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By default, DuckDuckGo is included in TBB's default list of search providers in the search bar. But it is only their clearnet site (duckduckgo.com), and not their hidden service version, https://duckduckgogg42xjoc72x3sjasowoarfbgcmvfimaftt6twagswzczad.onion.

There is no page or add-on offered by DuckDuckGo to install that includes the .onion URL being added to the search providers - only all their .com versions.

How can I easily add my own custom search provider with the DDG .onion url to Firefox?

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3 Answers 3

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Instructions:

  • Download an existing 'opensearch' XML file for one of the DuckDuckGo provider add-ons, such as the 'Lite' version (or the 'html' version which is also non-JS by default): https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/duckduckgo-lite/ or https:// addons.mozilla.org/en-us/firefox/addon/duckduckgo-html/. Do it by right-clicking on the 'Download Now' button on the add-on page and 'save link as' to save the .xml to your computer.

  • Modify the XML on your computer to replace all instances of duckduckgo.com with 3g2upl4pq6kufc4m.onion. For extra security and privacy, double check that https is included in the url strings - HTTPS works on .onion urls also.

  • In the <ShortName> line, modify the name if you want to differentiate it from the existing one or just make it clear to yourself it's the Tor DDG. e.g.: <ShortName>DuckDuckGo Lite Tor</ShortName>.

  • If you want family filter censoring turned off (or apply any other cookie-free settings by going to https://3g2upl4pq6kufc4m.onion/settings with JavaScript on and clicking on 'Show Bookmarklet and Settings Data' to get the relevant parameter), put the following line above the existing tag line: <Param name="kp" value="-1"/>.

  • Now upload the XML file to a temporary file sharing service that can provide a direct http link of your modified XML file. E.g.: https://gist.github.com and it's Raw-Link.

  • Find a 'HTML sandbox' site that provides a template for a browser-readable HTML page (a great one that requires no JS and is on HTTPS is https://www.jmarshall.com/easy/html/testbed.html), and put in the <head> section this tag: <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" title="DuckDuckGo Lite Tor" href="https://direct-link-to-your-modified-xml-file.xml">

  • Load the html sandbox code, and a blank page will be the result (but code obviously in the source). On that page, the tag tells Firefox that a custom search engine is to be found on this page! Go to the search bar and use the drop-down arrow on the left, and you'll see 'Add "DuckDuckGo Lite Tor". Do it and you can now search from the Firefox bar with Tor hidden service anonymity, forever!

  • FYI, the info on adding the tag was found at: https:// developer.mozilla.org/en-US/Add-ons/Creating_OpenSearch_plugins_for_Firefox

Interestingly, this method works for adding ANY custom search engine XML to Firefox in general, which I have also been trying to know how to do (without editing tedious XML/json files in the profile folder and having to restart Firefox, yuck) for years and years, and now I know, boo-ya!

Of course, edit the title or version of DDG as you see fit, my guide is merely a template.

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I've followed docksmouth and antiplex's good guide above. You can now install directly from the link below, my source code is on Github.

Go to in Tor Browser http://www.andrewparadi.com/torduckgo/

Source Code: https://github.com/andrewparadi/torduckgo

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  • The first link is broken.
    – Flux
    Commented May 3, 2022 at 13:02

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