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Any downsides to Firefox? Seems like an obvious switch.

by mjfl 3y ago

rco8786 3y ago
I switched to arc.net recently and it’s been pretty great.
cheekibreeki2 3y ago
It's too preachy.
nemo 3y ago
It has no bearing on this issue which will be identical for either Chrome of FF (or Safari, or others). Private browsing has nothing to do with server side tracking, so there's no "obvious" reason to respond by switching a browser over this.
tomrod 3y ago
Desktop UX is okay (a little slow and brittle on KDE Plasma, both X and Wayland), not a fan of the mobile UX still around Q3 2021
gruez 3y ago
Doesn't firefox have the exact same issue? The intersection of people that are tech savvy enough to care about this but haven't switched yet, and the people who are genuinely fooled by this (as opposed to kneejerk-hating on google) is approximately zero.
- deleted 3y ago
  [deleted]
- danShumway 3y ago
  Firefox's private browsing mode has for a long time had a great disclaimer that makes it obvious what the limitations are: > Private window: Firefox Developer Edition clears your search and browsing history when you close all private windows. This doesn’t make you anonymous. Emphasis mine. It's a better, simpler disclaimer than even the modified version that Google has started shipping post-settlement. Firefox then includes a "learn more" link to https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/common-myths-about-private-browsing https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/common-myths-about-priv... which (imo) does a better job than Chrome's link at breaking down the myths. So Firefox takes really tangible steps to make sure that people understand what "incognito" browsing actually means. The other difference is that Firefox actually does beef up anti-fingerpriting and anti-tracking protections by default to a greater degree than Chrome does if you're in a private browsing tab. The browser becomes stricter about blocking common tracking scripts and isolating data between domains. Firefox can't make you impossible to track during private browsing, but it does what it can, which is more than Chrome is willing to do, and most importantly, it makes sure that even if you're not tech-savvy you understand what the risks are. Firefox is not trying to be ambiguous or give you a false sense of security, but within its means it does try to make you as private as possible in those windows.
- instagib 3y ago
  There was a maintained Firefox containers extension that worked well for me. Even logged into sites would be fooled that it was not me logging in with my username/password and 2nd factor. It is no longer maintained. Their solution was to use Chrome. Someone mentioned yesterday using the extension which clicks all advertisements. There is a long list of anti fingerprinting extensions.
rany_ 3y ago
Firefox's private browsing disclaimer is more honest/easy to understand as well: > Private window: Firefox clears your search and browsing history when you close all private windows. This doesn’t make you anonymous.
ATMLOTTOBEER 3y ago
It’s been indistinguishable from chrome for me for at least 4 years. Ymmv
Kiro 3y ago
Strange comment considering the exact same problem applies to Firefox and all other browsers out there (unless there's some kind of VPN or proxy built-in), but maybe you're asking in general.

Any downsides to Firefox? Seems like an obvious switch.

by mjfl 3y ago

Any downsides to Firefox? Seems like an obvious switch.

rco8786 3y ago

I switched to arc.net recently and it’s been pretty great.

cheekibreeki2 3y ago

It's too preachy.

nemo 3y ago

It has no bearing on this issue which will be identical for either Chrome of FF (or Safari, or others). Private browsing has nothing to do with server side tracking, so there's no "obvious" reason to respond by switching a browser over this.

tomrod 3y ago

Desktop UX is okay (a little slow and brittle on KDE Plasma, both X and Wayland), not a fan of the mobile UX still around Q3 2021

gruez 3y ago

Doesn't firefox have the exact same issue? The intersection of people that are tech savvy enough to care about this but haven't switched yet, and the people who are genuinely fooled by this (as opposed to kneejerk-hating on google) is approximately zero.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
danShumway 3y ago
Firefox's private browsing mode has for a long time had a great disclaimer that makes it obvious what the limitations are: > Private window: Firefox Developer Edition clears your search and browsing history when you close all private windows. This doesn’t make you anonymous. Emphasis mine. It's a better, simpler disclaimer than even the modified version that Google has started shipping post-settlement. Firefox then includes a "learn more" link to https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/common-myths-about-private-browsing https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/common-myths-about-priv... which (imo) does a better job than Chrome's link at breaking down the myths. So Firefox takes really tangible steps to make sure that people understand what "incognito" browsing actually means. The other difference is that Firefox actually does beef up anti-fingerpriting and anti-tracking protections by default to a greater degree than Chrome does if you're in a private browsing tab. The browser becomes stricter about blocking common tracking scripts and isolating data between domains. Firefox can't make you impossible to track during private browsing, but it does what it can, which is more than Chrome is willing to do, and most importantly, it makes sure that even if you're not tech-savvy you understand what the risks are. Firefox is not trying to be ambiguous or give you a false sense of security, but within its means it does try to make you as private as possible in those windows.
instagib 3y ago
There was a maintained Firefox containers extension that worked well for me. Even logged into sites would be fooled that it was not me logging in with my username/password and 2nd factor. It is no longer maintained. Their solution was to use Chrome. Someone mentioned yesterday using the extension which clicks all advertisements. There is a long list of anti fingerprinting extensions.

rany_ 3y ago

Firefox's private browsing disclaimer is more honest/easy to understand as well: > Private window: Firefox clears your search and browsing history when you close all private windows. This doesn’t make you anonymous.

ATMLOTTOBEER 3y ago

It’s been indistinguishable from chrome for me for at least 4 years. Ymmv

Kiro 3y ago

Strange comment considering the exact same problem applies to Firefox and all other browsers out there (unless there's some kind of VPN or proxy built-in), but maybe you're asking in general.