this post was submitted on 20 Sep 2024
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Firefox

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Mozilla has fired Chief Product Officer Steve Teixeira after cancer diagnosis (mastodon.social)
submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]
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[–] [email protected] 64 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (3 children)

No no, guys Mozilla are the good guys. They never did something nasty like bundling tons of spyware and 3rd party calls with Firefox nor adding unique IDs to every installation. Mozilla also acquired an ad analytics company recently for some reason.

[–] [email protected] 32 points 3 months ago (2 children)

adding unique IDs to every installation.

I wasn't familiar with that so I did a quick search. For anyone else interested here is some info about it:

"Internet users who download the Firefox web browser from the official Mozilla website get a unique identifier attached to the installer that is submitted to Mozilla on install and first run."

[...]

"Firefox users who prefer to download the browser without the unique identifier may do so in the following two ways:"

  1. Download the Firefox installer from Mozilla's HTTPS repository (formerly the FTP repository).

  2. Download Firefox from third-party download sites that host the installer, e.g., from Softonic.

"The downloaded installers do not have the unique identifier, as they are identical whenever they are downloaded."

In the comments section someone says:

"It seems that getting Firefox from GNU/Linux repos (Debian, etc.), doesn’t come with unique IDs."

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

Yeah repositories and FTP don't include that, but it is kind shady that the first way to get it (website) for the majority of regular users (Windows/macOS) has a unique ID - after all this is the company that goes all in for privacy...

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago

Must be for ad attribution and install tracking. Only something a major portion of their users are specifically trying to avoid when they're choosing Firefox.

[–] [email protected] 26 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Wtf happened in the last month? Everyone used to love and jerk off Mozilla and suddenly we hate them?

[–] [email protected] 20 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Nothing, not everyone liked it, the only difference is that my comment would result in a shit show of downvotes last week while not people are starting to realize what Mozilla/Firefox really is. Mozilla was never the "all savior" pained them to be and it only took Wireshark and a couple of minutes to see it.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Even if Mozilla/Firefox was at some point a healthy organization, the shear incredible disparity of power between Google and Mozilla/Firefox means that the probability that Mozilla/Firefox would remain a healthy, functional organization approaches zero over a long enough period of time.

This is a problem that needs legislative action to destroy Google's incredible power and pseudo-monopoly control of search.

I am not saying Mozilla/Firefox isn't toxic, but there a million ways that Mozilla/Firefox could end up a toxic entity and billions of dollars that are directly interested in that being the case so shrugs.

....but yeah I agree with you, Mozilla/Firefox definitely didnt turn into a shithole overnight, but until recently criticizing them has been very difficuly to do in a lot of circles.

[–] [email protected] 15 points 3 months ago (3 children)

bundling tons of spyware

I couldn't find any info about this with a quick search. Do you have any links to where I can read more about this?

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

That is blatantly false. Don't even waste your time.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

I have this in user.js:

// settings user-test-programm
user_pref("app.shield.optoutstudies.enabled", false);

// dont use me as guinea pig
user_pref("app.normandy.enabled", false);
user_pref("app.normandy.optoutstudies.enabled", false);
user_pref("messaging-system.rsexperimentloader.enabled", false);

// side-loading of telemetry-extension
user_pref("extensions.systemAddon.update.enabled", false);

// disable Mozillas new tracking aggragation thingy
user_pref("dom.private-attribution.submission.enabled", false,);

// almost only for tracking useful
user_pref("beacon.enabled", false); // so webpage can send (tracking) data before you close tab
user_pref("browser.send_pings", false); // hyperlink auditing (click-tracking)

Note: the last two are more nuanced.

Argument for beacon is that webpages will use a more intrusive way with noticeable delay to upload data on tab close. I personally prefer that, as a warning, but never saw one after years.

Argument for send_pings is, that trackers will use more mean and stealthier ways to track you, if they don't have that interface (same as in private-attribution). I do know however, that companies who track you have high greed and low morale to begin with, and use all they can get to generate more money.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Just fire up Wireshark and inspect what Firefox calls, a lot of calling home and even if you change all the settings and config parameters to something sane it will still contact a 3rd party analytics company. Mozilla also acquired an ad analytics company recently for some reason.