You are the one per cent if you read Firefox's privacy spiels Fewer than one per cent of users installing the Firefox browser bother to read the fine print regarding privacy, so the browser's makers at the Mozilla Foundation are going to put it in your face. Firefox 56, due September 26th, will therefore display the browser's Privacy Notice as the second tab after new installs of the …
Could Mozilla turn this into a deliberately dedious 35 stage opt-out process to turn off just 5 settings, like Google's UK Privacy check up tool?
Given it's now a single privacy setting in Mozilla, using Google's methodology, that should translate into at least 7 stages/(clicks) per opt out, if they like Google, really (and I mean really) don't want users to opt out of their data collection strategies.
We really need a better solution, something akin to the pub landlord "You want your usual privacy settings Gov?" (Note, not Google's default privacy settings, which is data collection on by default)
If Mozilla/Firefox can fingerprint devices as Google does already, there is no reason to keep asking to complete Privacy Checkups, when a user clears cookies on exit/manually. If the privacy checkup has been completed once, these companies have this info elsewhere already (in terms of the device fingerprint).
There was meant to be a little irony there, as that did cross my mind, regards the Pub Landlord 'knowing you'.
The distinction I was trying to make is the fact Google fingerprint your devices (without permission) and store this fingerprint in their cloud, but at the same time constantly prompt you via the UK's Privacy Check-up tool to confirm your privacy settings, when Google can see full well the fingerprinted device being used has setup the Privacy opt-out already..
If you clear your cookies, it shouldn't make a difference, but maybe Google just saw that as too creepy, using that retained info, to continue to store opt-out info.
Personally, I find fingerprinting devices without permission, creepy, there should be explicit consent for this to happen. Such as "Do you Google to store a fingerprint about the device your using?"
If I read and accepted the T&C's of Firefox's ancestor twenty years ago, how many times should I have read it thereafter? I don't recollect aptitude thrusting them in my face when it updates Firefox for me, nor even when I run a new install on a new machine.
Are you saying something has materially changed this century? Without ever generating an alert? Damn, this smells of lawyer-fodder.
Lots of lawyer fodder in May. Which I guess is why they're changing.
But it's not just aptitude, Windows Update and Play Store do the same. Heck Play Store forces an update everything on a new Android version. Technically that's all illegal at the moment but nobody cares. The publicity around GDPR and the closing loopholes will make it much easier for the sueballs. And I consider that a good thing.
It is patently obvious that any browser manufacturer could implement an "Allow Phone home?" toggle which switched off all telemetry/snooping with a single click and only bothered the user with granular permissions when switched on. No-one does that. I wonder why? Google at least admit they're intentionally industrial scale data thieves. What's the Mozilla excuse?
1) Anyone clued up on privacy doesn't opt-in to telemetry anyway.
2) People who don't care leave telemetry settings set to the default, which as telemetry is opt-in, is off.
The result is that Mozilla is making decisions for all of Firefox's users based on the actions of a small amount them.
It really depends on what is collected, how this collection is justified and, in particular, whether this can be tracked back to an individual in any manner.
There is nothing wrong with error reports, processing statistics and the other - this helps developers fix issues that otherwise they will have missed. Which is important given the weirdo stuff that is "normal" out there in web land, let alone anything that is deliverately abnormal in a malicious way. It's the fine line between providing enough detail to allow somebody to look into and fix the error and allowing the same person, or an automated tool, to join up details about the user and their browsing habits.
If you like Firefox but hate all the bullshit it contains, love all your old plugins and would like to continue using them then switch to Waterfox. It is a fork of Firefox with all the crap removed. Switching is seamless. 1. Download load file. 2. Close Firefox. 3. Run Waterfox. Everything is the same, bookmarks remain etc, but no telemetry and your old plugins and themes work.
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