Thunderbird 78.8.0 security update is out
Thunderbird 78.8.0 has been released on February 23, 2021. The release schedule of the email client follows that of the Firefox web browser as code is shared between the two browsers. It is often the case that both products are affected by the same security vulnerabilities, and that security patches are released for both around the same time.
The new version of Thunderbird 78.8.0 is available already. Users should see it being installed automatically in client versions provided that automatic updates are enabled. To verify the installed version of the email client, select Help > About Thunderbird (if the menu bar is not displayed, press Alt on the keyboard to show it). The menu displays the version and runs a check for updates. The latest version of Thunderbird can also be downloaded directly from the project website. The downloaded file can then be installed manually to upgrade existing installations, or to install Thunderbird anew or for the first time.
The security advisory page lists four distinct security vulnerabilities that have been patched in Thunderbird 78.8. Three of the four received a severity rating of high, one a rating of low. High is the second highest rating after critical.
Thunderbird 78.8.0 includes several bug fixes but no new features next to that. The release notes highlight the following changes:
- fixed an issue that created an error when importing an address book from a CSV file.
- fixed security information not being displayed correctly before a s/MIME message was saved as a draft.
- fixed FileLINK user interface in CalDAV calendars.
- fixed that recurring tasks were always displayed as incomplete and that filters could not be used.
- fixes to "various UI widgets" that did not work correctly.
- dark theme improvements
- the extension manager did not have a link to the support web page for add-ons.
The Thunderbird team outlined its plans for the email client recently. Many major updates will be introduced in Thunderbird 91, which will be released later this year.
Now You: what would you like to see in future releases?
JMAP. Checked out a introduction video about it some time ago and was impressed by its speed. And I would love a tool to automate backup/restore of profiles, built by TB team – I mean original, mantained by them tool.
If you want to participate in discussions about Thunderbird development, there are two main mailing lists you want to join.
https://developer.thunderbird.net/
1. ​TB-Planning:
https://wiki.mozilla.org/Thunderbird/tb-planning
This mailing list is higher level topics like: the future of Thunderbird, potential features, and changes that you would like to see happen. It is also used to discuss a variety of broader issues around community and governance of the project.
2. ​Maildev:
http://lists.thunderbird.net/mailman/listinfo/maildev_lists.thunderbird.net
A moderated mailing list for discussing engineering plans for Thunderbird. It is a place where you can raise questions and ideas for core Thunderbird development.
3. ​Add-on Developers:
https://thunderbird.topicbox.com/groups/addons
A list for Thunderbird add-on developers and aspiring add-on developers to ask questions and share knowledge.
About Maildev:
The Thunderbird core (development team) is working steadily through [Maildev].
This [Maildev] is open to registered subscribers and can also join the development team directly through this means.
Examples: Below was a roadmap for the development of Thunderbird 78.
[Maildev] Thunderbird 78 +++ Roadmap
https://lists.thunderbird.net/pipermail/maildev_lists.thunderbird.net/2019-November/002024.html
The Maildev Archives
https://lists.thunderbird.net/pipermail/maildev_lists.thunderbird.net/
About the outline of Thunderbird:
During the fierce browser wars between (Microsoft, Mozilla, Google and Apple) browser vendors from 2004 to 2014, Mozilla’s other products (SeaMonkey, Thunderbird) were restructured to focus on its flagship product “Firefoxâ€, and the development of Thunderbird had been discontinued. (SeaMonkey development support has been transferred to the community, and Thunderbird has focused its workforce and budget on Firefox by leaving one maintainer.)
Since Thunderbird has many corporate users, there continued update support from the viewpoint of security measures and maintenance, but development support had abandoned up to version 60.9.1
To meet user demands, Mozilla has set up a new company specializing in email clients and resumed development support from version 68.
Information need to know:
About Thunderbird
https://developer.thunderbird.net/
Official blog about Thunderbird development
https://blog.thunderbird.net/
Roadmap (Planning for Thunderbird)
https://developer.thunderbird.net/planning/roadmap-1
Official announcement about the Thunderbird project (below reprinted main part)
https://blog.thunderbird.net/2020/01/thunderbirds-new-home/
January 28, 2020
As of today, the Thunderbird project will be operating from a new wholly owned subsidiary of the Mozilla Foundation, MZLA Technologies Corporation.
Now, to ensure future operational success, following months of planning, we are forging a new path forward. Moving to MZLA Technologies Corporation will not only allow the Thunderbird project more flexibility and agility, but will also allow us to explore offering our users products and services that were not possible under the Mozilla Foundation.
Thunderbird’s focus isn’t going to change. We remain committed to creating amazing, open source technology focused on open standards, user privacy, and productive communication. The Thunderbird Council continues to steward the project, and the team guiding Thunderbird’s development remains the same.
Ultimately, this move to MZLA Technologies Corporation allows the Thunderbird project to hire more easily, act more swiftly, and pursue ideas that were previously not possible. More information about the future direction of Thunderbird will be shared in the coming months.
Thunderbird is based on Firefox ESR, it’s “sharing the platform†from an ecosystem perspective (security measures and maintainability).
Thunderbird is more popular with corporate users than home users.
In particular, it has a large user base in Germany and Japan, which motivated Mozilla to keep Thunderbird alive (separated it from Mozilla and establish a separate company specializing in email clients).
For corporate use, Large-scale multi-account management is essential and Thunderbird is one of the best choices.
By the way, the support for home users is provided by the user community, but for corporate users, professional support that can be resolved quickly is available.
Thunderbird is a “Web client (mail client)”.
A computer or software that provides information on the Web is called a “Web serverâ€, and a computer or software that receives information from a server and displays or processes it by user operation is called a “Web clientâ€.
Among Web clients, the one used for human viewing by formatting the contents of the received page and displaying it on the screen is called “Web browserâ€. A “mail client†is also a type of Web client.
Since Thunderbird is a “mail client”, the substance of the message resides on the server of the account provider (for example, @outlook.com and @hotmail.com on the Microsoft side).
(Thunderbird is just loading the entity that exists on the server)
“Moving to MZLA Technologies Corporation will not only allow the Thunderbird project more flexibility and agility, but will also allow us to explore offering our users products and services that were not possible under the Mozilla Foundation.”
Their going for-profit is not “To meet user demands”, they were meeting user demands well enough before as a non-profit. That would be forgetting the nefarious “user product and services” that the for-profit structure made possible in Firefox.
It was already untrue that this was unavoidable to maintain a browser, but for an email client, this becomes beyond ridiculous.
> “Moving to MZLA Technologies Corporation will not only allow the Thunderbird project more flexibility and agility, but will also allow us to explore offering our users products and services that were not possible under the Mozilla Foundation.â€
>
> Their going for-profit is not “To meet user demandsâ€, they were meeting user demands well enough before as a non-profit.
Anonymous,
Your impressions, which seem typical, would have the public believe that this change was at best misguided, and at worst nefarious.
In fact, the situation under the Foundation was determined to be unsustainable for several reasons, but the biggest was it was impossible to stay under the Foundation and at the same time comply with tax laws – even without factoring in partnerships. If we had not moved to the MzLa subsidiary of the Foundation, then Thunderbird would have had to find a new home.
owl,
Thanks for your thread, it was interesting.
+1, and informative, thanks.
I AM NEVER GOING TO UPDATE T.B. I DON’T CARE ABOUT SECURITY AT THIS POINT. IT TAKES ME TOO LONG TO RESET ALL MY SETTINGS THAT THE NEW VERSIONS DEFAULT TO AND THE LOSS OF ADD-ON’S THAT ARE NO LONGER SUPPORTED.
@PANAMA PATRICK
Check this out if you want a “Thunderbird” that doesn’t overhaul everything annually:
https://binaryoutcast.com/projects/interlink/