An example method may include detecting, by an operating system component of a computing device, that a client requesting a network connection is operating in a non-persistent mode that prevents tracking of network locations accessed by the client; in response to the detecting, performing privacy enhancing operations before establishing the network connection for the client. The privacy enhancing operations include: broadcasting network messages to discover networks without using previously stored information related to the networks; receiving network identifying information from the networks; providing the network identifying information for the networks to the client; requesting the client to perform media access control (MAC) address randomization; receiving a random MAC address and authentication information for a connection to a network selected from the networks; and authenticating the client; and causing the network connection to be established upon a successful authentication of the client.