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Browsers forum: Firefox Add-ons. Where do you get yours from?

by: MarkFlax September 3, 2009 2:53 AM PDT

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Firefox Add-ons. Where do you get yours from?

by MarkFlax Moderator - 9/3/09 2:53 AM

It used to be accepted that Internet Explorer was the least secure of the browsers we use, mainly, it seems, because IE is the most popular browser, (or is that simply, the 'most used'). Hackers, malware writers, and other script kiddies targeted IE in their efforts to reach the majority of users.

That may not be the case now. As Firefox and other browsers continue to eat in to IE's market share, those malware writers may be shifting their attention to other browsers.

Security researchers have intercepted a fake Flash Player update creating a Firefox add-on that spies on a target users Google search results..

The moral of this story is? BEWARE. Where is that Firefox Add-on you have installed, or are thinking of installing, from?

My own advice, do not trust any Firefox Add-ons other than those available from the official Firefox site at;
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/.

Mark


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FF Add-On's

by i_made_this - 10/5/09 8:15 AM

In Reply to: Firefox Add-ons. Where do you get yours from? by MarkFlax Moderator

FF is an open source browser, created by an open community of users and lead by the engineers at Mozilla. It should be noted that - formally speaking - there is no such thing as a secure or efficient add-on in any open source browser. Adding 3rd party add-on's to your FF browser puts your browser's behavior in the hands of 3rd party developers - not Mozilla's. By installing add-on's to your FF experience, you should understand that it may cause unexpected behavior in your browsing experience.

There are other non-ActiveX browsers such as Opera and Chrome, that act more like IE and Safari in the sense that they are proprietary browsers that either disallow 3rd party add-on's or strongly caution you that they're not responsible for poor behavior caused by any 3rd party add-on's you choose to install.


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Add-Ons -- Your good warning --

by perstare - 10/12/09 6:49 AM

In Reply to: Firefox Add-ons. Where do you get yours from? by MarkFlax Moderator

Thank you, Mark, for your info on Add-Ons.
I re-installed Firefox just yesterday, and in the process of installing Firefox from the official site, I DID install the Add-On that you mentioned (I think).
However, I ASSUME that I am safe, since the Add-On came from the same site.
Tell me if my reasoning makes sense. If you feel that I might be at-risk, let me know how I can un-do the Add-On.
Thank you,
Mike B


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Yes it makes sense.

by MarkFlax Moderator - 10/13/09 4:22 AM

In Reply to: Add-Ons -- Your good warning -- by perstare

If all the add-ons were downloaded and installed from the official Mozilla Add-on site, then I see no problems.

Can you say why you had to reinstall Firefox?

Mark


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Thank you, Mark -- and you asked me a question

by perstare - 10/13/09 6:27 AM

In Reply to: Yes it makes sense. by MarkFlax Moderator

Why did I reinstall Firefox?
I used Firefox for about ten weeks without incident until a few days ago, when I tried to use FF to use Bing Maps. (I often use the satellite photos to look at properties.)FF behaved differently. It was slow. It stopped. I closed BingMaps and continued to use FF for other sites. It was very s-l-o-w. I rebooted. Same thing. That was the ONLY time that Firefox behaved that way -- I conclude that it was Bing - related. I don't know.
I closed FF. I went to FF site to download upgrade. Upgrade complained that FF was on and upgrade could not continue with FF on. Task Manager indicated that FF was NOT running. I opened FF and closed it again. Same result.
I uninstalled FF. I rebooted. I installed FF. Works fine, but I stay away from Bing. Your post got me thinking, though. Maybe I will go to Opera or Chrome or Safari.
I just want to use a TRANSPARENT browser to get things done. I don't care about 'elegant.' QUICK AND DIRTY is fine with me.
You did, though, wave several warning flags that I'd be stupid to ignore. Your post was very useful to me and I thank you again.
Mike B


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Interesting.

by MarkFlax Moderator - 10/13/09 9:59 AM

In Reply to: Thank you, Mark -- and you asked me a question by perstare

I haven't used Bing maps in my Firefox yet, but I will try it out, and report back.

I use Google maps often without problem. It may be that you were unfortunate just this one time, and there was some problem with the Bing maps option. If you're up to it sometime, try again, devil

Good luck.

Mark


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