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Would the built-in tracking protection make anti-tracking add-ons such as uBlock Origin redundant? Looks like it's using Disconnect's list but I'm not sure how

Would the built-in tracking protection make anti-tracking add-ons such as uBlock Origin redundant? Looks like it's using Disconnect's list but I'm not sure how much this differs from uBlock.

clouddrover 9y ago
And how do the two interact? Does Firefox's built-in tracking protection block content before uBlock Origin even has a chance to see it, and if so then is using the two in combination faster than just using uBlock Origin alone?
- groovecoder 9y ago
  Privacy Engineer @ Firefox here ... Extensions operate on requests before the platform-level channel classifier. In theory, the platform-level classifier should be faster than the webRequest API, but we've not measured it specifically. Running both uBO and and Tracking Protection can give some extra coverage; I've noticed sometimes the Tracking Protection shield pops up even though uBO (and Privacy Badger) are running.
  - clouddrover 9y ago
    Interesting. Thanks. :)
rsync 9y ago
I notice that if you enter incognito mode in chrome, while using ublock origin, the extension is disabled in the incognito window/session. However, it's not obvious to me that the protections offered by incognito are a superset of the protections offered by UO and I wonder why this is desirable ? Do I want incognito mode with UO running on it or is that unnecessary ?
- daxterspeed 9y ago
  When you install an extension in chrome it's by default set to be disabled in incognito mode (supposedly since some extensions don't respect privacy). From the extensions page you can easily set UO, or any other extensions for that matter, to remain enabled in incognito mode windows. Last time I checked chrome does not by itself offer any tracking protection while in incognito mode (supposedly since this would make it easier to detect when a user is in incognito mode). So you probably want UO enabled for that.
- skellera 9y ago
  I think chrome does a similar thing as is it possible to track through certain extensions so they default to off. If you know that extension isn’t tracking then you should be able to turn it back on.
- nikcub 9y ago
  You want uBlock Origin incognito chrome://extensions -> uBlock Origin -> allow in incognito The tradeoff is that many extensions are not safe and could spy on your incognito activity if allowed to work incognito
lovamova 9y ago
I wish I could add custom lists like in Opera.

Would the built-in tracking protection make anti-tracking add-ons such as uBlock Origin redundant? Looks like it's using Disconnect's list but I'm not sure how much this differs from uBlock.

clouddrover 9y ago

And how do the two interact? Does Firefox's built-in tracking protection block content before uBlock Origin even has a chance to see it, and if so then is using the two in combination faster than just using uBlock Origin alone?

groovecoder 9y ago
Privacy Engineer @ Firefox here ... Extensions operate on requests before the platform-level channel classifier. In theory, the platform-level classifier should be faster than the webRequest API, but we've not measured it specifically. Running both uBO and and Tracking Protection can give some extra coverage; I've noticed sometimes the Tracking Protection shield pops up even though uBO (and Privacy Badger) are running.
- clouddrover 9y ago
  Interesting. Thanks. :)

rsync 9y ago

I notice that if you enter incognito mode in chrome, while using ublock origin, the extension is disabled in the incognito window/session. However, it's not obvious to me that the protections offered by incognito are a superset of the protections offered by UO and I wonder why this is desirable ? Do I want incognito mode with UO running on it or is that unnecessary ?

daxterspeed 9y ago
When you install an extension in chrome it's by default set to be disabled in incognito mode (supposedly since some extensions don't respect privacy). From the extensions page you can easily set UO, or any other extensions for that matter, to remain enabled in incognito mode windows. Last time I checked chrome does not by itself offer any tracking protection while in incognito mode (supposedly since this would make it easier to detect when a user is in incognito mode). So you probably want UO enabled for that.
skellera 9y ago
I think chrome does a similar thing as is it possible to track through certain extensions so they default to off. If you know that extension isn’t tracking then you should be able to turn it back on.
nikcub 9y ago
You want uBlock Origin incognito chrome://extensions -> uBlock Origin -> allow in incognito The tradeoff is that many extensions are not safe and could spy on your incognito activity if allowed to work incognito

lovamova 9y ago

I wish I could add custom lists like in Opera.