Advertising

How to disable Firefox’s built-in ad-tracking feature

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

With the release of Firefox 128 came the integration of a new experimental feature that Mozilla calls Privacy-Preserving Attribution.

The feature is turned on by default, which means that users of the browser need to become active, if they want to disable it.

Mozilla published a support webpage that explains that Privacy-Preserving Attribution is.

Here is the main quote:

Mozilla is prototyping this feature in order to inform an emerging Web standard designed to help sites understand how their ads perform without collecting data about individual people. By offering sites a non-invasive alternative to cross-site tracking, we hope to achieve a significant reduction in this harmful practice across the web.

In other words: sites and advertisers may use the built-in feature for tracking.

Like Google Chrome’s Ad Privacy feature, it is using the term privacy loosely, some would say disingenuously.

Both systems change how users are tracked and call it an improvement to privacy. In the end, it still means that users are tracked. The fundamental difference is that users are no longer tracked on an individual level.

Mozilla says that its new system can only be used by a small number of sites in Firefox 128. The organization does not mention these sites.

How to disable Ad-Tracking in Firefox

Firefox Website Advertising Preferences

For privacy, disabling these features is better than keeping them enabled or enabling them.

Here is how you do that in Firefox:

  1. Select the Firefox Menu and then Settings when the menu opens.
  2. Switch to Privacy & Security on the main Settings page.
  3. Scroll down until you come to Website Advertising Preferences.
  4. Uncheck the box “Allow websites to perform privacy-preserving ad measurement”.

That is all there is to it.

Pro tip: The user preference dom.private-attribution.submission.enabled determines whether this feature is turned on or off. Set it to false to disable it.

Closing Words

It is not without irony that Mozilla’s implementation in Firefox is in fact worse from a user’s point of view than Google’s. Google is prompting users, using euphemistic words, about the ad tracking feature. Mozilla has just enabled the feature without prompting users about it.

Mozilla has recently bought an ad-tech startup called Anonym, which it says is working on privacy-preserving ad technology.

Are you a Firefox user? What is your take on this? Feel free to leave a comment down below!

Thunderbird 128

Thunderbird 128 Email client is now available

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

The team behind the open source email client has released the long-awaited Thunderbird 128 to the public. The version is not yet available as an update, only as a direct download from the official website.

You can upgrade from current stable versions of Thunderbird to the new release, but need to run the installer to do that.

As far as system requirements are concerned, Thunderbird 128 won’t run anymore on pre-Windows 10 or macOS 10.15 devices. Users who use add-ons or customizations may run into issues, but this is the case for every new major release. It may be a good idea to wait a few release cycles as many of the issues may have been sorted out by then.

The official release notes are quite long, which is to be expected.

Thunderbird 128: a quick rundown

While there have been a good number of changes, Thunderbird 128 looks and behaves for the most part like Thunderbird 115. This is good for consistency.

There are differences though. UI density, for example, affects the multi-message view now as well. I prefer to use compact, as it shows more messages and information on the screen at the same time.

You can change density and other layout-related preferences by selecting View of the menu at the top.

On Windows, Thunderbird is now using the native notifications system. There is also support for operating system accent colors and custom account colors are now shown in the form field when composing a message.

If you want to display full names and email addresses of all recipients in a message list, you can do so now with the new preference mail.addressDisplayFormat. This needs to be set in the advanced configuration, which you may access via Tools > Settings > Config Editor.

The new version improves its OpenPGP implementation as well.

Closing Words

Thunderbird 128 looks like a polished version of Thunderbird 115. The big update does not interfere with the layout nearly as much as the last major update of the email client.

Many of the changes are cosmetic in nature, but these do not get in the way either. This may be different for users who use lots of add-ons or customization options, as extensions need to be updated to remain compatible with the new Thunderbird release.

Again, most users may want to wait a couple of months before they start considering upgrading to the new releases.

What about you? Do you use Thunderbird? What is your take on the new Thunderbird 128?

youtube

Error 403: Google change causes playback issues for third-party Youtube apps

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

If you use an app like SmartTube or NewPipe, you may have received error 403 messages when trying to play videos on YouTube recently.

This happened to me on two occasions in the past days. SmartTube was the app that I used on Amazon’s Fire TV Stick. I could browse YouTube and run searches, but any video that I tried to play returned a 403 error.

Note: An update fixed the issue on my end. Maybe this is also working on your end to get the issue resolved.

Whenever something like this happens, it is likely that Google-owned YouTube has made a change. Whether it is a deliberate change to torpedo adblockers or third-party YouTube apps, or something unintentional is not always clear right away.

This time, it appears, that Google seems to have made a change to block bots from accessing its videos. The information comes from the developer of NewPipe, who published details on Reddit.

Here is the summary:

  • YouTube has been testing an anti-bot check on streaming URLs from its HTML5 clients for at least a few weeks.
  • This added a new URL query parameter, which in turn caused invalid responses “after some time”.

The developer claims that the anti-bot check is “hard to implement” and that it “requires a full browser environment”.

Google furthermore has started to require the parameter on YouTube, which also resulted in 403 responses. Last but not least, Google rolled out a new JavaScript player, which turned out to be another cause for the experienced issue.

The developer’s analysis suggests that the changes that Google made this time may not have been aimed directly at users of third-party apps.

YouTube’s terms of service state that third-party apps may not block advertisement on the platform. It is likely that Google will continue its fight against content blocking and third-party apps that block ads. This time, it appears that it was likely just a side-effect.

The big question: if you could watch YouTube only with ads, would you? Would you pay for YouTube Premium to get rid of them?

AppBuster update adds recommendations and ARM support

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

O&O Software’s free AppBuster app for Windows was one of the first programs that I reviewed on this site.

The latest update introduces several important changes and features that deserve to be mentioned here o this site.

If you have used AppBuster in the past you know what the program is about. It lets you uninstall many built-in or user-installed programs on Windows devices.

O&O AppBuster 1.4.1345 is now available. The application is still free to use. Here are the three core changes introduced in the new version:

  • O&O AppBuster is now compatible with Windows on ARM devices.
  • The app makes recommendations now regarding the programs that you may want to consider for removal.
  • It detects new apps and programs that were installed since the last run of the application.

Let us take a closer look at one of the new features.

Recommendations

O&O AppBuster recommendations for removal

Tech savvy users know which apps to remove from their devices and which not. The same may not be true for users who are not that interested in tech.

The recommendation system is for these users. It highlights apps that the users may want to take a closer look at when it comes to picking apps for removal.

Recommendations may either suggest to remove a program or may highlight an app as optional.

On a test Windows 11 system, it recommended to remove the Feedback Hub, Game Bar, and Microsoft 365 (Office) apps among several other Microsoft apps.

It listed other Microsoft apps as optional, as well as non-Microsoft apps, including Adobe Acrobat Reader.

AppBuster does not reveal why it is making a recommendation. It is certainly possible that it recommends removing apps that the user uses frequently or even regularly.

It would be great if the program could take into account last use dates or other information to improve recommendations.

The other changes

Support for ARM platform starting with Windows 11 version 24H2 is a welcome addition, considering that Microsoft is pushing Windows on the platform.

For now, it is the only Copilot+ PCs ready platform, but this will change once AMD and Intel release new silicon.

Detection of new apps can also be useful. It makes it easier to spot new apps that Microsoft sneaked-in, and also user-installed apps.

Closing Words

O&O AppBuster continues to be an excellent piece of software. Yes, there are other programs out there that can also remove apps in bulk. It is perfectly fine to continue using those.

My favorite is winget right now, as it is easy to use and very powerful.

You can download the latest AppBuster version from the official website.

Do you use programs like AppBuster to remove apps and programs that you do not need? Let us know in the comment section down below!

Chrome

Report: Google sneaked in code in Chrome that is favoring Google

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

A report suggests that Google has sneaked code into Chromium-based browsers that is favoring Google-owned properties. Browsers like Chrome, Brave, and Microsoft Edge appear affected.

If true, it would give critics of Google’s dominance in web browsing a mighty powerful argument.

Here are the details: Google Chrome and other Chromium-based browsers give *.google.com sites full access to system / tab CPU usage, GPU usage, memory usage, detailed processor information, and a logging backchannel.

Luca Casonato published information about this on X and Simon Willison published code that anyone may run to verify the claim.

Chrome returning information on google-owned properties
The information that Chrome reveals to Google when the code is run

Here is how that is done:

  1. Open Google Chrome on your system.
  2. Load https://www.google.com/ or any other *.google.com property.
  3. Select Menu > More Tools > Developer Console.
  4. Switch to the Console tab, if it is not active already.
  5. Type allow pasting.
  6. Paste the following code: chrome.runtime.sendMessage(‘nkeimhogjdpnpccoofpliimaahmaaome’, {method: ‘cpu.getInfo’}, response => {console.log(JSON.stringify(response, null, 2));});
  7. Press the Enter-key.

Chrome returns information when the code is run on a Google property. It returns an error message when you run it on any other site.

The code is accessible on the Chromium Code Search website. You can load it here and check it out yourself.

Casonato suggests that the exclusive feature is a violation of the Digital Markets Act as browser vendors “must give the same capabilities to everyone”.

Closing Words

It is unclear if and how Google is using the information. Casonato says that he does not believe that the company uses it for something malicious or invasive, such as fingerprinting.

Still, Google favoring Google in Chrome and Chromium-based browsers is giving critics of Google’s dominance in web browsing another reason why a browser monopoly or duopoly (if you consider Safari), is bad for users.

It is also interesting to note that other Chromium-based browsers have kept the code in their browsers. It is unclear why.

Which browser do you use mainly and why?

Password

How to create a local account password reset option in Windows

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Using a local account in Windows 10 or 11 is good for privacy. It keeps the account local and reveals less information and data to Microsoft.

One of the drawbacks is that you cannot easily reset the account password in case you forget it. In fact, apart from brute forcing or hacking your way back in, there exist only two options to deal with the issue:

  • Answer security questions — This works only if you set a password during account creation and can remember them.
  • Use a password reset disk — This option is only available if you created one in the past.

Most Windows users may not have access to these, however.

Security questions

Windows 11 Creation of a local account
Creation of a local account on a German Windows 11 system.

When you create a new local account in the Settings app, you may add three security questions and their answers.

Note that this is an optional step, if you do not add a password to the account. If you do add a password, which you should in most cases, you are required to select three security questions and type answers for them before you may continue.

While it may be tempting to answer them truthfully, you may add to the security of the account by adding characters to it.

When asked about the name of your first pet, you may write Bello and be done with it. However, it may be easy to find out about the name of the pet or try common pet names. Add characters to Bello, say BelloX5, and you can be certain that guessing or knowing won’t get an attacker far.

You may also type random characters, but need a way to access these when you require them.

Creating a password reset disk

Password Reset Disk creation
First step of creating a password reset disk in Windows

The second password recovery option requires a password reset disk. This needs to be created before you run into troubles signing in.

Note: you need an USB Flash Drive for that.

Here is how that is done:

  1. You need to sign-in with the local account that you want to create a password reset disk for.
  2. Insert a USB flash drive into the computer.
  3. Open the Start menu and type Control Panel.
  4. Pick Control Panel from the list of results.
  5. Type Create Password Reset in the Control Panel search box.
  6. Select Create a password reset disk from the results.
  7. Click Next to start the process.
  8. Type the current account password on the next page.
  9. Disconnect the USB Flash Drive in the end and keep it safe.

Anyone with access to the USB Flash Drive may regain access to the local user account. Obviously, you could encrypt the computer using a program like VeraCrypt to add another level of security to it. I highly recommend doing so.

What about you? Do you prefer local or Microsoft accounts on Windows? Do you have password reset options available in case you forget your password?

Firefox

Mozilla extends Firefox support on Windows 7 and 8 devices

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Mozilla has changed the original end of support deadline for Firefox on Windows 7 and Windows 8 devices. The organization’s original plan was to end support in September 2024.

This coincided with the release of the next Firefox ESR base and would allow Mozilla to unload legacy code from Firefox.

Byron Jourdan, Mozilla’s Senior Director of Product Management, confirmed on Reddit that support will be extended.

He wrote:

We’re planning to extend support for Windows 7 users past the currently planned date and give them better options for migrating to a new PC when they choose to.

The confirmation was posted during an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session of Mozilla’s leadership team on Reddit in June (spotted by Sören Hentzschel)

Jourdan does not provide specifics on the extension, only that support will be extended for as long as usage numbers are still high.

About 10% of Firefox users are still using Windows 7 or Windows 8 / 8.1 at the time of writing. That is significant enough for Mozilla to extend support.

Firefox users who run the browser on Windows 7 or 8 devices were moved to Firefox 115 ESR some time ago. This is the Extended Support Release, which offers better stability as new features are only introduced when the ESR-base changes.

This happens when Firefox 128 is going to be released on July 9, 2024. The previous ESR, 115 in this case, continues to be maintained for a bit longer.

Mozilla planned to drop support for it on September 3, 2024 with the release of Firefox 115.15.

While the official release schedule has not been updated yet, it seems likely that Mozilla will extend the end of Firefox 115 ESR.

Chromium-based browsers like Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge are no longer supporting the old Windows versions.

Closing Words

Firefox users on Windows 7 or 8 will continue to receive security updates for the foreseeable future. Mozilla has yet to update the official support pages to reflect the change.

Do you use Firefox? Are you affected by the change?

Security

Should you save passwords in a browser?

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

All modern web browsers include password management functionality. It makes sense on first glance to integrate the functionality; most users sign-in to services on the Internet regularly.

One of the main advantages of password managers in browsers is convenience. The browser recognizes new logins and prompts users to save the information. Similarly, it proposes to sign-in using saved data whenever a website is found in the password manager’s database.

It is handy and that is the reason why it is widely used.

Disadvantages exist as well:

  • Functionality is limited to a specific browser – Synchronization support may extend the reach, but it is still a limiting factor.
  • Automatic login functionality is limited to a browser – It cannot be used to sign-in to apps and other services that are not opened in the browser.
  • Protective features are limited — Usually to the device password or Pin.

Limited functionality

When you save a password in a browser, it is stored by it in a database on the local device.

If synchronization is enabled, the database will be synced across all devices on which the browser is installed and synchronization is enabled.

Still, it is limited to that browser. If you use multiple browsers, then you won’t be able to use the functionality there as well, unless you use import features.

The saving of passwords and automatic logins are also limited to the browser. If you need to log in to an application on the device, then you need to do so manually by copying the username and password from the browser’s password manager.

Security is limited

Security and protective features are another. Depending on the password manager, passwords may not be saved with a password. Some browsers support setting a primary password to protect the password database, but in many cases, it is not enabled by default.

Anyone with access to the PC may get access to the stored passwords of browsers. While that requires the account password for the PC in question, it may open up a can of worms in some cases.

The browser may prompt for a password or a pin when the password manager is opened and entries are inspected there. However, there is no such protection when visiting saved websites. Browsers like Chrome will fill out the passwords on the sites and sign-in users automatically.

It is even possible to show passwords in plain text by manipulating the HTML code of the website. This is not a problem if the account password is strong and you never leave the PC unattended.

Synchronization is convenient, but it moves the password database into the cloud. It is encrypted, but it adds another attack vector that would not exist if the database would be stored locally only.

How dedicated password managers compare

Here are the main differences:

  • A password is required to create a new password database — This means that it is protected by the device password and also the password the user selects during creation.
  • Additional protective features are available — This may include two-factor authentication for extra protection, customizing security features, such as the number of iterations.
  • Password managers run system-wide — You can use them to sign into apps or other services on the device, independent of any browser or program.
  • Self-hosting may be supported — Instead of relying on a server by a company, you can self-host the cloud space.
  • Open source and audits — Many browsers are not open source. Good password managers are audited regularly.

Some of the features depend on the password manager. My recommendation goes to Bitwarden and KeePass. There are numerous others that you can try.

Granted, password managers are not perfect. They cannot help you if you need to sign-in to a service on your Smart TV, but neither can browser password managers.

Closing Words

Using a password manager is highly recommended. If you use a browser password manager, make sure you configure extra security features, if needed. This may include setting up a primary password, enabling operating system protections, or using a strong device password or pin.

Standalone password managers offer more functionality. Good ones offer better security right away, more customization options, and a lot more that browser password managers do not support.

To answer the question of this article: a dedicated password manager is better in many regards, but it is still better using a browser password manager than none at all.

What about you? Do you use a password manager? If so, what is the program that you use currently and why?

Amazon displays more ads on its Fire TV platform

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

One of the things that I really, really dislike when it comes to watching media is ads. Unfortunately, it appears that the trend is more ads, not less.

This does not happen only in streaming. Microsoft, for example, is pushing ads like there is no tomorrow in Windows.

Streaming, however, seems to be inclined to become the new cable TV, the very thing it set out to replace when it started.

Now it is Amazon again that is pushing the boundaries on its Fire TV platform. After enabling full screen video ads on the platform some time ago, it is now rolling out screensaver ads.

Tip: you can block fullscreen video ads on Amazon Fire TV.

Amazon may display a screensaver after some time of inactivity on part of the user. The change runs a full-screen ad for 30 to 60 seconds before the screensaver is started.

Cord Cutter News reports that the change is rolling out to all recent Fire TV products. The ads show up after a certain amount of inactivity. Amazon shows a full screen video ad then that runs for up to a minute.

Cord Cutter News saw ads for AT&T and Easy Spirit footwear so far. This change appears limited to Fire TV devices in the United States for now. It is probably only a matter of time before it lands in other regions as well.

Closing Words

It will become harder and harder to find streaming TV sticks and devices that do not push advertisement to the screen. There is also a trend towards ad-powered plans. While these are optional for the most part right now, it is clear that the current trend is more ads and not less.

Netflix is cancelling Basic plan subscriptions and pressuring subscribers

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Netflix customers who still have a Basic subscription will soon receive word from the company about it. Basic is going away. Netflix began by pulling the plan from its website and apps.

New users could not sign-up anymore for the plan, but the company did not touch existing subscriptions.

Now, it is targeting these subscribers.

The message is clear: Basic is going away, and you have to subscribe to another plan if you want to continue watching content on Netflix.

Basic subscribers have three options basically:

  • Subscribe to the Standard plan. It is more expensive, at $15.49 compared to $9.99 in the United States, but it offers additional features as well. This includes watching Netflix on up to 2 supported devices at a time, Full HD resolution support, and an option to add one extra member.
  • Subscribe to Standard with ads. Much cheaper, at $6.99 in the United States. Downside is that it includes ads that you need to endure.
  • Do nothing and stop using Netflix.

Netflix’s shows cancellation message to Basic subscribers

The first batch of Basic plan subscribers appear to have received notifications by Netflix about the upcoming end of their plan.

The message is displayed in fullscreen on the device. It says:

Your last day to watch Netflix is “DATE”.

Choose a new plan to keep watching.

Your Basic plan has been discontinued, but you can easily switch to a new one. Plans start at “MONEY” with upgraded features.

Reports claim that Netflix won’t open anymore unless users select a new plan, even if the planned cancellation date is in the future.

Why is Netflix discontinuing the Basic plan? The most likely answer is money. Users who switch to Standard pay more directly. Netflix revealed some time ago that Standard with ads is generating more money than the Basic plan.

Also, development and engineering has one less plan to worry about, which may streamline things further.

While Netflix may loose subscribers, it seems likely that a good percentage will switch to a different plan. Netflix will monitor the response in the countries that it launched the change in.

My advise continues to be the same: do some subscription hopping. Subscribe for one service for one or two months, then cancel and subscribe to another. This way, you do not really miss out on anything without breaking the bank. I expect the next round of price raises is not far away.

What about you? Do you have a Netflix or other streaming service subscription?