Although third-party cookies are being phased out, there is still plenty of data being shared between advertisers across the internet. If you aren’t on top of your privacy settings, you could be inadvertently giving websites access to your information, which can then be sold. Now,Firefoxhas rolled out a new setting for Android users to ensure that they maintain control over how their data is managed.
In an update posted on its website,Mozilla detailedall of the changes made in Firefox for Android version 122.0, including support for Global Privacy Control. With this feature enabled, Firefox notifies websites that you visit that you do not want your data sold or shared. By default, Global Privacy Control is enabled when you use Firefox in private browsing mode. To toggle it, you’re able to find the Enhanced Tracking Protection feature in the normal Firefox browser settings.
Global Privacy Control(left)and default PDF support(right)are new in Firefox 122
Mozilla also noted a few minor changes it made with the release of version 122.0, including the addition of a PDF feature — you can now set Firefox to be the default PDF viewer on your device. There have also been tweaks implemented to limit fingerprinting information and website compatibility problems. Google notably introduced similar adjustments at the beginning of 2024 to streamline PDF use. As spotted in a new build of Google Chrome Canary, a setting can be enabled toautomatically open PDFsafter they’ve been downloaded onto your device. As it currently stands, the mobile version of Chrome redirects you to PDFs you download within the Google Drive PDF viewer. Assuming it becomes official, the feature could roll out with the next stable version of Google Chrome.
Over the past few months, Mozilla has been working hard to build a more robust Firefox UI. Before the end of 2023, it began rolling outsupport for browser extensionsafter originally eliminating it in 2020. At the time, Mozilla made the decision to scale back support for a smoother UI and bolstered security. Now, hundreds of extensions are back and compatible with Firefox for Android. This move by Mozilla follows Apple’s shift toward extension support for its native Safari browser.
Whether you’re dedicated to Firefox or your browser choice is dependent on the device you’re using, it’s worth taking a closer look at your privacy settings. Most browsers have measures in place to limit how much information is available to third parties, but some are better than others — and Firefox has long been adamant about privacy. At a time when advertisers are looking for easier ways to access data amidst the cookie crackdown, these features are more important than ever before.
