LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional networking platform with over 800 million members. LinkedIn Premium is LinkedIn’s paid subscription service that unlocks additional features beyond the free basic account. One common question around LinkedIn Premium is whether it allows anonymous browsing – can you view other profiles without them knowing?
The short answer is no, LinkedIn Premium does not allow completely anonymous browsing. However, there are some privacy settings and tools available with Premium that can make your browsing and activity less discoverable and more private. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore what LinkedIn Premium offers in terms of privacy and anonymity when viewing profiles and searching on the platform.
Does LinkedIn Notify When You View a Profile?
With a free LinkedIn account, when you view another member’s profile it shows up under “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” on their account. Essentially, profile views are not anonymous with a basic free account.
However, with LinkedIn Premium there are some settings to make your profile viewing more private:
Profile Viewing Options
LinkedIn Premium offers three profile viewing options:
- Your name and headline display when you view member profiles (default setting)
- “Anonymous” – profiles you view appear as anonymous
- “Private” – you can select individual profiles to view privately
The “Anonymous” setting makes your name and info private when viewing member profiles in general. The “Private” option allows you to selectively view individual profiles anonymously.
While not completely hidden, these settings do make your viewing activity less visible than with a free account. Members will not see your name or that you specifically viewed their profile under the Anonymous/Private modes.
Browse Anonymously
LinkedIn Premium also has a “Browse Anonymously” setting when searching profiles. This makes your search activity and profile views anonymous when browsing search results. Members will not be notified you viewed their profile.
Again this isn’t completely hidden from LinkedIn’s data, but it prevents your viewing and search activity from being shown to other members.
Does LinkedIn Notify When You Search?
Similar to profile viewing, searches on LinkedIn by default are visible and not anonymous. Members can see who searched for their name or looked at their profile under the “Who’s Viewed Your Profile” section.
However, with LinkedIn Premium the “Browse Anonymously” setting mentioned above will also hide your search activity from others. Searches you perform will not show up as views on member profiles with this enabled.
In summary, while LinkedIn Premium doesn’t allow completely anonymous and invisible browsing, there are tools to browse and search more privately without leaving a trail for others to see. Settings like private profile viewing and anonymous searching aim to give Premium subscribers more control over their visibility and privacy when interacting on LinkedIn.
What Kinds of Data is LinkedIn Collecting?
While Premium members can limit visibility of their activity to others, it’s important to understand what kind of usage data LinkedIn itself collects – even if browsing anonymously. Here are some examples of data LinkedIn can gather on its users:
Profile and Account Information
– Basic account details – name, email, location, headline, etc.
– Your connections, followers and who you follow
– Groups joined
– Profile views and searches performed
– Posts, articles and content engagement
Behavioral and Tracking Data
– Pages visited and clicking activity
– Searches performed
– Ads interacted with
– Email engagement/opens
– Device and browser information
Third-Party Integrations
– Data from linked services like Google or Facebook
– Activity on third-party apps connected to your LinkedIn account
– Demographic and interest data from external sources
While you can limit visibility of your activity to other members with Premium, LinkedIn still has access to comprehensive usage data for personalized ads and suggestions. Your engagement on LinkedIn is not fully anonymous to LinkedIn itself.
How Does LinkedIn Use this Data?
LinkedIn leverages the data it collects for various business purposes including:
Personalized Recommendations
– Suggested connections, jobs, content etc. based on your profile and activity
Targeted Advertising
– Serving ads aligned to your interests and demographics
Improving the Platform
– Product research and development of new features
Monetization
– Premium subscriptions, job ads and other paid products
– Selling data to partners (in aggregated or non-identifiable forms)
So while your individual browsing may be more private with Premium, LinkedIn still utilizes your data in a broad sense to improve experiences and drive business results. Any platform you engage with will leverage user data to some extent.
Should You Use LinkedIn Anonymously?
While complete anonymity is not possible on LinkedIn, there can be benefits to keeping your browsing and activity less publicly visible when possible. Here are some pros of using LinkedIn more anonymously:
Reduced Spam and Unwanted Attention
By keeping your profile views anonymous, you reduce notifications to others and unwanted messages.
Objective Research
Enables viewing profiles and gathering intel without the other party knowing.
Privacy
You control more of your visibility and data footprint on the platform.
However, complete anonymity also has downsides:
Limited Engagement
Harder to connect with others and build relationships anonymously.
Less Personalized Experience
Anonymous activity limits customization of content/suggestions for you.
Reduced Trust
Being anonymous reduces trust and transparency with other members.
The optimal approach depends on your priorities and use cases. But overall, taking advantage of Premium’s privacy settings in moderation can help balance engagement with anonymity.
Conclusion
While LinkedIn Premium does not enable completely anonymous and hidden browsing, it does provide more privacy control over your activity and visibility than the free version. Settings like private profile viewing and anonymous search allow premium subscribers to use LinkedIn more discreetly.
However, LinkedIn still collects comprehensive user data for business purposes – even anonymous usage. Weigh the pros and cons based on your personal preferences for privacy vs. personalization on the platform. With the right settings, LinkedIn Premium can help achieve greater anonymity while remaining engaged.