For many years, I've normally been a Firefox user and even left it for half of 2013 to use Chromium/Chrome full-time.

But since the rise of the NSA (National Security Agency) going rogue on U.S. American citizens, everyone's constitutional right to privacy has been non-existence. I'll just save my proper bitching about NSA power giving to them The Patriot Act & NDAA in a later thread in P&R.

All I'm saying is that I'm happy with using Firefox again if for no other reason than to better my chances of getting my pricacy AND security back. And if that wasn't enough, I also have Tor & JonDoBrowser (via use with JonDo) when I really need to "go in hiding" so to speak.

THIS thread in General Discussion is about our favorite web browsers. In the previous two years, we already have the usual Firefox VS. Chrome discussions as well as namechecking other browsers. But in this thread for 2014, I want to take the discussion further by asking everyone what have they done on their part in maintaining at least some amount of web privacy & security.


REFERENCES:

https://prism-break.org/en/
https://www.bestvpn.com/t...acy-guide/

[Edited 1/11/14 13:53pm]

Like I said in my OP, I using Firefox as my main broswer. Here is a list of some addons/extensions that I'm using to increase my privacy:

Adblock Edge

Bluhell Firewall

Disconnect

Disconnect Search

Flashblock

HTTPS Everywhere

Pure URL

Quickjava

Actually NoScript is far more powerful than Quickjava. But I perfer Quickjava because it's a lot easier to turn off Flash, Cookies, Java, & JavaScript with one click of a mouse when necessary than to risk having NoScript blocking all JavaScpirt while making websites and even my CPU rather slow.

Cookies are almost a non-issue because I simply delete them before I close my browser.

BobGeorge909 said:

I think the NSA can see thru the privacy on any browser...sooooo...meh...who cares.

ANSWER: people like myself who actually give a damn about having a constitutional right to privacy.

Of course everyone (including hackers) can stilll spying on you if you're.....

1. ....NOT deleting coookies.

2. ....using Flash player.

3. ....allowing all kinds of Javascripts to be uploaded on your computer while web surfing.

4. ....allow ads to be uploaded on your computer because you don't have an ad blocker.

5. ....using Java.

6. ....NOT having any ways to block and/or cover your IP address.

I'm not naive in thinking that there will ever be 100% web privacy . But it's still NOT an excuse to stop "fighting a good fight" by getting at least 75-90% of your web privacy back.

Firefox + addblock also. Been using it since forever. Its more about the OS than the browser. I use linux and I can browse every stupid thing imaginable and never worry about anything breaking. Windows restricts you from your own system and thats where virus programs can get into your business.

BobGeorge909 said:

I think the NSA can see thru the privacy on any browser...sooooo...meh...who cares.

I think you can get a work around if youre using a proxy. Which any browser should enable. The NSA might be able to get through but you still have to worry about data miners, identity theft, and such.

You want privacy? Use this:

[img:$uid]http://3badbullies.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/tin-can-telephone.jpg[/img:$uid]

LayzieKiddZ said:

Firefox + addblock also. Been using it since forever. Its more about the OS than the browser. I use linux and I can browse every stupid thing imaginable and never worry about anything breaking. Windows restricts you from your own system and thats where virus programs can get into your business.

Exactly. I've been using different Linux distros (Debian-based) for more than 5 years.

LayzieKiddZ said:

BobGeorge909 said:

I think the NSA can see thru the privacy on any browser...sooooo...meh...who cares.

I think you can get a work around if youre using a proxy. Which any browser should enable. The NSA might be able to get through but you still have to worry about data miners, identity theft, and such.

Using a vpn is better:

https://www.bestvpn.com/

If you're interested in getting a vpn for free, do a research on Riseup VPN:
https://help.riseup.net/en/riseup-vpn

I am using chromium with Ghostery and Adblock. It actuall holds up better than Safari but I don't have an IP blocker. I've turned off the tracking button in my settings and I use peoplesmart to have sites stop tracking me. How well all of this works is unknown until I see any drastic changes to my desktop's look.

Until the day I die... though I do use Chrome every now and then...

It's best for privacy. AdBlock does good with blocking ads and my desktop computer has virus protection so Firefox can detect when a malicious site is trying to come in.

[Edited 1/8/14 21:13pm]

TonyVanDam said:

LayzieKiddZ said:

Firefox + addblock also. Been using it since forever. Its more about the OS than the browser. I use linux and I can browse every stupid thing imaginable and never worry about anything breaking. Windows restricts you from your own system and thats where virus programs can get into your business.

Exactly. I've been using different Linux distros (Debian-based) for more than 5 years.

Nice which distros?

Been trying to work a good debian distro but its hard to find any portable good ones. Been using PuppyLinix (super reliable) and Lubuntu. Easy, quick and light.

TonyVanDam said:

LayzieKiddZ said:

I think you can get a work around if youre using a proxy. Which any browser should enable. The NSA might be able to get through but you still have to worry about data miners, identity theft, and such.

Using a vpn is better:

https://www.bestvpn.com/

If you're interested in getting a vpn for free, do a research on Riseup VPN:
https://help.riseup.net/en/riseup-vpn

Cool, good info. Will check it out.

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

I find it absolutely hilarious that you think anyone who doesnt let others steal their information must be a terrorist, peadophile, or criminal. It has to do with not allowing others to break the law, no matter whom it may be or the title.

And actually knowing your human rights and not feeding into criminal behavior by being lathargic or not caring. Because as far as I can tell its exactly that type of attitude that isnt better than the criminals themselves and enables the criminals to break the law.

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

Same, I haven't had any viruses since...well, I honestly can't remember ever really having an issue.

JustErin said:

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

Same, I haven't had any viruses since...well, I honestly can't remember ever really having an issue.

yeah, and let's not forget the fact that the vast majority of viruses come from porn sites and torrent sites of dubious (if any) reputation...

and this pretty much defines the nature of that guy who always has viruses in his computer...

LayzieKiddZ said:

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

I find it absolutely hilarious that you think anyone who doesnt let others steal their information must be a terrorist, peadophile, or criminal. It has to do with not allowing others to break the law, no matter whom it may be or the title.

And actually knowing your human rights and not feeding into criminal behavior by being lathargic or not caring. Because as far as I can tell its exactly that type of attitude that isnt better than the criminals themselves and enables the criminals to break the law.

oh really? amazing...in case you didn't know, the gov has been using technology to spy on the people since, well, the Cold War...

and btw, exactly WHO and HOW can steal your information?? (which information, anyway?)

and please, don't say the GOVERNMENT, just don't...there's a BIG difference between "checking out your information" (for national security reasons) and actually STEALING it (what for? blackmail? profit?), I don't think the gov needs your info for profit...

[Edited 1/9/14 9:28am]

JoeTyler said:

LayzieKiddZ said:

I find it absolutely hilarious that you think anyone who doesnt let others steal their information must be a terrorist, peadophile, or criminal. It has to do with not allowing others to break the law, no matter whom it may be or the title.

And actually knowing your human rights and not feeding into criminal behavior by being lathargic or not caring. Because as far as I can tell its exactly that type of attitude that isnt better than the criminals themselves and enables the criminals to break the law.

oh really? amazing...in case you didn't know, the gov has been using technology to spy on the people since, well, the Cold War...

and btw, exactly WHO and HOW can steal your information?? (which information, anyway?)

and please, don't say the GOVERNMENT, just don't...there's a BIG difference between "checking out your information" (for national security reasons) and actually STEALING it (what for? blackmail? profit?), I don't think the gov needs your info for profit...

[Edited 1/9/14 9:28am]

And when people found out the general gist of what was going on with Nixon which included spying on people he was impeached. No one sat back and said "Well, who cares"

This has to do with having morals and not being a ditto-man.

The fact is that was an extremely belligerent and well uninformed post. Thats like calling Martin Luthor King a peadophile, criminal, for upholding his human rights.

The more I reply the more I gather you dont understand a word of what I'm saying. I said anyone, including data miners, identity theft, fraud, governemnt, and so on. And domestic government spying is illegal in any circumstance.

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

Somehow I doubt that even one of the Founding Fathers shared that view when it came to English rule.

LayzieKiddZ said:

JoeTyler said:

oh really? amazing...in case you didn't know, the gov has been using technology to spy on the people since, well, the Cold War...

and btw, exactly WHO and HOW can steal your information?? (which information, anyway?)

and please, don't say the GOVERNMENT, just don't...there's a BIG difference between "checking out your information" (for national security reasons) and actually STEALING it (what for? blackmail? profit?), I don't think the gov needs your info for profit...

[Edited 1/9/14 9:28am]

And when people found out the general gist of what was going on with Nixon which included spying on people he was impeached. No one sat back and said "Well, who cares"

are you seriously linking the Watergate scandal to the NSA activities/goals ?

This has to do with having morals and not being a ditto-man.

No, this is ALL about national security.

The fact is that was an extremely belligerent and well uninformed post. Thats like calling Martin Luthor King a peadophile, criminal, for upholding his human rights.

these two sentences make no sense.

The more I reply the more I gather you dont understand a word of what I'm saying.

Perhaps, but that doesn't necessarily makes you right, or interesting

I said anyone, including data miners, identity theft, fraud, governemnt, and so on. And domestic government spying is illegal in any circumstance.

Welcome to the real world. Face it. National security comes first.

[Edited 1/9/14 12:59pm]

RodeoSchro said:

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

[Edited 1/9/14 8:04am]

Somehow I doubt that even one of the Founding Fathers shared that view when it came to English rule.

please, leave the 18th Ccentury behind already, COMPLETELY different eras...

LayzieKiddZ said:

TonyVanDam said:

Exactly. I've been using different Linux distros (Debian-based) for more than 5 years.

Nice which distros?

Been trying to work a good debian distro but its hard to find any portable good ones. Been using PuppyLinix (super reliable) and Lubuntu. Easy, quick and light.

On my desktop (which is 12 years old and still working!), it's Debian Testing. On my laptop, it's Debian Sid, which I upgrade by using repos from Debian, Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE), & Siduction.

Over the years, I've used Ubuntu, Linux Mint, LMDE, antiX, & Lubuntu. If you want something light and fast, check out antiX. It's THE fastest distro that I've used. I will be using antiX again whenever I get a chance of buying another used laptop.

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

But what about your porn supply that you have on your hard drive? (Don't answer THAT! )

But seriously, do you really want the NSA, CIA, & FBI to know what you're doing while web surfing?

JoeTyler said:

LayzieKiddZ said:

I find it absolutely hilarious that you think anyone who doesnt let others steal their information must be a terrorist, peadophile, or criminal. It has to do with not allowing others to break the law, no matter whom it may be or the title.

And actually knowing your human rights and not feeding into criminal behavior by being lathargic or not caring. Because as far as I can tell its exactly that type of attitude that isnt better than the criminals themselves and enables the criminals to break the law.

oh really? amazing...in case you didn't know, the gov has been using technology to spy on the people since, well, the Cold War...

and btw, exactly WHO and HOW can steal your information?? (which information, anyway?)

and please, don't say the GOVERNMENT, just don't...there's a BIG difference between "checking out your information" (for national security reasons) and actually STEALING it (what for? blackmail? profit?), I don't think the gov needs your info for profit...

[Edited 1/9/14 9:28am]

1. It was one thing for the USA to use technology to spy on other countries during the Cold War. But it was and still is total bullshit for the USA to use technology on its own citizens.

2. Beside the NSA, CIA, FBI, and even the IRS, there MFers are trying to spy on you too:

[img:$uid]http://www.conspiracyarchive.com/images/iaodarpa.jpg[/img:$uid]


The IAO wants as much information on all of us as possible. For your sakes Joe, I hope you're not running for political office because whatever info "they" can get on you can and will be used again you to make you look bad.

TonyVanDam said:

JoeTyler said:

funny how people are still terrified about virus and security

the LAST time a virus truly messed up with my computer was in 2007, and that's because I had, at that time, Explorer-WinXP-and free version of the McAfee antivirus...

oh, and privacy?? DON'T GIVE A DAMN, I have nothing to hide, I'm no pedo, I'm no terrorist, I'm no criminal, the gov can take a free look at my desktop anytime: they won't find anything worth their time...

But what about your porn supply that you have on your hard drive? (Don't answer THAT! )

But seriously, do you really want the NSA, CIA, & FBI to know what you're doing while web surfing?

I personally don't care if they know what I do online. The only concerns I would have is identity theft and stuff along those lines....not government spying.

JoeTyler said:

LayzieKiddZ said:

And when people found out the general gist of what was going on with Nixon which included spying on people he was impeached. No one sat back and said "Well, who cares"

are you seriously linking the Watergate scandal to the NSA activities/goals ?

This has to do with having morals and not being a ditto-man.

No, this is ALL about national security.

The fact is that was an extremely belligerent and well uninformed post. Thats like calling Martin Luthor King a peadophile, criminal, for upholding his human rights.

these two sentences make no sense.

The more I reply the more I gather you dont understand a word of what I'm saying.

Perhaps, but that doesn't necessarily makes you right, or interesting

I said anyone, including data miners, identity theft, fraud, governemnt, and so on. And domestic government spying is illegal in any circumstance.

Welcome to the real world. Face it. National security comes first.

[Edited 1/9/14 12:59pm]

Look I cant be bothered to explain every single thing, youll have to know your own info about things, it wasnt just Water Gate, it was domestic spying.

You might think its ok for someone to break the law, but the fact its never ok for someone to do it. It is illegal for human rights and the constitution to be violated by anyone. The constitution was formed so that there isnt tyranny like there was in England, formed by the people for the people, not government.

To say the very constitution is a silly outdated thing is like saying eating nutritionally is silly because 400 years ago they found it was to be productive. Personal human rights and equality is never an outdated thing.

You have to educate yourself, you cant go unknowingly and go along with anything thrown your way without ever looking at it. Its one thing to know what youre talking about and having an opinion and another to ridicule others without having known the most basic of things and telling them to "wake up".

Which is obvious by how this country has gone to the ground and Obama does has one the lowest approval rating. Any one with common sense knows the USA is being run to the ground. Either way I've spent enough of my time talking about this.

[Edited 1/10/14 9:30am]

TonyVanDam said:

LayzieKiddZ said:

Nice which distros?

Been trying to work a good debian distro but its hard to find any portable good ones. Been using PuppyLinix (super reliable) and Lubuntu. Easy, quick and light.

On my desktop (which is 12 years old and still working!), it's Debian Testing. On my laptop, it's Debian Sid, which I upgrade by using repos from Debian, Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE), & Siduction.

Over the years, I've used Ubuntu, Linux Mint, LMDE, antiX, & Lubuntu. If you want something light and fast, check out antiX. It's THE fastest distro that I've used. I will be using antiX again whenever I get a chance of buying another used laptop.

Nice I still have my desktop sitting around that I've had since 13. I didnt know about antiX, its debian based too so thats good might actually check it out for my laptop. Since anything debian is pretty much top tier. (Fedora is ok too)

I use Firefox pretty much exclusively.

It updates itself pretty nicely on Linux, so I haven't had to do any system maintenance in ages, really. Not so sure about how well Youtube works at the moment, but the fixes seem to come pretty fast. A few days ago I noticed SoundCloud wasn't working with Firefox (I use the JACK sound server), but that's apparently gotten fixed by this poin too. Really enjoying the hassle-free experience with Firefox after years of compiling additional shit and seeking for libraries that don't conflict with the rest of the system just to get Flash / Java etc. working with other browsers.

Sometimes I use Uzbl just for fun. I've actually configured Firefox so that it has most of the same keyboard shortcuts as Uzbl, which makes it a breeze to use. Uzbl has not been updated too often though.

Not really concerned about the security.