NoTrace+

Three privacy tools in one: strip photo metadata, remove tracking parameters from URLs, and search privately.

Live: https://notrace.plus (Vercel)

Made by gitpushnico.

Motivation

I built NoTrace+ because a lot of people (including me) don’t think about the small privacy steps that add up, like hidden photo metadata and tracking parameters in shared links. I wanted a single, simple place to clean both in seconds, and to share practical tips that make privacy feel approachable rather than technical.

What it does

NoTrace+ is a small, static, browser-first toolkit:

• Photo Metadata: removes EXIF / metadata from images and exports a clean copy.
• URL Tracking: removes common tracking parameters from URLs (UTM, click IDs, etc.) while preserving meaningful parameters.
• Private Search: opens DuckDuckGo searches in a new tab with privacy-focused settings.

Privacy model (what’s true, precisely)

NoTrace+ is designed so you can verify what it does by reading the source.

• NoTrace+ has no backend: it’s a static site (HTML/CSS/JS).
• We don’t receive your files or URLs: photo processing and URL cleaning happen in your browser.
• No analytics / no trackers: no cookies, pixels, or third‑party analytics scripts are included.

About “Private Search”

Private Search is still a web search engine workflow:

• Your query is sent to DuckDuckGo when you search (that’s unavoidable for any web search).
• DuckDuckGo will also see your IP address (as with any website).
• If you want to hide your IP from the search engine, use Tor Browser or a trusted VPN before searching.

How it works (high level)

• Photo Metadata: reads the image locally, redraws/exports without metadata, and downloads the cleaned file.
• URL Tracking: parses the URL and removes known tracking keys; non-tracking parameters remain.
• Private Search: creates a DuckDuckGo URL and opens it in a new tab.

Project structure

This repo is intentionally lightweight:

• notrace_plus.html — the main app (single-file HTML + CSS + JS)
• vercel.json — Vercel routing + security headers
• 404.html — custom 404 page
• og.png — link preview image (Open Graph / Twitter)
• logo.png — site logo
• icons/ — UI icons used inside the app
• favicon/ — favicon + Apple touch icon
• robots.txt / sitemap.xml — basic SEO crawl hints

Run locally

Just open the file in a browser:

1. Double‑click notrace_plus.html, or
2. Serve it locally (recommended so fonts load consistently):

python3 -m http.server 5173

Then open http://localhost:5173/notrace_plus.html.

Deploy on Vercel (with notrace.plus)

One common setup:

1. Push this repo to GitHub.
2. Import the project in Vercel (Framework preset: Other).
3. Set the Build Command to empty and Output Directory to empty (static).
4. Add your custom domain notrace.plus in Vercel → Domains.
5. Update DNS at your registrar as Vercel instructs.

Open source & license

This project is open source so anyone can inspect the code, verify the privacy claims, and fork/host their own version.

• License: MIT