaming, or deleting the places.sqlite file as well.

Disable Automatic Browsing

When automatic private browsing is enabled, your default window is set to private mode. In this case, the browser won’t record new sites in its history, but you can still clear old history from regular sessions in a regular window.

To access a regular window, you’ll need to disable automatic private browsing. Follow these steps:

1. Type about:preferences in the address bar, or click the 3-bar menu button and navigate to Preferences, Options, or Settings.
2. Click on Privacy & Security in the left sidebar.
3. Scroll down to the History section and select “Remember history” from the drop-down box.
4. After making these changes, you should be able to delete all old history.

Fix for Microsoft Edge

Local Group Policy Editor

In some cases, specific configurations in the Local Group Policy may prevent you from clearing your browser data. To adjust these settings:

1. Press the Windows key + R and type gpedit.msc to open the Local Group Policy Editor.
2. In the left sidebar, click on Administrative Templates under Computer Configuration.
3. Next, navigate to Windows Components > Internet Explorer > Delete Browsing History.
4. Check that all options related to preventing history deletion are in the “Not configured” state. To access each, double-click on them.

Delete History With Internet Options

As an alternative method to delete your browser history, you can use the Internet Options control tool by following these steps:

1. Use the search bar to find and open Internet Options, or access it through Control Panel > Network and Internet.
2. On the General tab, navigate to the Browsing history section.
3. Choose the content you want to delete and click on Delete.
4. Next, go to the Content tab and click on Settings under AutoComplete.
5. Select Delete AutoComplete History, click on Delete, and then hit OK for all windows to close them and apply the changes.

Common Fixes for Every Browser

Change Setting in the Registry

If someone has disabled the AllowDeletingBrowserHistory key in your browser policy registry, it can prevent you from clearing history. This key is enabled by default. To check and set it if needed, follow the steps below for Google Chrome policy:

• Press the Windows key + R and enter “regedit” to open the Registry Editor.
• Navigate to: Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Google\Chrome
• Look for AllowDeletingBrowserHistory.
• If not found, search for it at Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Google\Chrome
• If still not found, the key is enabled and no changes are needed.
• If found, double-click on the entry and set its value as 1.

Update

If the previously mentioned solutions don’t resolve the issue, it could be due to bugs in the browsers. Updating them should help fix the problem. If updates are not available, report the issue to the official support sites and be patient.

To search for and update your browsers to the latest versions, visit the official browser websites or app stores

Reset User Profiles

You can also attempt to reset your user profiles. By removing all your current profiles, you can force your browser to create a new one. This process erases the data of the old profile, including its history, and may allow you to clear the history from the new profile. To perform this method, delete the user profile folders using the file explorer:

For Chrome and MS Edge, delete the User Data folders located in %localappdata%\Google\Chrome and %localappdata%\Microsoft\Edge, respectively.

For Mozilla Firefox, navigate to %localappdata%\Mozilla\Firefox\ and delete the Profiles folder.

Reinstalling Your Browser

A potential solution to this issue is to reinstall your browsers. To do this, you’ll first need to uninstall them, which may not be possible for default browsers.

Reinstalling Chrome/Mozilla/Other Browsers The exact process varies depending on the device’s operating system.

For Windows:

1. Go to Settings > Apps & Features.
2. Locate the browser, click on it, and select Uninstall.
3. Click Uninstall again and follow the on-screen instructions.

For Mac:

1. Go to Finder > Applications or press Command + Shift + A.
2. Locate your browser folder and open it.
3. Run its uninstaller tool and follow the instructions.
4. If you can’t find an uninstaller, drag the app to the Trash bin on your Dock. Then, right-click on the Trash bin and choose Empty Trash.

For Android and iPhone:

1. Locate your browser on your app screen.
2. Tap and hold it until you see some options, then select Uninstall or Delete.
3. Confirm when prompted.
4. For older OS, you may need to go to Settings > Apps to uninstall your applications.

After uninstalling, download the applications from official websites or app stores.

Resetting Microsoft Edge

If you have the new Chromium-based Microsoft Edge, you can download the latest version from the official page and install it.

For those using the legacy version, the process is a bit more complex. We recommend creating a system restore point first. Follow these steps to uninstall and reinstall Edge:

1. Enable the option to view Hidden Files. To do so, click on View in the File Explorer, then check the Hidden items option in the Show/hide group.
2. Navigate to the location: %localappdata%\Packages. You can enter it in the address bar of the file explorer or the Run dialogue box.
3. Search for and delete the folder Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe. It might take some time to prepare for deletion. Confirm the deletion by clicking Yes on all dialog boxes.
4. Restart your PC.
5. After restarting, search for PowerShell in the search bar. Right-click on Windows PowerShell and select Run as administrator.
6. Enter the command, cd C:\users\“UserName”, replacing “UserName” with your username.
7. Type or copy and paste the following command and press Enter: Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml” -Verbose}
8. Restart your PC after the process is complete.

FAQs

Can Someone See My Internet History if I Use Their Wifi?

When you connect to someone’s Wi-Fi, it’s natural to wonder if they can see your internet history.

While it’s true that the owner of the Wi-Fi network has access to some information about your online activities, they typically won’t see your entire browsing history.

An individual with the right technical knowledge and access to the router might be able to see some details about the websites you visit, such as domain names and IP addresses.

However, they won’t be able to see the exact pages you’ve visited or the content you’ve viewed, especially if the websites you’re accessing use encryption (HTTPS).

Can My Parents See My Search History if I Use a Vpn?

If you’re using a VPN, your parents are unlikely to see your search history. A VPN (Virtual Private Network) encrypts your internet connection and routes your online activities through a secure server.

This process hides your IP address and makes it difficult for anyone, including your parents, to see your search history or the websites you’ve visited.

Who Can See Incognito History?

When you browse in incognito mode, your browser doesn’t store your browsing history, cookies, or site data locally on your device.

This means that your local browsing history remains hidden from other users who share your device.

However, it’s important to note that incognito mode doesn’t make you completely anonymous online. Your Internet Service Provider, the websites you visit, and your employer or school (if you’re using their network) can still see your browsing activity.