Privacy, Google, and Web Browsers

[jwm470]

We switched to Mac in 08, and have not used any virus protection since. Mac products come loaded with Safari browsers, and we used Google to search until last year. Having the same concerns as David we have been using Bing, but as a result of this thread have just loaded duckduckgo on our Macs, iPhones, and iPads. I am pleased with the search results. Thanks for the tip David.
Apparently there are options for browsers as well for Mac products. I have not changed that yet. Does the fact that we have not used any virus protection for seven years mean we should not look for an alternative? In Safari settings, there are separate options to, block pop ups, do not track, and block cookies.
I do not desire to understand everything about computers, however privacy about my shopping/searching habits are important. Does the non-open source nature of Apple products with the do not track enabled, and the duckduckgo search engine provide enough security to thwart the marketers effort to build a profile?