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Top-level
 - Firefox's "Privacy-preserving" ad tracking has other interesting issues. In another way the new ad snitching is worse than the old tracker cookies, Firefox doesn't *tell* you what data it's collected or reported, and unlike with cookies doesn't give you the ability to delete recorded "impressions". Also interestingly, the feature is not available to *all* advertisers currently, only a "small number" of partner sites. *Firefox doesn't disclose who they are*, again making this worse than $GOOG. 190 comments
Anyway, I guess that's a lot of typing. The TLDR is: - There is now a feature labeled "Privacy-preserving ad measurement" near the bottom of your Firefox Privacy settings. I recommend turning it off, or switching to a more privacy-conscious browser such as Google Chrome. - I have filed two bugs on Firefox about this, which I am choosing not to link to dissuade brigading. If I have not been banned from the bug tracker by next week I will file another bug about the ChatGPT integration in nightly @mcc maybe i just need to give up on not be a product, but to concentrate on how to be a terrible product.  @Bigshellevent @mcc I can’t find it now but there was a user program that generated garbage data to mask your movements. I think it was called Noize, Noisr, or something @mcc Yes, LibreWolf has everything needed to play DRM media included, it's just disabled by default. You enable it in "Settings -> General" just like in Firefox @KDHofAvalon thanks. Can this module be integrated in a case where I compiled my own copy of LibreWolf? @mcc That, I don't know. I haven't had a need to compile it myself yet in my testing. LibreWolf is just a fork of Firefox though, so it it works there it should also work for LibreWolf  @mcc @bob One of the most fundamental aspects of privacy is autonomy — being able to choose how much you share, with whom, and how. Contrary to how most privacy-conscious software projects tend to see it, that isn't always "no information shared ever." I wish it was easier to tune and express autonomy instead of either just locking everything to zero or letting ad-tech run my life.   @mcc "a more privacy-conscious browser such as Google Chrome" is such a cursed phrase 🤢 We really need a new browser from someone that isn't in thrall to adtech, AI bullshit, or fascist politics    @sturmsucht @morganmay @mcc Unfortunately that's not safe either. Between the weird cryptomining feature and the transphobic CEO, there's a lot to go wrong there. @lunarloony @morganmay @mcc Oh, didn't know that. The crypto bro thing is omnipresent of course. 🙄 Any links so I can read myself in?  @mcc Wow. If the direct comparison leads to sentences like "or switching to a more privacy-conscious browser such as Google Chrome", things must be REALLY off. (Yeah, they are.) So, which browser is still a good approach?! I'm so tired of all the enshittification! And of ChatGPT and all the other LLM stuff! 😤😒 @mcc @jesterchen LibreWolf is decent. Firefox is more polished, but LibreWolf definitely has the privacy defaults ert to max to the point where I loosened settings to allow for a better login experience. Definitely worth a try if FF is getting bad.  @mcc I wouldn't really say "witching to a more privacy-conscious browser such as Google Chrome." Chrome/Chromium has done stuff like this before multiple times and a number of other privacy violations as well. They did this one thing better (ish), but I would absolutely not under any circumstances call them "privacy-conscious" or implying switching to them would be better. @nazokiyoubinbou It is possible part of my goal with that post was to make an unusual statement so as to underline the extremity of the current situation. @mcc Well, you have to be careful with that sort of thing. It is very easy for people to take it literally. I admit I have a problem with that in general, taking stuff literally that everyone else finds very obviously not literal (Asperger's thing I guess,) but I think a lot of people also defer to such statements when it comes to complex things (especially tech.)  @mcc for completeness' sake, i found a Reddit thread where ppl raised an issue about that 'feature' - https://www.reddit.com/r/firefox/comments/1dv59fd/dear_firefox_please_stop_adding_dubious_settings/  @mcc Google Chrome, or even degoogled Chromium, is NOT "a more privacy-conscious browser". It's 1000x worse. Yes this is (yet another) betrayal by Mozilla management clowns, but in browsers like in politics, "X betrayed us" doesn't justify "so we should turn to Y who was 1000x worse to begin with".  @mcc super bad shenanigans. Thanks for your info on the matter! In my version 127 I also noticed two telemetry settings turned on, which I sure as hell didn't do myself. Sick of it. Firefox is dead.  @mcc Link about the AI integration if people want to know more. https://blog.nightly.mozilla.org/2024/06/24/experimenting-with-ai-services-in-nightly/ @mcc websites which registered an origin-trial token can use it now. https://wiki.mozilla.org/Origin_Trials I assume the default setting will be changed after the trial period. @mozilla @s_hentzschel I'd not recommend Chrome as an alternative! There are so many (default) features that are worse in case of privacy ... @kapsiR @mcc t looks like @mcc has not understood the issue at all. From a privacy point of view, there is no question that advertising without tracking is better than advertising with tracking. Simply blocking everything will not solve the problem. Even security features like HSTS are being abused for tracking these days. If you really want to eliminate tracking, you have to offer alternatives where everyone wins - users and advertisers. 1/n @kapsiR @mcc The web must enable business models, otherwise the open web would be in acute danger. Many websites would die or only be accessible behind paywalls. That is a fact. And for advertising to be effective (and for vast amounts of money not to be wasted), it is important to be able to display advertising based on interests. So far, this has only been possible by tracking users. And this is exactly what Mozilla wants to improve - for the benefit of users. 2/n @kapsiR @mcc Mozilla has also clearly stated that they are currently still in the phase of designing the corresponding standard. The first step is to find out whether PPA provides data that is so good to work with that tracking is no longer necessary, or whether further improvements are required. The data cannot be collected if it has to be explicitly activated. 3/n  |
Gregory's Server
- This event seems to tie in with other confusing developments around Mozilla as a company/"Foundation". I do not know enough about these issues to comment on them intelligently. I know only that Mozilla has, inexplicably for a nominal nonprofit, recently bought an advertising firm: https://mastodon.social/@jwz/112650295543215212
and that I have seen… let's say "criticism" of recent changes to the board makeup: https://www.spiceworks.com/tech/tech-general/news/mozilla-cpo-sues-company-over-disability-discrimination/
- This event seems to tie in with other confusing developments around Mozilla as a company/"Foundation". I do not know enough about these issues to comment on them intelligently. I know only that Mozilla has, inexplicably for a nominal nonprofit, recently bought an advertising firm: https://mastodon.social/@jwz/112650295543215212