5 ms·

Is there some sort of way to to keep a browser profile inaccessible to anything run by the user that isn't the browser, while still having the browser itself be

Is there some sort of way to to keep a browser profile inaccessible to anything run by the user that isn't the browser, while still having the browser itself being usable by the user?

fbdab103 3y ago
QubesOS? I would love to know the answer, but I think it is going to be a long time before we have proper application sandboxing on Linux. The browser is likely the biggest threat vector running on my machine, yet there are no easy ways to lock it down to just reading/writing Downloads and its own cache.
- bombcar 3y ago
  That's part of the problem, but remember your browser has all your cookies and such - the sites that keep you logged in even when you close the window (like email). So if anything else can read the browser's data, it can get that.
- hwbunny 3y ago
  AppArmor is fairly easy.
yjftsjthsd-h 3y ago
Sure; take your pick: Firejail, flatpak/bubblewrap/bubblejail, docker/podman.
Timber-6539 3y ago
You can run Firefox in a docker container. Not sure how much GPU performance you can squeeze out of it but it's doable.
- mnahkies 3y ago
  You can (allow) access to GPU for cuda applications in docker containers, so I'd be surprised if it wasn't possible to get video acceleration to work normally
usr1106 3y ago
I use firejail. At least the browser cannot see arbitrary files in my home directory, like ssh or gpg keys, password manager, and everthing else. To share files between the browser and the rest ~/Downloads can be used. Disclaimer: Critics say firejail is too complicated to be audited and adds too much attack surface of its own.
mmsc 3y ago
Yes, you can run Firefox as its own user. I wrote about this about a decade ago; https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/10/24/2 https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/10/24/2
- DaSHacka 3y ago
  The gentoo wiki also has some information about this https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Simple_sandbox#larry_runs_firefox_as_sandbox_user_ff https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Simple_sandbox#larry_runs_firef...
keepamovin 3y ago
Run your browser on a remote machine? Using say BrowserBox: https://github.com/BrowserBox/BrowserBox https://github.com/BrowserBox/BrowserBox Full disclaimer: my company develops it.
harporoeder 3y ago
There are lots of ways to protect your system from a browser exploit via containers, another user, a vm, etc as brought up by other people responding. However protecting a browser from other applications is basically impossible unless you also sandbox everything else you are doing. Even if you run a browser in a VM some other process run as your user could just automate clicking the UI to do whatever. If you go qubes style and isolate everything from everything then it is fine.
- bombcar 3y ago
  Protecting the browser from other applications is arguably more important now than protecting applications from the browser; as the browser contains all your security information (cookies, etc) necessary to login (or be logged in) on all your important sites. People have been hacked by malicious Minecraft mods uploading browser data to nefarious places.

Is there some sort of way to to keep a browser profile inaccessible to anything run by the user that isn't the browser, while still having the browser itself being usable by the user?

fbdab103 3y ago

QubesOS? I would love to know the answer, but I think it is going to be a long time before we have proper application sandboxing on Linux. The browser is likely the biggest threat vector running on my machine, yet there are no easy ways to lock it down to just reading/writing Downloads and its own cache.

bombcar 3y ago
That's part of the problem, but remember your browser has all your cookies and such - the sites that keep you logged in even when you close the window (like email). So if anything else can read the browser's data, it can get that.
hwbunny 3y ago
AppArmor is fairly easy.

yjftsjthsd-h 3y ago

Sure; take your pick: Firejail, flatpak/bubblewrap/bubblejail, docker/podman.

Timber-6539 3y ago

You can run Firefox in a docker container. Not sure how much GPU performance you can squeeze out of it but it's doable.

mnahkies 3y ago
You can (allow) access to GPU for cuda applications in docker containers, so I'd be surprised if it wasn't possible to get video acceleration to work normally

usr1106 3y ago

I use firejail. At least the browser cannot see arbitrary files in my home directory, like ssh or gpg keys, password manager, and everthing else. To share files between the browser and the rest ~/Downloads can be used. Disclaimer: Critics say firejail is too complicated to be audited and adds too much attack surface of its own.

mmsc 3y ago

Yes, you can run Firefox as its own user. I wrote about this about a decade ago; https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/10/24/2 https://www.openwall.com/lists/oss-security/2023/10/24/2

DaSHacka 3y ago
The gentoo wiki also has some information about this https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Simple_sandbox#larry_runs_firefox_as_sandbox_user_ff https://wiki.gentoo.org/wiki/Simple_sandbox#larry_runs_firef...

keepamovin 3y ago

Run your browser on a remote machine? Using say BrowserBox: https://github.com/BrowserBox/BrowserBox https://github.com/BrowserBox/BrowserBox Full disclaimer: my company develops it.

harporoeder 3y ago

There are lots of ways to protect your system from a browser exploit via containers, another user, a vm, etc as brought up by other people responding. However protecting a browser from other applications is basically impossible unless you also sandbox everything else you are doing. Even if you run a browser in a VM some other process run as your user could just automate clicking the UI to do whatever. If you go qubes style and isolate everything from everything then it is fine.

bombcar 3y ago
Protecting the browser from other applications is arguably more important now than protecting applications from the browser; as the browser contains all your security information (cookies, etc) necessary to login (or be logged in) on all your important sites. People have been hacked by malicious Minecraft mods uploading browser data to nefarious places.