Firefox 67 beta includes code to block JavaScript inserts that mine cryptocurrencies or track users using browser fingerprinting. Blocking is carried out in additional categories (fingerprinting and cryptomining) in the Disconnect.me list, which includes hosts found to be using miners and code for hidden identification.
Cryptocurrency mining code that leads to a significant increase in the processor load on the user's system is usually introduced to sites as a result of hacks or used on dubious sites as a method of monetization. Hidden identification refers to the storage of identifiers in areas not intended for permanent storage of information ("Supercookies"), as well as the generation of identifiers based on indirect data, such as screen resolution, a list of supported MIME types, specific parameters in headers (HTTP / 2 and HTTPS), analysis of installed plugins and fonts, availability of certain Web APIs, graphics card-specific features of rendering using WebGL and Canvas, CSS manipulation, analysis of mouse and keyboard features.
By default, the new blocking modes are disabled, and new options "Cryptominers" and "fingerprinters" have been added to the privacy-related settings to enable them. After some time, it is planned to enable the presented modes by default for a small control group of users, and then activate for everyone in one of the future releases.
You can track the operation of the blocker through
the context menu of the site, displayed when you click on the shield icon in the address bar. Added a link to the menu
quickly sending a report to developers about problems that arise.
Other recent developments related to Firefox can also be mentioned:
- Announced a Recommended Add-ons Program that will offer a list of add-ons that meet Mozilla's security, usefulness, and usability guidelines over the summer. Add-ons from the list will be promoted through a contextual recommendation system in various Mozilla products and project sites. To be included in the list, an add-on must efficiently and effectively solve current problems that are of interest to a wide audience, be actively developed by the author, and undergo a full security review of each update.
- The possibility of including the Servo WebRender compositing system written in Rust and outsourcing page content rendering operations to the GPU side is being considered in Firefox Linux builds. Using WebRender instead of Gecko's built-in CPU-based compositing engine, GPU-based shaders are used to perform page element summary rendering operations, resulting in a significant increase in rendering speed and reducing CPU load. In Linux, WebRender at the first stage is proposed to be enabled only for Intel video cards with Mesa 18.2.8 and newer drivers. You can enable WebRender manually on systems with other video cards through the "gfx.webrender.all.qualified" variable in about:config or by starting Firefox with the MOZ_WEBRENDER=1 environment variable set.
- In the beta version of Firefox 67, the ability to quickly navigate to the passwords saved for the site has been added to the main menu and dialog with recommendations for filling out login forms;
- A button has been added to the settings to reload all tabs after changing the rules for processing Cookies from third-party resources;
- Added restrictions on the intensity of the output of the authentication dialog by the site;
- A new code implementation for bookmark synchronization, rewritten in Rust, has been added to nightly builds (enabled via services.sync.bookmarks.buffer.enabled in about:config).
Source: opennet.ru