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Firefox telemetry unstoppable in PPA? (poptalk.scrubbles.tech)
submitted 1 year ago by pootriarch@poptalk.scrubbles.tech to c/opensource@lemmy.ml
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Since the integrity environment gunk, I've switched all boxes over to use Firefox as primary. This took a lot of configuring, as Firefox out of the box brings… a lot of stuff I don't want.

One of those things is telemetry — whatever that means to Mozilla — that was tamed only with a combination of an enterprise profile (hi sudo!) and user.js hacks.

However, the policy and user.js changes don't work on the Ubuntu box, where I've installed Firefox from the PPA to get it out from under Snap (and thereby usable with a password manager). The policy locks down and disables the right configs and the configs all have the right settings, but it keeps pinging incoming.telemetry.mozilla.org. Two Macs and a Pop!_OS box don't ping Mozilla at all with these settings.

No harm no foul, I just blocked them in NextDNS and laugh in their general direction. I just wonder what else is different in the PPA.

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[-] CarbonatedPastaSauce@lemmy.world 21 points 1 year ago

Or just switch to LibreWolf.

[-] pootriarch@poptalk.scrubbles.tech 8 points 1 year ago

i did try that but the never-dark mode blinded me. i understand the reasoning, but absolute anonymity isn't my own threat model; i'd like to be able to use themes and resize the window

[-] CarbonatedPastaSauce@lemmy.world 9 points 1 year ago

That can be fixed at the cost of making yourself easier to fingerprint. There’s nothing LibreWolf does regarding privacy settings that you can’t undo, to my knowledge. But it will always be missing telemetry no matter what options you change.

[-] pootriarch@poptalk.scrubbles.tech 5 points 1 year ago

thanks, i'll look again. it's not that i love the idea of being fingerprinted; i just think that five mylar bags, four tin hats and a partridge in a pear tree won't save me from that. i need my password manager, and once that's in, enforcing a generic screen is silly - cow's out of the barn. but not having the arms race against pocket and telemetry would be a big bonus.

[-] priapus@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

You can turn that off. Go into about:config and look around for relevant settings.

[-] eclipse@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

Like the no default dark mode for websites? I just use the Dark Reader extension.

[-] Knusper@feddit.de 3 points 1 year ago

One of those things is telemetry — whatever that means to Mozilla

You can type about:telemetry into the URL bar to see what it sends.

[-] pootriarch@poptalk.scrubbles.tech 1 points 1 year ago

well i feel stupid now for not doing the obvious. but…

Blocked Page

Your organization has blocked access to this page or website.

on the PPA box, this is what it showed me (meanwhile it was attempting to connect to incoming.telemetry.mozilla.org). another symptom of displaying respect for enterprise policies but in fact ignoring them. (as i had mentioned, on this box all of the settings look locked down as they should be, but it's still attempting to send telemetry.)

this post was submitted on 21 Oct 2023
37 points (100.0% liked)

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