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Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

blog.mozilla.org

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Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#341

Post by warkdarrior »

Moter8 wrote: post #21
TulliusCicero wrote: post #13

Neat! How do they handle abuse though? Like, people using it to host, say, pirated TV shows? Maybe a max download limit that makes it impractical for that use case?

The files are available up until they have been downloaded (from 1 to 100 times) or until a certain timeframe has elapsed (from 5 minutes to 7 days). See the screenshot at the article.

We are working on a plugin for BitTorrent that will automatically re-upload a file to Firefox Send when the old link expires and then make the new link available in the torrent.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#342

Post by icebraining »

z3t4 wrote: post #152

Why doesn't Firefox support p2p file sending !? Why do they do with the files I upload !?

P2P means both machines must be able to talk to each other (occasionally difficult when both are behind NAT) and must be turned on at the same time. Using a reliable intermediary gives some flexibility.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#343

Post by TheKarateKid »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #171
patrickxb wrote: post #129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand how they can afford the bandwidth... If this were on AWS it would be around $0.09 per GB for downloads.

Which is why you don’t host it on AWS. Wrong tool for the job.

Their Github page specifically mentions AWS S3 as a requirement. So they are using it.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#344

Post by jamesgeck0 »

olyjohn wrote: post #302
yjftsjthsd-h wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it a technical limitation, insufficient developers, or a license issue? IIRC GPL doesn't work with the store.

I feel like there must be some iOS limitations as well. Dropbox can't even sync files in the background, so if I take a bunch of photos, I have to leave it running and touch the screen every couple of minutes in order to get all the photos uploaded. I feel like Dropbox apps are generally pretty good, and this was way janky, and had to be an iOS limitation, but I'm not 100% sure.

iOS apps (including Dropbox) can sync data in the background, but it's a bit janky. You have to give the app permission to access location services. It'll upload a bit of data in the background every time your phone location changes.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#346

Post by hombre_fatal »

_bxg1 wrote: post #100

Ah man, I literally came up with (and prototyped) this exact thing in 2013. Minus the end to end encryption. I dropped it mostly because I wasn't sure how to prevent illegal use and didn't want to be liable. Edit: mine was actually (partially) better because it assigned a short PIN instead of a full link, which meant you could just look at it and remember it for typing-in, instead of requiring a separate channel to "…

You came up with a web service that lets anyone upload something and then download it via /uploads/123?

That's basically a hello world project. As you found out, the hard part is everything else, like funding it.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#347

Post by danilocesar »

Vinnl wrote: post #109
voidmain0001 wrote: post #73

I'm onboard as a regular user of send.firefox.com. How does Mozilla have the money to offer this for free?

Mozilla has quite a bit of money, most of it from their default search engine deals. I'd wager to guess that most of it goes to wages.

Net income 2017: 89 million. Not that much for a company employing more than a thousand employees. But impressive for a corporation that is 100% owned by (and allegedly managed like) a non-profit org.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#348

Post by voidmain0001 »

mercutio2 wrote: post #240
voidmain0001 wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Beyond AirDrop which only works between like devices, how else can files on an iPhone be transferred to another device without iTunes, and without using a 3rd party? I'm not being adversarial, I really want to know.

I’m a little confused, you don’t want to use 3rd party apps (like a Microsoft app to interact with nearby MS stuff) AND you don’t want to use Apple 1st party apps? It sounds like the only thing that would’ve satisfied you would’ve been for iOS to natively understand whatever the Microsoft system is for broadcasting videos? I agree it would be delightful if Apple and Microsoft could agree on a “I’m a short term drop-p…

I don't understand your confusion. What I would like to see is the iPhone to support the use of its native Bluetooth radio to connect to another device with a Bluetooth radio and implement the native Bluetooth file transfer protocol. Why would I want to use a 3rd party app/program which incurs a data charge to download, and possibly an account setup which means information leakage.

Re: Firefox Send: Free encrypted file transfer service

#350

Post by Piskvorrr »

dooglius wrote: post #69
mFixman wrote: post #12

I can't believe that there isn't a simple service to transfer data between my cellphone and my computer without going through the internet. iTunes is terribly bloated, MTP is a mess, and Bluetooth is slow and frustrating. Back in my hacker day I used to have an SSH server open on my cellphone and use it to transfer files back and forth with my computer. Why isn't there a mainstream service like that?

I'm a bit confused, in what sense is accessing an SSH server not going through the internet? Was the phone connected to the same LAN as the desktop via Wifi?

That's the usual arrangement, yes: phone - WiFi AP - ethernet switch - desktop; no internet needed. SSH is not some only-works-in-the-cloud magic, just a TCP/IP service; as long as you can access the server, it is cloud-agnostic.

I do use this arrangement with split DNS: inside the local LAN, the desktop's DNS resolves to the desktop directly; outside, it resolves to the gateway's external port, whence it's NATed to the desktop. SSH from anywhere :)

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