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It does strike me as odd that is private but I need to install a chrome extension to use it and there is a prominent 'Sign up' button on the top right corner.

I am also struggling to understand why the need to install a chrome extension to see search results. Feels like a lot of users will get lost on this first funnel step.

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You don't need the extension or sign up to use the search engine, just type into the search bar on the top of the page.

What is raising red flags for me is this part of the FAQ:

> How does You.com make money? > We are currently focused on building the best possible search experience. We will explore monetization ideas in the future and look forward to your feedback in that process.

So they don't have a monetization strategy yet, and they expect you to sign up and install a browser extension? That's a recipe for disaster right there.

This looks promising, but until the monetization situation is figured out, I'm going to avoid giving them any access to my information.

> You don't need the extension or sign up to use the search engine, just type into the search bar on the top of the page.

I'm not sure this is true when you're using Chrome. I use safari and thought the same thing at first.

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