What is private DNS?
DNS is the web's directory: it translates every site name into a technical address. Whoever runs that directory sees every site you visit. Private DNS encrypts those queries, bypasses the default provider and can block trackers and ads at the source.
Information verified on July 13, 2026
Before displaying a website, your device always asks the same question: “what is the technical address for this name?” The answer comes from a directory, the DNS. Without it, no web. And here is the detail that stings: whoever runs the directory watches all your destinations go by, site after site, all day long.
Who runs yours? By default, your internet provider, or often Google if the device was set up that way. These requests travel in the clear, like postcards: any middleman can read them along the way.
Private DNS fixes both problems at once. First, it encrypts the questions: nobody reads over your shoulder. Then, it filters: when a page calls a known tracker or ad network, the directory answers “never heard of it” and the connection never happens. Set up on your router, it protects every device in the home, including the TV and connected gadgets. The NextDNS vs AdGuard DNS comparison settles the match between the two best-known services.
Where it plays out: the Private DNS category details the options, and the diagnostic measures your overall exposure in a few minutes.
Want the complete guide?
“Vivre sans Google” (in French) covers the full journey, service by service, with step-by-step migration guides.
Forthcoming 22/10/2026 from Éditions Eyrolles
Where do you stand?
24 questions to measure how much you depend on Google services. Free, no sign-up.
Tech jargon, translated
Every week in The Spark, I break down one tech story through the privacy lens. And what you can do about it, concretely.
Join 400+ readers. Unsubscribe in one click. Your data will never be shared.