Understanding Your Web Browser Part III

Understanding Your Web Browser Part III

This is the third article in a series titled Understanding Your Web Browser.

Part Two in the series appeared in my August post; Part One appeared in May.

There are so many features in web browsers that it's tough for this writer to pick what to share. Here I'll focus on two that my clients seem to appreciate knowing more about.

I'll use Firefox in Windows as a reference. Other browsers like Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge have similar features, which are accessed by different menus and clicks points.
 
History - a.k.a. your web tracks
Let's start with the feature called "browsing history." Websites you visit with your browser, whether intentionally or not, are recorded in the History function. To view your "web tracks" in Firefox, click the menu at upper right with three horizontal lines, then Library, then History. You will immediately see Recent History.

At the bottom of the menu you can see all history, which includes today, yesterday, the last 7 days, and this month. You can control how much if any history the browser retains under the Privacy & Security settings in Firefox under options from that menu with the three horizontal bars.

The benefits to seeing your browser history are obvious; but be mindful: anyone with access to your browser can see it too. You can clear individual or multiple sites in this record by selecting the "all history" at the bottom of the menu, then choosing one or more item to delete.

Extensions: wanted and unwanted
Firefox extensions, also called add-ons, are programs that can be installed into the browser to change its functionality. Examples include blocking ads from being displayed, using form fillers, employing third-party security functions (like AVG, Norton), etc. In a previous article, for instance, I mentioned an extension called Ad Blocker Plus.

It's important to state that I have helped many clients remove unwanted extensions in their browsers. These can get installed without a person clearly understanding why. One annoying type of extension I've had to remove redirects all searches to a website created by the company that made the extension. The intention is to spy on your searches, then feed you ads linked to their partners based on your activity.

To view extensions, and remove ones you don't want, in Firefox click the menu at upper right, then Add-ons. You are now in the Manage your Extensions section. You can disable or remove any you don't want, then restart the browser.

In general, the fewer extensions you have the faster the browser runs.

Thanks for reading!
-Sam

Please Consider Donating to Mozilla.org

Donate to Mozilla.org

In the spirit of holiday giving, if you enjoy Firefox and other free Mozilla software products as I do, please consider donating to their cause. 

Mozilla is non-profit, non-corporate and non-compromised.

They rely on donations to carry out their mission to keep the Web open and free.

Please consider giving today. 

Here's the link:

https://donate.mozilla.org/en-US/about/

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Aloha,

Sam

Add-ons for Firefox

In this post I recommend three add-ons to my favorite web browser, Mozilla Firefox. (Why my favorite? It's produced by a non-profit company; it's open source; and it's mostly secure, fast, and very customizable.) 

So, what's an add-on? It's a mini program, also called an extension, that you download and "add-on" to Firefox for more functionality. (Before you try any of the add-ons suggested below, be sure to update Firefox first, getting the latest version.  If you don't have Firefox, you can get it here: https://www.mozilla.org/en-US) 

Here are three add-ons to try: 

1. uBlock Origin. Are you tired of obnoxious pop-up ads interfering with your web browsing experience? Then try this add-on. There are plenty of customizations available with this extension, but installed as is, it should provide a more streamlined browsing experience. After installing it, watch the icon in the browser bar at upper right as uBlock Origin counts the ads it blocks.  This add-on was created by Raymond Hill.  

Here's one good reason to install an ad pop-up blocker: some ad networks have been (inadvertently) serving malware. This means if you visit a page that displays an infected ad, your computer may become infected too, without your having to click or download anything. Sadly, that's the state of our Internet.  

2. Privacy Badger. This add-on is produced by the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), of which I'm a member. Privacy Badger automatically blocks spying ads and invisible trackers as you browse the web. It's there to ensure that companies can't track your browsing without your consent. 

After you install Privacy Badger you can click the icon for this add-on at the upper right of your browser bar. Then you will see one of three states for each tracker: Red means block the tracker; Yellow means Privacy Badger won't send cookies or referrers to the tracker; Green means unblocked. You can click on this same Privacy Badger icon if you'd like to override the automatic blocking settings. 

3. HTTPS Everywhere. HTTPS is an abbreviation for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure. It's the Internet standard for encrypting data transfer on websites, such as banking and e-commerce sites, and increasingly a variety of sites that want to honor user privacy and security. (Another Internet-wide movement in the wake of Edward Snowden's government spying revelations.) 

Many sites on the web offer some limited support for encryption over HTTPS but make it difficult to use. For instance, they may default to unencrypted HTTP, or fill encrypted pages with links that go back to the unencrypted site. The HTTPS Everywhere extension fixes these problems by rewriting all requests to these sites to HTTPS. This add-on is also produced by the EFF.  

To find these three or other Firefox add-ons, please visit this website: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox. At upper right on this page you'll find a search box. Type in the name of the add-on you'd like to try, find it, then install it. 

Wishing you safe and secure computing. 

If you haven't already, you can subscribe to our email tips by visiting www.kokuadigital.com and entering your name, email, and "add to email list" in the request form, then click Send. 

Sam

Update Your Firefox Plugins

Update Your Firefox Plugins

If you're a Mozilla Firefox browser user, like me, be sure to regularly check if you have the latest plugins. 

Plugins are third-party browser add-ons, like Adobe Flash Player, which provide additional features. 

To check the plugin status in Firefox, do this:

1. Open Firefox
2. Click the three horizontal bars at upper right
3. Click the Add-ons icon
4. In the next window, at left, click the Plugins icon
5. At the top of this window, click the link "Check to see if your plugins are up to date"

Firefox will now check for you, then notify you what is and is not current. I recommend updating any plugin that's not current. It's a security risk to not do so.

When finished updating your plugins, close Firefox, then re-open it, and check the plugins again, just to be sure you got all the updates. 

Thanks for reading. Your feedback is appreciated!

Aloha, Sam

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Mozilla Firefox Browser Security Update - 38.0.1

Mozilla has issued another security update for its Firefox browser. 

I recommend you install the update. 

To do this, open Firefox. Then at upper right, click the three horizontal bars. At the bottom of that menu click the ? symbol (help). 

In the next window click About Firefox. The browser will check if it's up to date. If not, it will download updates and prompt you to install. 

Then Firefox will restart and be current (version 38.0.1). To verify, you can follow the above steps again. 

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Mozilla Firefox Browser Security Update - 37.0.2

Mozilla has issued another security update for its Firefox browser. 

I recommend you install the update. 

To do this, open Firefox. Then at upper right, click the three horizontal bars. At the bottom of that menu click the ? symbol (help). 

In the next window click About Firefox. The browser will check if it's up to date. If not, it will download updates and prompt you to install. 

Then Firefox will restart and be current (version 37.0.2). To verify, you can follow the above steps again. 

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You can subscribe to email tips by visiting www.kokuadigital.com and entering your name, email, and "add to email list" in the request form, then click Send. 

Mozilla Firefox Browser Security Update - 37.0.1

Mozilla issued a security update for its Firefox browser. 

I recommend you install the update. 

To do this, open Firefox. Then at upper right, click the three horizontal bars. At the bottom of that menu click the ? symbol (help). 

In the next window click About Firefox. The browser will check if it's up to date. If not, it will download updates and prompt you to install. 

Then Firefox will restart and be current (version 37.0.1). To verify, you can follow the above steps again. 

You can subscribe to email tips by visiting www.kokuadigital.com and entering your name, email, and "add to email list" in the request form, then click Send.