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Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

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Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#111

Post by sleavey »

svnpenn wrote: post #55

> Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0; blocking redirect trackers by default Isnt that what is used with Google Search? For example if you go here: https://www.google.com/search?q=sunday the first result appears to be: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunday but its really: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&c...

I find this annoying and noticed this change a year or so ago. Google used to just give you the (as far as I could tell) unadulterated link. In fact, at the time I wondered how/if Google were actually able to track how many people clicked the top link in the results, because it seemed to be the real URL and stayed real even when clicked. I figured they either had so much faith in PageRank that they didn't need to monitor clicks, or they were hiding their tracking in a less obvious way.

Anyway, does anyone know a way in Firefox to stop sites from changing a URL's target when it gets clicked? This seems like it should be an about:config option.

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#112

Post by mey »

mataug wrote: post #107
input_sh wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More details here[0], but in short, they'll "block them" by deleting cookies and site data of redirect trackers every 24h, preventing long term profile building, while not breaking the redirects. There's also a "Google search link fix" recommended extension that fixes those URLs (replaces https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&c... to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunday in your example). Also ava…

Deleting redirect cookies is a wonderful step forward in improving privacy. I'm now concerned that companies would attempt to circumvent this by profiling users via fingerprinting through canvas, screen resolution, user agent and other means. I wonder how such profiling can be minimized / eliminated ?

Fingerprinting is already happening

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#113

Post by floatingatoll »

mancerayder wrote: post #104

I'm happy to see stuff like this. I'd be even happier if the tricks to get video to play were somehow canceled. I have adblocker and video blockers, but somehow, news sites have a video that plays. If I scroll off the page, the video pops out into the lower right hand of the page and resumes playing, even if the big version of the video at the top of the page was stopped /paused (which it is by default), and it needs…

If you temporarily set about:config "image.animation_mode" to the value "none", and then restart Firefox, does it stop that video from autoplaying? If so, it's because they're using an animated GIF, which isn't a video.

(You can right-click the value you modified in about:config to Reset it back to the default, so that animated GIFs work again, after you're done testing that.)

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#115

Post by floatingatoll »

UI_at_80x24 wrote: post #110
drewg123 wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm running the same version of Firefox on FreeBSD (firefox-79.0,1) and I don't see this (with http2=true). I'm running 13-current (r363668) and using the 12-stable quarterly packages (FreeBSD:12:amd64/quarterly)

I'm running 12.1-RELEASE-p5 [quarterly], so that's interesting. We should be overlapping somewhat. I inclined to believe that it's just my luck. You need somebody to find edge-case bugs? I'm your stooge.

If you'd like the Firefox team to investigate that issue further, I imagine they'd certainly welcome a bug filed about it: https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/enter_bug.cgi?product=Firefox&c...

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#116

Post by Shacklz »

mancerayder wrote: post #104

I'm happy to see stuff like this. I'd be even happier if the tricks to get video to play were somehow canceled. I have adblocker and video blockers, but somehow, news sites have a video that plays. If I scroll off the page, the video pops out into the lower right hand of the page and resumes playing, even if the big version of the video at the top of the page was stopped /paused (which it is by default), and it needs…

> but somehow, news sites have a video that plays

This is so annoying, engaging in such obviously obnoxious UX patterns should be regulated and punished with fines when user-intent tries to be circumvented.

The "just dont visit that website lol"-trope really doesn't cut it anymore; operating a news paper organization nowadays is such a cutthroat business that you simply can't not do it if your competition does it, there really needs to be regulation to level the playing field to stop this kind of bullshit

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#117

Post by ziddoap »

LeifCarrotson wrote: post #94
compscistd wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Firefox > Preferences > Home > New Windows and Tabs (very first option!) > Homepage and New Windows, New Tabs > Blank Page I like that Firefox Home is the default option because you as the user are offered something. If you don't like it, you say no, go to the settings page, and are never offered it again. If you do like it or don't mind it, you keep it. Win-win. If Firefox Home wasn't on by default, those that might…

The default option should be "show options", letting you choose with one click between Blank, Mozilla Ads, Your Recent/Favorite Pages, and a custom URL or set of URLs. There are 6 levels to your process above. Imagine being tech-illiterate and asked to navigate that - or, maybe easier, imagine trying to dictate that process to someone you know who is tech-illiterate over the phone. Even if you know exactly what to do…

>There are 6 levels to your process above

Hit options -> Click dropdown of "new tab" field and select "Blank page". 2 steps.

If the parent post is being disingenuous with their point, yours is as equally disingenuous by being an incredibly over-complicated deconstruction of hitting options and reading 2 fields down.

If they have to be walked through finding the options menu (half your paragraph is about opening the options menu, really?), they are going to have difficulties with every browser and every option -- including understanding what a "custom URL or set of URLs" is.

>"Oh a URL? That's the address thing you see at the top. Oh but it's not shown completely in some browsers. And, if you want multiple URLs you have to use the pipe operator symbol. Oh, the pipe operator? Look above your enter key. No, not the one on the number pad, the other one near the backspace." Etc..

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#118

Post by tarkin2 »

ysavir wrote: post #12
tarkin2 wrote: post #2

I understand: cookies are deleted every 24 hours unless you’ve visited the site before in the last 45 days. Does this mean if I visit a site twice the cookie stays but otherwise it’s gone in 24 hours?

I think it means that 3rd party cookies will be deleted in 24 hours unless you visited the site of origin in the last 45 days. So if you get a 3rd party cookie from www.marketingsite.com, but never visited that site, it will be deleted in 24 hours. But if you get a 3rd party cookie from facebook, and you're a semi-active facebook user, the cookie will be kept.

I don't think it's only third party cookies. But all cookies if you've only visited the site once once in 24 hours.

The article mentions you get redirected to a website before going to your destination, so the third-party cookie is no longer 'third' but 'first' since you (unbeknownst to you) visited the site.

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#119

Post by floatingatoll »

mataug wrote: post #107
input_sh wrote: post #77

Earlier quoted context omitted.

More details here[0], but in short, they'll "block them" by deleting cookies and site data of redirect trackers every 24h, preventing long term profile building, while not breaking the redirects. There's also a "Google search link fix" recommended extension that fixes those URLs (replaces https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&c... to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunday in your example). Also ava…

Deleting redirect cookies is a wonderful step forward in improving privacy. I'm now concerned that companies would attempt to circumvent this by profiling users via fingerprinting through canvas, screen resolution, user agent and other means. I wonder how such profiling can be minimized / eliminated ?

As of January [1], it looks like Firefox enabled fingerprinting protection by default. Expert users may have overridden settings in various ways that could prevent those protections from being active. To verify, at Preferences > Privacy > Tracking Protection (about:preferences#privacy), make sure you've selected an option that includes Fingerprinting protection.

[1] https://blog.mozilla.org/firefox/how-to-block-fingerprinting...

Re: Latest Firefox rolls out Enhanced Tracking Protection 2.0

#120

Post by andrewshadura »

subhro wrote: post #106
onyva wrote: post #105

The only browser we can trust today. Glad to see they’re making privacy online a priority, on top of an already amazing browser I use regularly and exclusively both on Linux and iOS.

Honest question, what's wrong with Safari, that you can not trust it?

It's not open source, how can you trust it?
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