How to turn on Android's Private DNS mode – and why you should ASAP

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Nearly everything you do on your desktop, laptop, phone, and tablet begins with a Domain Name System (DNS) query. Essentially, DNS turns domain names (such as ZDNET.com) into an IP address so web browsers and apps know where to get the information you want.

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Without DNS, you'd have to type 34.149.132.124 every time you wanted to go to ZDNET.com or 74.125.21.102 to go to Google.com. Even by simply running a Google search, DNS is at work. The problem is that standard DNS isn't encrypted, meaning all your queries are sent over the network as plain text.

Let's say you're on a public network — like a coffee shop — and you start searching for things on your Android device. Or maybe you have to access a CMS or another work tool, and you don't want the public to know the address you're typing. If someone else is on the same network and has the skills, they could intercept your non-encrypted search queries (or the URLs you visit) and know exactly what you're looking for.