Firefox 89 unveils a major -- and distinctly modern -- facelift
When Mozilla switched its popular open-source browser from a rapid-release cycle of six weeks to an even-faster release cycle of just four weeks between major releases, it became easy to blur one release of Firefox into the next, as the version number ticked up ever more quickly. But it’s safe to say that the latest release -- Firefox 89 -- deserves the label of 'landmark' release, thanks to a radical makeover.
The slick new user interface is more befitting of the modern, minimalist UIs sported by Windows and macOS (as well as Android and iOS), along with rival browsers Chrome and Edge. The new look is very much "cleaner, more inviting, and easier to use" as Mozilla boasts, thanks in part to extensive study of how people used the browser, which informed its many changes and improvements.
Firefox 86 boosts user privacy with Total Cookie Protection feature
Mozilla has rolled out its now-customary four-weekly update with the release of Firefox 86 for Windows, Mac and Linux. This latest release contains several notable new features as well as a handful of fixes and improvements.
Users gain support for watching multiple picture-in-picture videos simultaneously, there’s improvement to the app’s Print tool, but most noteworthy of all, a new Total Cookie Protection is offered that isolates website cookies so they can’t track users across multiple sites.
Mozilla issues important patch to stop Firefox triggering Windows 10's drive corruption flaw
A few weeks ago, we wrote about a bug in Windows 10 which could lead to an NTFS drive being formatted simply by opening a folder. The issue affects the $i30 NTFS attribute, and it can be triggered in Explorer as well as web browsers.
Now Mozilla has released a key update to Firefox which prevents it from activating the bug. To be protected, you need to be running at least Firefox 85.0.1.
Firefox 85 blocks so-called 'supercookies' as Microsoft Edge 88 boosts performance and security
It’s been a busy few days for web browsers. Last week, Microsoft Edge 88.0 rolled out several major new features, including a new sleeping tabs feature, while today sees the launch of Firefox 85.0.
Firefox 85 arrives with three new noteworthy features. The first is protection against so-called 'supercookies', trackers that are able to hide within browsers to track users online even after they’ve cleared cookies. Firefox achieves this by isolating the cookies so they can’t follow your progress between sites.
Firefox 83 unveils improved page loading and responsiveness, HTTPS-only mode
Mozilla has released Firefox 83.0, the latest version of its open-source, cross-platform web browser. A mere 28 days after the last major release, and version 83 makes its bow.
Despite the short time between releases, version 83 manages to pack in more performance improvements, a new optional HTTPS-only mode, support for pinch zoom on touchscreens, and compatibility with new Apple Macs running the M1 chip.
Dreaming of an insecure Christmas
What do you want for Christmas? How about a coffee maker that can eavesdrop on your conversations, or a fitness tracker that can analyze the tone of your voice?
The fourth-annual Privacy Not Included holiday shopping guide from Mozilla aims to arm shoppers with the information they need to choose gifts that protect the privacy and security of their friends and family while spurring the tech industry to do more to safeguard consumers.
Mozilla: The internet is fcked, but together we can unfck it
Ahead of the 2020 United States presidential election, Mozilla is calling Twitter and Facebook to "unfck the internet".
The Firefox-maker is seeking "an honest internet for the US elections". It's something of an ad campaign for its own web browser, but it touches on legitimate worries many people have about the use and abuse of social media. Specifically, there are concerns about how social media platforms are used to spread misinformation.
Thunderbird 78 unveils major UI changes, restricts add-ons to MailExtension API only
Mozilla has released Thunderbird 78.0 for Windows, Mac and Linux. It’s the first major update of the popular open-source email client since August 2019, and is only available as a direct download -- existing users of the Thunderbird 68.x series are advised to wait for a future release that will provide an upgrade path.
A host of new and changed features have been implemented, although the long-heralded built-in support for OpenPGP encryption has been disabled by default for now due to some outstanding issues.
Firefox 78 and Firefox 78 ESR unveil new privacy protection features
Mozilla has released Firefox 78.0, the latest in a long line of major updates to the veteran browser. Available for Windows, macOS and Linux, the new release is joined by Firefox ESR 78.0, the first major update of the Extended Support Release browser since Firefox 68 last year.
The release sees the Privacy Protections screen renamed to Protections Dashboard. It also gains two new features: the ability to track the number of resolved breaches directly from the dashboard itself, plus an option to check to see if any saved passwords have been exposed in a data breach. Type about:protections to access the dashboard quickly.
Firefox Private Network VPN renamed to Mozilla VPN and priced at $5 per month
VPNs can be wonderful for protecting a user's privacy, but they are not infallible. For instance, while they can hide your activity from your ISP or an unsecured Wi-Fi network, the VPN company can potentially see everything you do. With that said, you'd better be very smart about selecting a VPN provider. Rule number one: Never trust a "free" VPN or one that offers a pay-once "lifetime" subscription, as you simply can't trust their business models to protect your privacy. Instead, splurge a bit and go with a reputable company that requires periodic payments and promises not to keep any logs. Do your homework, folks.
Mozilla is a company that I trust more than some others (I trust no person or company 100 percent, however!) thanks to its respectable data privacy principles. That is why I surf the web with Firefox whenever I can. That company has been beta-testing a VPN service of its own called "Firefox Private Network VPN". Yeah, that name stinks as it is too wordy. Thankfully, the company has wisely decided to rename it to the much cleaner "Mozilla VPN." In addition, we learn how much the VPN service will eventually cost -- $4.99 a month.
Firefox 76 expands Lockwise password manager capabilities
Mozilla has released Firefox 76.0 for Windows, macOS and Linux, the latest in its long line of major updates to the venerable open source browser.
The chief focus in this new release is the further development of Mozilla’s Lockwise password manager. Users gain several enhancements including alerts of website breaches with prompts to update all online accounts that share the same password.
If you used Firefox to access Twitter, your non-public info may have been exposed
Mozilla Firefox is damn good web browser that is largely open source and focuses on privacy and security. That is why I choose it as my default browser on both Windows 10 and Linux-based operating systems such as Ubuntu and Fedora. Many people wisely choose Firefox for the same reasons.
Sadly, today, we discover that if you have been using Mozilla Firefox to access Twitter, you may have had non-public information data saved locally to cache. Twitter makes it clear that other major browsers, such as Google Chrome and Apple Safari, are not affected. Thankfully, the social network says it fixed the issue on its end.
Firefox 74 tightens add-on security, simplifies importing data from Microsoft Edge
Mozilla has released Firefox 74.0 for desktop, along with Firefox for Android 68.6.0 and Firefox ESR 68.6.0.
Firefox 74.0 ships with several new features, none of which are jaw-dropping, but all of which serve to further improve the browser’s privacy, security and usability. In addition, the Facebook Container add-on now gives users control over which sites are blocked from reporting back to Facebook.
Mozilla is enabling encrypted DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) by default for US Firefox users
Firefox users in the US will soon have DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) enabled by default. Mozilla is in the process of rolling out the privacy- and security-focused feature after an intensive period of testing.
DoH is an option for anyone outside of the US, but it will have to be manually enabled. Once enabled, DNS lookups are routed through Cloudflare or NextDNS using an encrypted HTTPS connection, hiding it from third parties such as your ISP.
Open source email client Thunderbird finds a new home
If you prefer to access your email through a desktop client, then Thunderbird is one of the better choices. However, the future of the open source tool has been a little rocky in recent years after the Mozilla Corporation decided to stop supporting it.
However, there’s a lot of love for Thunderbird out there, and it’s managed to survive, and even grow thanks to user donations. And now the email client has found a new home.
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