The Firefox I loved is gone – how to protect your privacy on it now

I used to be a Firefox fan. That was a long time ago. 

Also: The best secure browsers for privacy

Over the years, tens of millions of other Firefox users and I have given up on the browser. Recently, Mozilla, the company behind Firefox, changed Firefox’s data practices and privacy policies so that you granted Mozilla far more control over your data. Firefox users are unhappy about these changes.

Why are people unhappy with Firefox?

It all began on Feb. 27, 2025. Then, Mozilla introduced official Firefox Terms of Use and updated its Privacy Notice. This marked the first time Mozilla had a legally binding privacy policy for Firefox users. Before, its policies relied on open-source licenses and informal privacy commitments.

Also: Firefox expands access to popular AI chatbots right from the sidebar

For decades, one of Firefox’s biggest selling points was that it gave you more privacy than Chrome or Edge. Under this new policy, though, Mozilla claimed: “When you upload or input information through Firefox, you hereby grant us a nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to use that information to help you navigate, experience, and interact with online content as you indicate with your use of Firefox.”

That’s gone over like a lead brick. People believe that Mozilla has granted itself a royalty-free right to anything you type in Firefox. Your data could then be used for advertisers or to train an AI Large Language Model (LLM).

In support of the idea that Mozilla would let advertisers use your data, users have noticed that Firefox has deleted from its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) file the query: “Does Firefox sell your personal data?” and the answer, “Nope. Never have, never will. And we protect you from many of the advertisers who do. Firefox products are designed to protect your privacy. That’s a promise.” That’s all gone. Now, Firefox merely promises, “to protect your personal information.”

That’s not what Mozilla had promised.

According to an update by Ajit Varma, Firefox’s VP of Product Management, “Mozilla doesn’t sell data about you (in the way that most people think about “selling data”), and we don’t buy data about you. We changed our language because some jurisdictions define “sell” more broadly than most people would usually understand that word.”

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As for AI, in 2023, Mozilla began its own AI startup, Mozilla.ai. As one Firefox user put it, the new language “sounds like boilerplate AI harvesting language.” They’re not wrong.

In response, Varma added, “We need a license to allow us to make some of the basic functionality of Firefox possible. Without it, we couldn’t use information typed into Firefox, for example. It does NOT give us ownership of your data or a right to use it for anything other than what is described in the Privacy Notice.”

That still hasn’t made everyone comfortable. Others have noticed that Mozilla’s new executives, including Varma, come not from promotion within or the open-source community, but from money-making businesses. Varma’s last job, for example, was at Meta, where he was responsible for monetizing WhatsApp.

So, what can you do in response?

So, if you don’t trust Mozilla and Firefox anymore with your privacy, what can you do? Well, here are seven options.

1. Lock down your internet with DNS-over-HTTPS

No matter how secure your browser is, your ISP can still see where you’re going on the web. And, no, incognito mode won’t help. Instead, you can use DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) inside your browser to hide your Domain Name System (DNS) requests and responses by encrypting them within your HTTPS traffic.

Also: Too many tabs? Try these browsers with better tab management than Chrome

By encrypting DNS requests, DoH protects users from ISPs, hackers, or other third parties monitoring their browsing habits.

2. Try Firefox alternatives

Other web browsers promise privacy and security. ZDNET’s top pick is the Chromium-based Brave. Brave’s default focus is on privacy and security, and adding optional Tor Onion anonymous routing can be handy to keep snoopers away.

If you really want to take security and privacy to the limit, there’s always the Tor browser. It’s slower than other browsers and requires a bit of elbow grease to get working correctly, but it’s easily the most private browser around.

Let’s say, though, that you love Firefox and want to keep the look and feel even if you think you can’t trust Firefox as much as you once did. If that’s you, check out the privacy-first Firefox-style browsers. My favorites are Waterfox, LibreWolf, and the brand new beta, Zen Browser. These are all open-source, Firefox-style web browsers that put privacy at the top of mind.

3. Secure Firefox and improve your privacy

Here are some steps you can take to improve your Firefox privacy. 

Also: I speed-tested 11 browsers – and the fastest might surprise you

1. Enable Enhanced Tracking Protection
2. Click the menu button (three horizontal lines) in the top-right corner.
3. Select “Settings.”
4. Click “Privacy & Security” in the left sidebar.
5. Under “Enhanced Tracking Protection,” choose “Strict” mode.
6. Close the Settings tab for changes to take effect.

Firefox’s Enhanced Tracking Protection automatically blocks cookies and trackers that collect information about your online browsing habits and interests without breaking site functionality.

4. Change your default search engine to DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo is a search engine that, unlike Google and Bing, doesn’t collect users’ data, track you across the web, associate your browsing behaviors with your Internet Protocol (IP) address, or save your search history. If you don’t want Google or Microsoft knowing what you’re looking for, DuckDuckGo is a great choice. Oh, and it also doesn’t push AI-driven results at you.

1. Open the Firefox menu and click “Settings.”
2. Select “Search” in the left sidebar.
3. Under “Default Search Engine,” click the dropdown menu.
4. Choose a privacy-focused search engine like DuckDuckGo.
5. Close the Settings tab to save changes.

5. Disable Firefox data collection

Given Mozilla’s recent changes, I’d put this modification at the top of my list.

Also: I found the most private and secure way to browse the web – and it isn’t incognito mode

1. Open the Firefox menu and select “Settings.”
2. Click “Privacy & Security” in the left sidebar.
3. Scroll to “Firefox Data Collection and Use.”
4. Uncheck “Allow Firefox to send technical and interaction data to Mozilla.”
5. Close the Settings tab to apply changes.

6. Enable Global Privacy Control (GPC)

Recently, Mozilla dropped Firefox’s Do Not Track (DNT) feature from its Privacy and Security settings. Mozilla did this because companies were not honoring DNT. In short, it made little difference if you had DNT on or not.

It’s replacing it with Global Privacy Control (GPC). GPC is also meant to support California’s Consumer Privacy Act and the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation’s requirements that companies allow users to guard their privacy. Of course, so was DNT. Whether websites will support GPC any more than they did DNT remains an open question.

1. Type “about:config” in the address bar and press Enter.
2. Accept the warning message.
3. Search for “privacy.globalprivacycontrol.enabled.”
4. Double-click the preference to set it to “true.”
5. Restart Firefox to ensure the change takes effect.

7. Configure content blocking

1. Click the shield icon next to the address bar.
2. Select “Protection Settings.”
3. Choose “Custom” mode.
4. Check boxes for “Cookies,” “Tracking content,” “Cryptominers,” and “Fingerprinters.”
5. Close the panel to save your settings.

Also: 5 great Chrome browser alternatives that put your privacy first

Implementing these measures can significantly enhance your privacy while using Firefox, although they may also interfere with the functionality of some sites. Still, when used cautiously, they should make Firefox relatively safe. But you should no longer assume Firefox will prioritize your privacy. Even after its reversal of policy details, this is not the Firefox you knew back in the 00s or 10s.