How to Disable In-Private Browsing Mode in Edge and IE?

Microsoft Edge is the new browser that replaced Internet Explorer (IE) as the default browser in Windows 10. The two browsers co-exist in Windows 10, so the users have the freedom to browsing with either option. Like other modern browsers both IE and Edge cache uses private data such as browsing history, cookies, searches and other files to enhance the browsing experience. However, users can enable the InPrivate Browsing mode to prevent the browser from saving such data for a given session.

Why Disable In-Private Browsing Mode?

The In-Private mode is a very useful feature, especially if you are using a borrowed or shared computer to browse. It deletes all your browsing history, internet files, cookies and other data once you close the session. However, if you want to control what your kids do online or monitor employees’ online activities, you can disable the feature forcing users to use the normal browsing mode. In this guide, we will show you how to disable In-Private browsing feature in Windows 10 for both Edge and IE.

Related: Disable incognito mode in Chrome Windows and Mac.

Method 1: Disable In-Private Browsing Mode From the Group Policy Editor

This method will only work with Window 10 Pro and Enterprise, so if you are using the Home edition, skip to the next method.

• Press the “Win + R” keys on your keyboard to open the Run utility, type “gpedit.msc” and click “Ok”.

• On the resulting local computer policy editor window, expand the “Computer configuration” policies, “Administrative Templates” and then the “Windows Components” folder.

For the Internet Explorer (IE)

• Expand the “Internet Explorer” folder and open the “Privacy” sub-folder.

• Double click to open the “Turn off InPrivate Browsing” template to configure the policy.
• A new configuration wizard will appear. Click on the “Enabled” radio button then “Apply” followed by the “Ok” buttons.

• This will apply the settings and take you back to the group policy editor.
• The InPrivate Browsing options disappear from the IE browser safety settings menu.

Related: Microsoft Edge Vs Google Chrome.

For the Edge Browser

• Under Windows Components, look for and open the “Microsoft Edge” folder.
• Double click the “Allow InPrivate Browsing” to edit the template.
• Select the “Disabled” option and click “Apply” and then the “Ok” button located at the bottom of the configuration wizard.

• Close the policy editor. If you try to enable the InPrivate browsing in Edge browser, you will realize that the option is greyed out meaning it is inactive.

Method 2: Disable InPrivate Browsing Mode Using the Registry Editor

If you are using the Home or Student edition of Windows 10, the above method will not work for you. Fortunately, Windows 10 provides another way to disable the feature by editing the system registry files.

• Press the “Win + R” keys, type “regedit” and then click “Ok” to open the registry editor.

• On the registry editor, expand the folders following this path, “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies”.

Related: Import bookmarks from Chrome to Edge.

Disable InPrivate Browsing in Edge

• Right-click the “Microsoft” key folder, go to “New” and select “Key”.

• Rename the new folder to “MicrosoftEdge”. Then right-click the newly created key, go to “New” then “Key” and rename the sub-folder to “Main”.
• Click on the “Main” key, right-click the white space on the right panel, then go to “New” and click “DWORD (…) Value” and name the value as “AllowInPrivate”.

• Double click to edit the new DWORD value and on the pop-up that appears, set the “value data” to ‘0’ and click the “Ok” button.

• Now close the registry editor and check to see whether the feature has been disabled in Edge browser.

Disable InPrivate Browsing in IE

The process is generally the same for IE, but the name of the keys are different. To disable the InPrivate Browsing feature in IE browser;

• Right-click the Microsoft key folder and create a new key and name it as “Internet Explorer”.
• Then create a sub-key folder and rename it to “Privacy”. Now select the privacy key folder, right-click the white space on the right and create a new “DWORD (32-bit) value and call it “EnableInPrivate”.
• Double click the value and set the “Value data” to ‘0’ and click “Ok”.

• After closing the registry editor, users will not be able to set the InPrivate mode when browsing with IE browser.

Summary

When using Microsoft Edge or Internet Explorer to browse the web on your Windows 10 PC, you can enable the InPrivate Browsing mode which prevents the browser from saving your browsing data. The feature is disabled when you close all the tabs for that session. However, if you want to block users from switching to the InPrivate mode, you can do so from the local group policy editor or the registry editor as discussed above.