Firefox 119 - Privacy Updates, Decades Old Bugfix, and More

In this video I discuss the latest Firefox browsers update 119, which brings improvements to Firefox view, better privacy features including Encrypted Client Hello, and a Fix for a 22 year old bug by a 23 year old electrical engineering student named Yifan Zhu.
www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox...
blog.mozilla.org/en/products/...
fanzhuyifan.github.io/
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[@nothingtoseehere449]

fixing a bug a year younger than you is based

[@Splarkszter]

He was born to stomp on that bug

[@AutisticBarbie]

@@Splarkszteror the bug was born to bug him

[@hahayes1122]

born to fix

[@DryPaperHammerBro]

Based on what?

[@xenajin6827]

The bug needed "correction"

[@ui4lh]

Mozilla has also the Sync server available for selfhosting so you can host your personal sync server and not even use Firefox sync server for extra de-coupling and security.

[@yukiqt]

not the account server though so you still need a mozilla account iirc

[@BPTtech]

@@yukiqtthat doesn’t make sense

[@lazerusmfh]

Gonna look into this

[@DonVigaDeFierro]

Gonna look into this x2

[@InNominePraxis]

if that's is true and as good as it sounds, kenny needs to make a video tutorial on this yesterday

[@Danominator]

I recently removed every iteration of Google Chrome from all my devices and switched over to Firefox, had to get used to some weird design things but other than that completely satisfied with the switch. Having my ad blocker extension on mobile is a game changer.

[@nickhomer40]

Dude, I've been using Firefox on mobile for a while now, but I didn't realise you could use extensions with it. Found out thanks to this comment, thanks!

[@Danominator]

@@nickhomer40 uBlock Origin is awesome on mobile!!

[@Wreighn]

@@nickhomer40 They used to be like on Desktop, but they broke them a while ago. Now only certain extensions work.

[@teamok1025]

Wait you can use extension on mobile I gonna make my switch asap!

[@Splarkszter]

​@@whannabiUBlock being open and highly maintained we will always find a way due to the way filters work and can be programmed. We are on the edge.

[@SIMULATAN]

So hyped to see firefox improve and advance 🎉

[@MatrixSanAndreasOfficial]

😅

[@qlippoth13]

Can't wait to run a diff between firefox and librewolf repos to see what gets removed.

[@Oh_So_Based]

Finally, a browser I can watch p0 ®n on without VPN 😌

[@firstNamelastName-ho6lv]

The deepfakes are just getting better and better! Keep it up!

[@TrggrWarning]

With all the walkthroughs he does I wish he’d show us how he makes those.

[@Sharp931]

RIP Luke

[@gaminggamingtm]

Hi Drake!

[@realcartoongirl]

no he just film himself

[@luminouslimetea6029]

​@@realcartoongirlno that's clearly AI generated

[@esquilax5563]

If you find an annoying bug, just wait 22 years, and someone will hopefully fix it. Open source truly is beautiful

[@CeasiusC]

The beauty of it is if it annoys you enough, you can dedicate a huge amount of time to learn programming, and fix it yourself

[@WIMMine]

And possibly by someone who today is still shitting in diapers :D

[@SadSadDeadM]

What's not mentioned in the internet discussions is that Firefox has fantastic devtools (Performance tab specifically)

[@qlippoth13]

ArcaneOS has some nice developer features also

[@JordanPlayz158]

That tooltip bug was actually really annoying so I am glad it got fixed

[@CrittingOut]

firefox is what Tor browser is based on, so I am inclined to hope for their success.

[@CrittingOut]

@@sittlatticunadvis Is there any talks about this or any reason to do so?

[@Jose04537]

​@@CrittingOutMore independence from third parties, that's it.

[@CrittingOut]

@@Jose04537 Does Tor create Ladybird browser? Otherwise it's just swapping one third party for another.

[@myxobe]

@@sittlatticunadvis lmfao

[@roland985]

@@sittlatticunadvis You got me. Hahaha

[@LesserKnownAJ]

the client hello encryption sounds really cool, i've been using firefox for 15 years and idk if other browser have it, this my first time hearing about it, but it's definitely a good selling point to get more people to use FF, hopefully they market it well and not leave it as just something that we see in the release notes

[@somedude5951]

I've been using Firefox for 20 years, and it rarely crashes, if ever. But than, when I opened this video, it crashed. Funny. The quick restart repaired it though, I am very content with Firefox.

[@Slugbunny]

I love Brave's sync method for its expediency and anonymity, but it is very vulnerable. Not just to bad opsec, i.e. leaks, but there is no way to protect the browser in vulnerable environments - no master password. As for creating an account to use a browser... lol, lmao

[@qlippoth13]

Brave is still Google's Chrome

[@NorthernChimp]

@@qlippoth13 *mium

[@lussor1]

​@@qlippoth13🤡🤡🤡 its Chromium project not google chrome

[@Slugbunny]

@@qlippoth13 Indeed it is. I use it at/for work as a good all-in-one package - Shields makes the internet usable when add-ons are a no-no. I can also look past the questionable senior management, crypto connections and past link abuse in a work setting. Never for personal use.

[@Annoye]

@@qlippoth13chromium

[@motionthings]

Not exactly 'browser sync' but I think KDE-connect/GS-Connect deserves a honorable mention

[@senseal5462]

Started to use firefox ever since chrome started to crack down on some extensions

[@EsotericReader]

How has it been?

[@lussor1]

​​​@@EsotericReaderslow i tried it for 2 years. I only like it because sound quality is superior

[@alperen-dev]

Another reason to use Firefox, which was the reason to why I switched to it, is because of its ability to block KZbin's Anti Adblock. Damn, a lot of blockers... I can imagine seeing KZbin starting to block firefoxes KZbin Anti-Adblock-Blocker, which would be "Anti-Adblock-Blocker-Blocker". 💀

[@LilacMonarch]

and then we get anti-anti-adblock-blocker-blocker

[@Smougda]

in pc ublock origin. In phone revanced youtube

[@etz80808yy]

so that's why i haven't got the adblock notice on youtube. firefox da best

[@hammerheadcorvette4]

I have uBlock Origin and got the notice. How are you doing this?

[@belstar1128]

right now i never got that problem i am not sure if they are just a/b testing or if i got lucky because in use a lot of different browsers and i never got it

[@umeng2002]

I never stopped daily'ing Firefox since the mid 00s.

[@qlippoth13]

mid 00s is when Netscape Navigator stopped being a thing

[@neilbrideau8520]

Firefox is an outstanding browser with great compatibility and performance. Thanks for spreading the word.

[@tomverlaine728]

FF is amazing, it's shame about all the FUD. Some people want the entire planet on chromium... wont end well.

[@anero.]

While I like Firefox, I'll have to disagree on it having great performance. It's waaaay behind chromium-based browsers in terms of speed

[@DarkFaken]

Could you talk about Microsoft and their private Windows API's. I've worked in IT for a number of years and only just this week did it dawn on me that, whilst I know plenty of their secret sauce is kept from public view, certain API's are also undocumented and people who have attempted reversing them often have mixed success. Kind of ominous to think what they could be doing with some of those.

[@foeyloozer6299]

Once I really started getting good at red teaming/malware development I noticed there is so many undocumented APIs. Some of them have names like “SystemFunction1” so they dont even bother to name a lot of them. SystemFunction032 is RC4 encryption of a memory buffer I believe. SystemFunction036 is random number generator

[@foxtailedcritter]

I use Firefox so this peaks my interest. Was never a fan of chrome on my android phone. Mental Outlaw what do you think is the best browser to use?

[@MentalOutlaw]

Username checks out

[@zhon5311]

@@MentalOutlaw kek the motherfuckin profile pic too

[@maleiayick]

Yes

[@maxscott3349]

Internet Explorer 7, obviously

[@artempetrovsky9573]

(My personal preferences) I use 3 browser - Thorium (a Chromium fork with some patches to maximize performance); Firefox and Tor. And best to ensure your privacy obviously is Tor second Firefox and Thorium last. And the best for Google🥶🥶 (if you use google, i need it for school) only Thorium. Firefox is mid🤯, if i like to google something random in web i will use Firefox for the speed and if i don't need speed i use Tor👻.

[@ManAdam712]

Thanks, Mr. Goldstein. Once the fighting comes to Oceania, Big Brother will likely try to control all of our communications. RESIST INGSOC!

[@qlippoth13]

Yes, and while you're fighting INGSOC don't forget to sync your browser using real-identity SAML authentication. Nice Emmanuel Goldstein reference BTW :)

[@Grainus]

Won't encrypted hello also prevent ISPs and network operators from censoring specific websites by making them unable to tell which site we're connecting to?

[@lussor1]

Thats it. All of the free online movies pages are available

[@Cookiekeks]

Brodie Robertson has a good video on the encrypted client hello thing for those curious

[@dzuchun]

unfortunately, tab syncing mentioned in the video never had worked reliably for me :( tab would be visible/sent to other devices only if Fx feels like it. this feature is amazing conceptually though.

[@davinhunt7558]

I use Firefox daily and have for a long time now. But they need HDR support. The only reason I have to use any other browser for me personally is because of the lack of HDR streaming capabilities. I think that would have a significant impact on user base

[@internallyinteral]

I doubt it tbh I don't even know what hdr is and I spend most of my life on my pc

[@ZaHandle]

@@internallyinteralYou sir, need to be more online

[@bigbang2a]

I know that HDR is a technology to enhance image "beautifulness" on-the-go, but I thought it was handled by the GPU or the OS level and not by apps themselves (other than games)?

[@MCPEngu1]

also WebHID.

[@NatetheNintendofan]

​@@ZaHandlemy monitor does it support HDR it only supports 1080 and it's Asus gaming monitor

[@Timm2003]

OMG THAT FCKING 22yo BUG IS FREAKING ME OUT FOR SOOO LONG, nice to see it got fixed, hope firefox 119 gets shipped to debian soon...

[@mataznuiz]

im just glad they fixed the stuck tooltips bug experienced on certain linux setups

[@__-tt2ot]

Great stuff!

[@mytech6779]

I could swear that I was doing browser sync with Firefox 10 years ago. Turned out for me it wasn't something useful or wanted, but I clearly recall testing the ability to sync a session at work with my home desktop.

[@artempetrovsky9573]

Cool Win XP theme🥰

[@seventhtenth]

have you done a video on decentralized apps like remotestorage enabled ones?

[@szaszm_]

I like the address bar at the bottom of the screen on the Android version. It's closer to my thumb when holding the phone, so easier to tap.

[@jim8790]

Question - Can you create shortcuts for each of your Firefox profiles? Or what’s the best way to access/open the many FF profiles you may have? If you click on the FF Icon on your Windows task bar I assume it’s just going to open the one you have nominated as your default. Also, say you have multiple FF profiles open at once. How can you quickly and easily tell which profile you are on? Other than giving each one of them different themes and having different extensions and layout of the toolbar. Thanks in advance

[@swettyspaghtti]

Should i go back to firefox and ditch crhome ? Like= ditch chrome

[@derram0k]

Hopefully that bugfix is for all tooltips and not just things in the bars. I get floating tooltips whenever I launch a game with youtube open in the browser in the foreground pretty frequently.

[@mjauu]

cool video and cool browser, have been using firefox for a couple of years already as my main internet browsing tool

[@pauplus]

I am so proud of these products.

[@Marshall1914]

Are you going to be doing a video on the PinePhone Pro?

[@sprinklednights]

Great update! Didn't remove any telemetry though

[@MarcCastellsBallesta]

Thank you Yifan!

[@renaisnisbett]

@Mental Outlaw Curious. Will your merch store be available to those internationally?

[@100_JAB]

The brave browser sync is one of the few reasons I keep using it instead of firefox, so convenient

[@amergingiles]

The only thing brave does wrong is that it is heavily aimed at crypto bros. Are they aimed at the crypto bros trading Monero overseas? Yeah, but they're still crypto bros.

[@anon_y_mousse]

As a Slackware user I update about as often as Slackware updates, yet I always update FireFox immediately when a new version is available.

[@GeldUndKokaine-kc1hp]

Firefox isn't already considered mainstream?

[@MentalOutlaw]

Lol no, more people use Safari, Edge, and probably Opera/OperaGX since they pay people to shill it online.

[@nikoraasu6929]

Was firefox ever considered mainstream ever since chrome got popular?

[@yep596]

It was back in the early to late 2000s until Chrome appeared. Firefox had around 30% of the browser market share since it was the main alternative to using Internet Explorer. Today its market share is about 3% excluding forks like Librewolf, Pale Moon etc

[@nikoraasu6929]

yeah back in the day it was either internet explorer or firefox, pretty nostalgic times to be honest haha @@yep596

[@GeldUndKokaine-kc1hp]

@@MentalOutlaw I suppose it's been some years but back when I first got on the web like a decade ago Firefox was listed right along with Google, Internet Explorer and Bing when people talked about search engines. perhaps it's fallen out of fashion or I ended up getting a weirdly warped view of how popular it was

[@BrianCroweAcolyte]

I'll be looking forward to this about a year from now. I'm on Firefox ESR because I have to fix their crap UI that they pumped out in v89 for them with CSS tweaks, and I don't feel like fixing it every update.

[@chubbycatfish4573]

Going to make a video about the keepass vulnerability that was recently discovered?

[@ugly717]

Wow a very good Firefox update. Usually I'm skeptical but I'm feeling optimistic about these. A good step forward for Mozilla

[@terminallyonline5296]

Nice XP window decoration.

[@rwx-zach]

I like Firefox Nightly because I want to help Mozilla developers improve Firefox. Also, Ublock Origin is a godsend.

[@motherchuckair404]

and also because firefox has a api for dns lookups so that ublock can block those stupid fake legitmate websites that are actually ads or trackers in the background. I hope a chromium browser implements a dns api so that ublock will be used to its fullest potential.

[@lussor1]

​​@@motherchuckair404isnt that the option impossible to enable in unblock?

[@motherchuckair404]

No, browser specfic. I am quite surprised no browser has implemented this api feature. So useful for network lookups for many extensions and uncloaking sites that look legitmate that turn out to be bad sites.@@lussor1

[@DeathStarU.S.A]

Are these just for the web browser or do the same upgrades apply to the phone version? Thanks

[@clapcell]

how does thorium compare against firefox? might be a good topic for a new video?

[@meddl8103]

What OS do you use? I like that XP theme, how do I get that?

[@OcteractSG]

Using Firefox for privacy is like using a hammer to drive screws. It’s really cool if you’re willing to modify the hammer for the job, but absolutely terrible otherwise. Also, if you don’t know what you’re doing, you’ll just make it worse.

[@unstable_7071]

switch to firefox about a month ago and im glad I did

[@mojojomo6750]

Never understood the popularity of Chrome, particularly given Google's involvement. Firefox has been my browser of choice for decades. That said, I recently downloaded Opera and I gotta say, I like it.

[@RealCyberCrime]

I’m thinking about making a similar video but hacking documentary format

[@cosmos2382]

What?

[@Nemesis816]

good stuff

[@LaughingOrange]

The bug was older than Firefox. Mozilla wasn't using that branding until after the report was made.

[@dafff08]

i switched from chrome to firefox years ago and its a pretty fine browser. ive seen quite a decent amount of videos claming that firefox is bad and how it has supposedly falled etc etc. i cant really confim it tho. its even on my work pc.

[@Ultrajamz]

Going to fix the memleak I see if I leave pc on?

[@talesfromspace]

Damn, I was hoping the bug fix related to the browser theme breaking every time Firefox gets restarted. Sometimes this would even happen randomly while using it. Very annoying because the only way to fix it is to go in theme settings, then disable and re-enable it. Happens multiple times a week.

[@tomverlaine728]

On windows? Been using custom theme on FF for 15 years, never encountered that.

[@talesfromspace]

@@tomverlaine728 I've dealt with it on both Windows and MacOS

[@TiagoTiagoT]

Wasn't synced tabs already a thing with Firefox Sync for a long time? What changed?

[@atpray]

7:22 But the isp also controls the dns, so they can still track the website we r requesting the public key for over the dns?

[@lussor1]

Imagine using your isp dns 😂

[@lordvordemolt7893]

What browser do u use Kenny?

[@MentalOutlaw]

Several but mostly Firefox, Tor, and Brave

[@MrTheinfoman]

@@MentalOutlaw used to use Firefox until the Google deal with Firefox in 2020

[@kythrathesuntamer9715]

All the techies of ole were like Firefox doesn't do enough for your privacy today it's like you judged prematurely, as it turns out Firefox privacy was merely under construction. With a slow rollout.

[@bufordmaddogtannen]

About the extensions in the json object you show at 5:50, these are not imported from chrome. Although both browsers use the same framework for extensions two distinct releases are still needed. What mozilla is doing to "import" Chrome extensions, is to simply map the ones that happen to exist cross-platform to their corresponding Firefox counterpart. Real importing / wrapping is not there yet. Also if mozilla had been closed source, developers would not have been able to cherrypick what bugs to work on. Similarly it would take 15+ years to develop core components like wayland or 10+ years for X to fallback to the last known working resolution when a user didn't get it right the first time.

[@replikvltyoutube3727]

Watched this on mobile Firefox with uBlock

[@LokiScarletWasHere]

Does ECH still require a centrally approved DoH server? I hate not being able to use that while using my local DNS resolver.

[@etz80808yy]

i love firefox so much >:3

[@atpray]

U should cover simplelogin or anonaddy, they r also private and more flexible than Firefox relay.

[@c0rnch1p]

That was a wholesome af bugfix story

[@j4yd34d5]

shout out to the 1.7% Internet Explorer chads for whom death comes before conformity

[@Ehh.....]

Glad I swapped to Firefox at the start of this year. Glad to see them doing better.

[@AdamV20]

Now I'm really considering coming back to Firefox

[@Redhotsmasher]

9:47 That's Mozilla 5.0, not Firefox 5.0. I still remember when Firefox 4 dropped in 2011 (though I had to google the exact year) and even broke the record for browser downloads in 24 hours or something, I believe?

[@Pasi123]

I still remember Firefox 1.5 was the last one to support Windows 95 and Firefox 2.0 was the last one to support Windows 98/Me. We used quite old computers in our family lol Though back in those days Firefox didn't get new versions that often, it wasn't until Firefox 5 when they started the Chrome like version number increments

[@opfax163]

if they are still financed by the WEF it's a no go for me

[@senditall152]

Go! My little firely fox.

[@LivingTheDream77]

can you make a video on the tor browser 115 release ?

[@gralha_]

That bug has annoyed me for so, so long. I never noticed the problem was only with firefox, thought it was something with my OS.

[@MoneylessWorld]

I put my flag on it, that there is something wrong with this update. Why? Because 119 for numerologists is equal to 911 and that number is very important to the money magicians of this world. The money magicians own a lot, and likely Firefox too. As owners, I deem it likely they'll put a surprise, easter egg or vulnerability in the 119 update.

[@wile123456]

Edge has really great inactive tab management, freezing tabs you haven't used in a while. I wish Firefox gets a similar feature and I'll use it more on my laptop

[@raw_000]

Firefox does that too, otherwise you would not be able to keep 5000+ tabs open, what kind of limitation are you running into?

[@HerbySystems]

Commenting to appease the algorithm

[@tenminutetokyo2643]

When will they update the Bookmarks window - like at least number of items in a folder at the top of the window.

[@extra-terra-strial-bv9pv]

Could you do a calyxos install guide?

[@JJFX-]

Unless there's more going on, it sounds like this was just a bug that they never bothered to work on. In my very first windows application it became apparent that custom pop-ups like this need to be handled based on the focus of the application window. I love that someone bothered to dig into it but this wasn't exactly rocket science.

[@NaClO]

I know that Brave browser is chromium based, but is it a secure alternative to Firefox? I’m pretty new in this sphere and only recently found your Channel so I thought it would be good to ask

[@yep596]

I'd try out Thorium but the fact that it's named after an element that glows in the dark is rather off-putting

[@duckmeat4674]

CIA - GLOW IN THE DARK N-

[@nightmarezer0507]

*This comment has been expunged by the Central Intelligence Agency.*

[@bsdims]

As a visually-impaired Librewolf user, tool-tips or whatever they're called get on my nerves, because they cover what I'm trying to look at simply because my mouse is hovering over an unrelated icon or whatever because I'm zoomed into my screen/use a screen-mag. I'm so happy that annoying persistence has been patched out so it doesn't just linger there when I swap windows around and such. :D

[@notreallyme425]

7:22 encrypt hellos, but can’t my ISP see the IP addresses I go to and do a reverse lookup to see what sites I’m going to?

[@obsidian115]

I wish Firefox had workspaces like Edge and PWAs.

[@donedane2269]

"they are fighting for privacy, unlike the others" remind is this the not same Mozilla that got in crap for doing just that?

[@MisterPancake778]

0:32 Jesus I never knew Chrome had such a stranglehold on the web browser industry

[@RustyNova]

Wait, I thought it was a feature?! Joke aside, best part of the update. Still waiting for librewolf

[@Cha0sNicr0]

I wish encrypted, (oblivious,) third-party DNS would be more widespread. That plus HTTPS is probably better than a VPN. No need to detour all your traffic to a single point (that you might not own). But encrypted hello is way more approachable as a default.

[@obconoby7395]

I have been using Firefox forever. I do find myself drifting astray and trying other browsers from time to time. However, I always come back to the Fox. Why? ..... because the Fox Rox!!!!! That's why!!!!!

[@cluxx8486]

Firefox is based af. Went back to them recently on my shitty $200 laptop and it runs great.

[@0hate9]

love the winxp rice

[@CanaldoMiauOfficial]

Firefox

[@IsmaelWensder]

Is it secure to sync your browser data over Mozilla?

[@greenjihad3390]

I haven't posted on this channel in a while. I enjoy your videos and I do like Firefox too. However, I think there's an issue that needs to be raised that I think answers why there are more Chrome-based browsers than FIrefox ones. The reason for this might be due to Firefox's source code. It is my understanding that Gecko source code has a bad complexity problem whereas Chromium may not. I have come to find out that Firefox’s source code is made up of half a dozen or more different languages. In order to build a Firefox fork, one would have to use compilers for every language in Firefox’s source code. It could very well be that Chromium source code does not have the complexity issues that Gecko does, hence the reason for the many browsers based on Chroumium. If someone on these threads knows differently or knows if Mozilla has changed this please reply but I think this would be an excellent subject for one of your videos. In my view, it is self-defeating to make the source code for a browser so complex that hinders people from wanting to use it.

[@busterdafydd3096]

big firefox fan, use it where ever I can. technically have it on work computer. but strangely performs a little worse and work related webservers loves who chrome will eat the RAM on peoples computers.... instead of just building a native app?!?