LinkedIn is a popular professional networking platform used by millions of people to build their careers. While having a strong LinkedIn presence can be beneficial, sometimes you may want to view LinkedIn profiles more discreetly without alerting other users that you have visited their profile.
Why would you want to view LinkedIn profiles without being seen?
There are a few common reasons why someone might want to browse LinkedIn more privately:
- Researching competitors – If you want to research employees at another company in your industry, you can do so without notifying them and signaling your interest.
- Reviewing potential candidates – When evaluating job applicants or recruiting prospects, you can get additional background info from their LinkedIn without them knowing.
- Connecting with new contacts – You may want to learn more about someone before reaching out and connecting on LinkedIn.
- Viewing old connections – Looking up former coworkers, classmates, etc. without broadcasting that you are checking in on them.
The main goal is being able to gather helpful information from LinkedIn profiles while maintaining your privacy and without alerting others to your activity.
How LinkedIn notifications work
By default, LinkedIn shows when you have viewed someone’s profile. There are two main ways this occurs:
- Profile photo hover cards – When you hover over someone’s profile picture, a preview card pops up showing brief profile details. LinkedIn notifies the user that you hovered over their photo.
- “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” – LinkedIn has a tracking feature that shows users the names of visitors to their profile within the last 90 days. This makes your profile views visible to connections.
So if you want to view profiles more discreetly, these are two areas to avoid. Fortunately, there are ways to get around this visibility.
How to view LinkedIn anonymously using Private Mode
The easiest way to browse LinkedIn profiles without being seen is to use LinkedIn’s Private Mode feature. Here’s how it works:
- Click on your profile picture at the top right of the screen.
- Select “Private Mode” from the dropdown menu.
- This will open a new private browsing window. Any profiles you view while in this mode will not be tracked and your name will not show up to others.
- Once you’re done, close the private browsing window to end your session.
Things to keep in mind about Private Mode:
- You can only use it on the desktop site, not the mobile app.
- It limits some LinkedIn functionality, like sending messages.
- Any activity outside of profile views will still be tracked.
Overall though, it’s the simplest way to browse under the radar.
Using LinkedIn anonymously on mobile
Since private browsing isn’t available on the LinkedIn mobile app, you’ll need to use other tactics to be anonymous on your phone or tablet. Here are a few options:
Turn off profile photo hovercards
You can disable the hovercard previews that show your identity. To do this:
- Go to your LinkedIn Settings.
- Select “Privacy & Settings.”
- Under “Profile Viewing Options,” toggle “Show hovercard profiles to:” Off.
This prevents the pop-up preview from appearing when people hover over your photo. However, your name could still show up on “Who’s Viewed Your Profile.”
Use an alternate account
Create a secondary LinkedIn account to browse from. Switch between your main account and this alternate one when you want to view profiles discreetly. This keeps your anonymous browsing completely separate.
Log out of your account
Simply logging out of LinkedIn on mobile will allow you to search for and view profiles while not being logged in. You won’t have access to all site features, but it’s a quick way to browse under the radar.
Advanced ways to be anonymous on LinkedIn
If you want to be extra discreet and prevent your name from showing up even on “Who’s Viewed Your Profile,” there are a couple more advanced tactics:
Use LinkedIn in an Incognito/Private window
On Chrome and Firefox browsers, you can open an Incognito or Private window and then visit LinkedIn.com. As long as you aren’t logged in, this prevents any tracking cookies from your regular browser. It’s like browsing in total stealth mode.
Change your LinkedIn profile URL
LinkedIn identifies your profile visits based on URL. So if you change your profile URL, visits from your old profile won’t be detected. To change the URL:
- Edit the Public Profile & URL section of your Settings.
- Delete your last name in the URL and replace it with something unidentifiable.
For example, change from:
linkedin.com/first-name-last-name
To:
linkedin.com/first-name-x8dz9
Third-party tools and browser extensions
There are also third-party services and browser extensions that offer anonymous LinkedIn browsing features:
| Tool | Features |
|---|---|
| Anonymous Browsing for LinkedIn (Chrome) | Lets you browse anonymously, view full profiles, send InMail |
| LinkedIn Anonymously (Chrome) | No sign-in required, Incognito-style browsing |
| Socially Anonymous (Chrome, Firefox) | Browse anonymously, randomize profile URL |
Research these tools and read reviews before installing to make sure they are secure and privacy-focused.
Is anonymous LinkedIn browsing against the terms of service?
LinkedIn’s User Agreement prohibits scraping data or reverse engineering the site. However, there is no rule against manually browsing profiles while logged out or using private/incognito browsing features.
As long as you access LinkedIn ethically, maintain your own privacy, and avoid workarounds that leverage site vulnerabilities or loopholes, you should be fine. This includes tools specifically designed to enable anonymous browsing.
The safest approach is to rely on LinkedIn’s own privacy features like Private Mode whenever possible. Only use third-party tools you fully trust.
Conclusion
With LinkedIn being a go-to platform for professional networking and recruiting, it’s understandable why you may want to browse more discreetly at times. Fortunately, LinkedIn provides options like Private Mode on desktop and managing your profile viewing settings.
On mobile, you can turn off hovercards, use a secondary account, or simply browse logged out. For added privacy, use Incognito tabs on your browser or change your profile URL periodically.
Be cautious of third-party tools, read their privacy policies, and avoid anything that seems sketchy or unethical. With the right approach, you can explore LinkedIn while maintaining your own privacy.
