Does Incognito really work or does it mask your history only about as well as those fake plastic glasses and mustache would conceal your identity? 

Incognito, which may also sometimes be referred to as privacy mode, offers a way to browse the web without leaving a trail behind, but you cannot completely rely on Incognito as a failsafe method to cover your tracks. 

What Incognito will do for you is enable you to browse the Internet without storing your search history, cookies and site data on your personal device. However, if you are an employee or student working on a computer network, your employer, school and Internet Service Provider (ISP) can still monitor your browsing activity.

Incognito is, however, a solid option if your aim is to keep your search history private from others who may use your personal device, like your child who you may not want privy to your searches. Basically, Incognito will spare you from having to clear your history, cache and cookies yourself. 

So, Incognito may be a great way to research that surprise party, engagement ring or holiday gift on your personal computer, but for a more effective privacy option, you may want to use a virtual private network (VPN) instead. A VPN will make it more difficult to track your browsing history by encrypting your data and hiding your IP address.