Mozilla has removed the “Do Not Track” option from Firefox, but it’s not because the company has abruptly abandoned all of its privacy principles. The setting was practically useless.
According to Windows Report which first spotted the change, Firefox browser settings with the latest Version 135 no longer have the ability to send websites a Do Not Track request. Instead there’s a note saying Firefox no longer supports the option. Mozilla explained the change on the feature’s help center page, saying “many sites do not respect this indication of a person’s privacy preferences, and, in some cases, it can reduce privacy.”
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But this doesn’t mean Firefox users are suddenly exposed to tracking from websites and third parties. Instead, Mozilla recommends an alternative signal called Global Privacy Control. GPC is an initiative founded by privacy-minded browsers including Mozilla, Brave, DuckDuckGo, and organizations like the Electronic Frontier Foundation. “GPC is respected by increasing numbers of sites and enforced with legislation in some regions,” said the help center page. In some jurisdictions like California with the CCPA act, data privacy rights are legally protected.
In place of the Do Not Track setting with the latest version of Firefox, users can select the option that says, “Tell websites not to sell or share my data.” This setting will turn on the GPC signal.
Topics
Cybersecurity
Privacy
