Privacy Settings Alter browser's built-in privacy settings easily inside a toolbar popup
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The "Privacy Settings" extension lets you alter browser's built-in privacy preferences easily from a toolbar button. This extension aims to keep all the security settings in one place. There are different modes of operation based on your needs. Some options focus on your privacy and some others focus on your security. Of course there is a button to reset all the prefs back to defaults as well.

Features

FAQs

  1. Where can I find the release note for this version?

    Please visit https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/privacy-settings/versions for all the release notes of the extension. You can alternatively browse the GitHub repository commits to get more through review of the changes.

  2. What are the meanings of the toolbar icons?

    As of version 0.3.3, the toolbar button gets three color themes: It is gray when the privacy related settings are set to the default values (this is offered by your browser and might differ across different browsers) or at least one setting is not the recommended value that is offered by this extension for either "moderate" or "privacy" modes. "One-sided green" color mode is used when preferences are set to the "moderate" level. "Two-sided green" is used when the accessible preferences are all set to their maximum privacy and security levels.

  3. Can I change the preferences without opening the popup window?

    Yes, you can switch between the 3 possible security and privacy levels from the right-click context-menu over the toolbar button

  4. What is the main difference between the old XUL version and the new WebExtension release?

    TThe XUL version is only available for Firefox browser, however, the WebExtension supports Firefox, Opera, and Chrome. The XUL version directly alters internal Firefox preferences and hence might break access to some websites. In the new WebExtension release, browser.privacy API is used to alter the preference hence if a preference, for instance, has already been changed by another extension, you will get a warning message.

  5. Why do I get a red "blocking" image for some preferences?

    If another extension controls a preference, you will get that red icon which means that this preference is not controllable by this extension. You need to either disable the other extension and retry or use that extension's user interface to alter this particular preference.

  6. Some preferences in the popup are see-through transparent and I cannot alter them. What is this happening?

    Well, based on your browser type, version, and your operating system, some preference are just not yet supported. For instance, websites.protectedContentEnabledpreference is not available for Linux and Mac OS. Those preferences have see-through transparency and cannot be altered.

  7. What is the meaning of the icons used in the popup?

    There are two columns for each preference: Privacy and Security. If an icon is green it means you are protected. If there is no icon for a column, it means this preference is not relevant to this column

  8. What are the supported APIs at the moment

    Here is the list of all APIs that this extension can alter

    • chrome.privacy.network.networkPredictionEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.network.webRTCIPHandlingPolicy
    • chrome.privacy.services.alternateErrorPagesEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.autofillEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.hotwordSearchEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.passwordSavingEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.safeBrowsingEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.safeBrowsingExtendedReportingEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.searchSuggestEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.spellingServiceEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.services.translationServiceEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.websites.firstPartyIsolate
    • chrome.privacy.websites.thirdPartyCookiesAllowed
    • chrome.privacy.websites.hyperlinkAuditingEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.websites.referrersEnabled
    • chrome.privacy.websites.protectedContentEnabled

    You can find more about each method by hovering your mouse over the item. Also it is recommended to check developer.chrome.com and developer.mozilla.org websites.

  9. How can I improve my security even more?

    To have control over what type of resources can be accessed by your browser, it is recommended to use Privacy Settings along with Policy Control extension.

  10. Do I really need to be worried about my privacy when using a modern browser?

    Unfortunately yes!, Modern browsers bring more power to users but this power also opens up new methods of compromising user privacy. I do recommend reading of HTML5 APIs Fingerprint Users - How to Prevent article to get familiar with these techniques and methods to prevent them.

  11. [XUL version only] What can I expect from Privacy Settings extension?

    Privacy Settings collects various preferences in Firefox in order to enhance the privacy of users. Note that the extension does NOT change any preference by default. However, it displays all the important security related preferences in a single panel for easy access and alter. Hover over each item to get a tooltip notification about what this preference does. Based on the tooltip description you can decide whether you want to have this feature or not. Be careful that some of the preferences are the matter of security over privacy trade-off. The current list of preferences are mostly selected from PrivacyFox and Firefox Debloat projects; however, the list might change over time.

  12. [XUL version only] What are the main protection settings this extension offers?

    Currently, these topics are covered:

    • Browser related protections (like browser.safebrowsing.enabled)
    • Network related protections (like network.websocket.enabled)
    • Tracking protection
    • Stats collection
    • Firefox Hello and Pocket integrations
    • Media protection (like media.peerconnection.enabled)
    • Geo access protection
    • Device access protection (like device.sensors.enabled)
    • SSL and TSL protections

  13. Is this enough to have Privacy Settings extension alone?

    Well to have better control over data flow, I recommend to take a look at my the other extension, Policy Control. Using this extension you have better control over the resources used by websites. In particular, one handy setting the extension offers is to block all third-party resource access of any kind.

  14. Can I block DNS leakage using this extension?

    Nope! To prevent DNS leakage you need to connect your Firefox to INTERNET by tunneling through a SOCKS server. I recommend Proxy Switcher extension for this. To check IP and DNS leakage use https://ipleak.net web service.

  15. [XUL version only] How can I access the add-ons unser interface on Firefox for Android?

    Click on the 3-dots icon. There is a menu item with "Privacy Settings" label on it. Note that as of version 0.2.0, the item is moved to the "Tools" sub-menu.

  16. [XUL version only] What is media.peerconnection.enabled?

    WebRTC can leak a users IP address from behind a VPN or proxy. source. You can either completely disable WebRTC or just disable WebRTC from accessing your local IP address. To completely disable WebRTC, turn media.peerconnection.enabled off from the panel. To disable WebRTC from leaking your private data, turn both media.peerconnection.enabled and media.peerconnection.ice.default_address_only on.

    For more info read these threads: #21 and #55.

    To check local IP leakage use, http://tools.add0n.com/what-is-my-ip.php. To see leakage, press "Reset to defaults" button on the panel and open the page. Now press either full privacy or compatible mode and refresh the page.

  17. [XUL version only] What is network.websocket.enabled?

    Websockets can cause some dns requests to not be send over the active proxy. source.

  18. [XUL version only] What is network.http.sendSecureXSiteReferrer?

    Tells the server which https page the user came from.

  19. [XUL version only] What is privacy.trackingprotection.enabled?

    This is Mozilla’s new built in tracking protection.

  20. [XUL version only] What is dom.event.clipboardevents.enabled?

    Websites can get notifications if you copy, paste, or cut something from a web page, and it lets them know which part of the page had been selected.

  21. [XUL version only] What is geo.wifi.logging.enabled?

    Disables logging geolocation requests.

  22. [XUL version only] What is browser.safebrowsing.enabled?

    Disable Google Safe Browsing and phishing protection. Security risk, but privacy improvement.

  23. [XUL version only] What is browser.safebrowsing.malware.enabled?

    Disable Google Safe Browsing malware checks. Security risk, but privacy improvement.

  24. [XUL version only] What is webgl.disabled?

    WebGL is a potential security risk. source

  25. [XUL version only] What are media.eme.enabled and media.gmp-eme-adobe.enabled?

    A binary plugin (closed-source) is shipped with Firefox since v38. It enables playback of encrypted media and lets you use e.g. Netflix without Microsoft Silverlight. To completely remove the plugin you would have to install an EME-free build of Firefox. Note that EME is platform dependent, read more here.

  26. [XUL version only] What is loop.enabled?

    Firefox connects to third-party (Telefonica) servers without asking for permission.

  27. [XUL version only] What is browser.pocket.enabled?

    A third-party service for managing a reading list of articles.

  28. [XUL version only] When privacy.trackingprotection.enabled is enabled, some websites do not work properly (like ebay for instance). Any workaround for this?

    Please follow the discussion on https://github.com/schomery/privacy-settings/issues/15.

  29. [XUL version only] Although there is a short description when mouse is hovered over a preference, I still would like to learn more. Is there any recommended place?

    Most of the preferences are described in http://kb.mozillazine.org/Firefox_:_FAQs_:_About:config_Entries. You can also Google the preference name to find more relevant resources.

  30. [XUL version only] Currently there is an option to disable HTTPS leaks of the user agent, but there is none for HTTP, How can I disable this leakage?

    general.useragent.override is the user agent string. Possible leaks appear when JS is allowed.

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What's new in this version

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    Need help?

    If you have questions about the extension, or ideas on how to improve it, please post them on the  support site. Don't forget to search through the bug reports first as most likely your question/bug report has already been reported or there is a workaround posted for it.

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    Editorial Review

    Privacy and security of data have become a major concern in today’s times. Plenty of data leak cases have surfaced in the recent past in which the privacy of online user’s data has been compromised. This data is shared with third-party companies, which they use it for the purpose of advertising and marketing. This data breach also makes online users more vulnerable to other threats such as hacking, fraud etc. In order to combat such issues, various steps have been taken by the authorities but users also need certain actions to protect their data. These include installing certain extensions that restrict data from being shared online to third-parties. One of these extensions is Privacy Settings. Wondering whether this extension can prove to be useful for you or not? Then continue reading

    It is an extension where you can find all your privacy-related settings. The best part of this extension is that you will not be required to open multiple settings for security and privacy of website, network, and services as all of them will be available in one place. Thus, you can manage them in a hassle-free and easy way. With the installation of this extension, your browser will not be able to send reports to third-party companies. This extension is easy to use since you can change the settings with a single click. This extension offers different modes with pre-defined settings. You can either select full privacy or enhanced privacy mode. If you want to go back to the original settings, you can easily do so by clicking on Reset to Default button you can access by clicking on the icon of this extension. Another great feature of this extension is that it is supported by major browsers. You can download it on Chrome and Firefox among other browsers to protect your data from being used by third-party companies. It can alter a number of APIs, which gives more control over security and privacy to the users. Moreover, it can cover major protection settings including tracking, geo access, stats collection, media, device access, and network and browser related. The flipside of this extension is that despite being easy to use, it may not prove to be beneficial for non-technical users. The user needs to have a certain understanding of different privacy and security terms to use this extension and obtain its benefits to the maximum. However, for their convenience, the extension shows statuses in three different colors; each color implies the status of security settings. It is important to know that it comes with certain limitations as well as it cannot block DNS leakage. All in all, it may not offer complete protection due to certain limitations, it can help a user to protect to their security and data up to a certain extent. We recommend installing this extension because of the features it offers.

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