Firefox to start blocking third-party cookies by default, inevitably pissing off advertisers

By Mariella Moon Published February 25, 2013

cookies-flickr-lindsey-b — Image used with permission by copyright holder

In the eyes of advertisers, Firefox has waged a war against them by putting a certain feature on the yet-to-be-released Firefox 22 – a feature that will make those of you who’ve always been concerned about online privacy happy. We’re talking about a Firefox 22 setting that blocks third party cookies by default.

Mozilla’s new cookie policy means that only sites you actually visit can track your behavior and browsing activities online. Third-party cookies – usually from advertisers – will be blocked from the get go so that advertisers will no longer be able to track most users. The option to block third-party cookies on Firefox has existed for a long time, but it will only become a default setting in Firefox 22.

Recommended Videos

Firefox is far from being the first browser to boast the feature, though: Safari for computers and iOS has been blocking third-party cookies for users for over a decade. Chrome and Internet Explorer, on the other hand, allow all cookies to go through unless you manually tweak your settings.

It’s unclear when Firefox 22 will be released since the latest Firefox, version 19, was just released last week. According to CNET, though, the 22nd version might be out as early as April 5. The new feature should not interfere with your browsing, but you need to clear your browser’s cookies first for it to take effect.

(Image credit: Lindsey B/Flickr)

Former Contributor

Mariella loves working on both helpful and awe-inspiring science and technology stories. When she's not at her desk writing…

Topics

Web

Computing

NotebookLM can now automatically organize your research sources for you

Managing sources in NotebookLM just became effortless.

google-adds-data-tables-feature-in-notebooklm

If you use NotebookLM for research, you know how quickly sources pile up. Managing them manually, especially in notebooks with ten or more entries, has been one of the tool's most frustrating pain points, but Google just fixed that.

NotebookLM, the AI-powered research assistant built on Gemini, is rolling out automatic source labeling and categorization. The feature activates once you have five or more sources in a notebook, and it automatically assigns labels for you.

Computing

Old tech keeps coming back because new tech got annoying and we miss simpler times

Dumb phones, discs, cameras, and retro consoles are cycling back because modern tech got too needy for its own good

Toned picture of retro cassette player and earphones on tabletop.

Old jeans and old sneakers get a pass because fashion is cyclical. One year something looks dead, a few years later it’s back with a better markup and a straight-faced explanation about authenticity.

I’m starting to see consumer tech the same way. The revival isn’t limited to one corner of the junk drawer, either. It’s showing up in phones, cameras, audio gear, movies, and games. A tiny camera dangling from a wrist has more personality than another glass slab taking overprocessed night-mode shots.

Computing

The best trick AI can pull is disappear into my gadgets instead of turning into a product

AI may finally become useful when it stops announcing itself and starts quietly fixing the annoying parts of everyday tech

Appliance, Blow Dryer, Device

My wife recently woke up from a nightmare where AI had taken over human bodies. The likely culprit was less dramatic: Google Photos kept nudging her to “AI” herself when she only wanted to look at pictures of our cats.

That’s where a lot of people are with AI right now. Curious, tired, mildly creeped out, and increasingly annoyed when normal apps start acting like every action needs a software demo attached.