Firefox 133 comes with Bounce Tracking Protection and other enhancements
Mozilla has released a new stable version of Firefox a moment ago. Firefox 133 is the latest version of the open source browser.
It includes several major improvements, including protection against bounce tracking, and also security fixes.
The two maintained Firefox Extended Support Release versions, Firefox 115 and 128, are also updated today.
The details:
- Bounce Tracking protection protects Firefox users against another common type of tracking.
- Windows users benefit from GPU-accelerated Canvas2D, which improves performance and is now enabled by default.
- Security fixes.
Firefox 133.0 download and update
Firefox 133 is available already. Most Firefox installations should receive the update automatically in the coming days.
If you do not want to wait, you may either check for updates in Firefox or download the latest version directly from Mozilla.
Do the following to check for updates in Firefox:
- Select Menu > Help > About Firefox.
Firefox checks for updates when the help prompt opens. It should find the update and install it at this point.
Firefox 133 is also available as a direct download from Mozilla's official site. None-stable downloads are also available.
Firefox 133: the major changes
Bounce Tracking Protection
Some advertisers and data brokers use redirects for tracking. This process is invisible to the user, as it happens very fast.
The core idea is simple: a click on a link opens a tracking server first before the destination is opened.
Bounce Tracking protection attempts to block this by purging cookies and site data regularly.
Note: the feature is only enabled for users who have set the Enhanced Tracking Protection feature to strict in Firefox. This is not the default value of the setting.
Brave Browser supported this form of protection for several years already. Unlike Mozilla's solution, which appears to react to bounce trackers only by deleting cookies and site data, Brave's solution attacks bounce tracking in several ways.
The browser uses a list of known bounce trackers, which are blocked. It also warns users of suspected bounce tracking, but only if "aggressively block trackers & ads" is enabled. The browser uses temporary storage, which Brave calls Unlinkable Bouncing, to make tracking less effective.
Other changes and fixes
- The Tab overview menu includes a new item to view tabs from other devices.
- Windows users benefit from GPU-accelerated Canvas2D. It should improve performance in Firefox for Windows.
- Picture-in-Picture mode's auto-open feature should work more reliably now. It is disabled by default and needs to be enabled in Firefox Labs.
Developer changes
Check the Developers link at the bottom of the page for all changes for developers.
- Support for Uint8Array methods to ease conversions between base64- and hex-encoded strings and byte arrays.
- The WorkerNavigator.permissions property is now supported.
- The EventSource interface to handle server-sent events is now supported in service workers.
- The ImageDecoder, ImageTrackList, and ImageTrack interfaces of the WebCodecs API are now supported.
Enterprise changes
- Firefox supports the MicrosoftEntraSSO policy fully in Firefox 133 and ESR 128.5.
- Preference policy supports security.pki.certificate_transparency.mode now.
- Preferences policy now supports preferences that begin with identity.fxaccounts.toolbar.
Security updates / fixes
The aggregate severity rating is high. Mozilla patched a total of 17 unique security issues or potential security issues in Firefox 133. No exploits in the wild mentioned by Mozilla.
Outlook
Firefox 133 was the last major release this year. Mozilla plans to release Firefox 134 on January 7, 2025. The same applies to Firefox 115.19 and 128.6, both ESR, which will also be released on the day.
Additional information / resources
- Firefox 133 release notes
- Firefox 133 for Developers
- Firefox 133 for Enterprise
- Firefox Security Advisories
- Firefox Release Schedule
Closing Words
Bounce Tracking protection is a good new feature. Mozilla is a bit late to the party, but better late than never. The feature is only enabled for users who enable strict protection, which limits its availability.
It is possible that Mozilla is going to collect data and feedback before it makes a decision to push this further.
Do you use Firefox? Did you upgrade your version to version 133 or one of the supported ESR versions? Anything that you like or do not like? Feel free to leave a comment down below.
this fixes tabs on bottom for FF133
https://github.com/MrOtherGuy/firefox-csshacks/blob/master/chrome/tabs_on_bottom_v2.css
Here’s one thing I don’t like in FF 133: if one has enabled letterboxing, the width of the left and right padding has increased enormously; it’s now almost twice the size of the top and bottom padding. A lot of screen real estate is thereby lost. If the letterboxing dimensions can be adjusted via an about:config setting, I haven’t found it yet. Anyhow, why the change, and why no mention in the release notes?
And another thing I don’t care for: the release notes also fail to mention how to disable the new Review Checker globally as opposed to on a per-page basis. I myself have no use for it.
Oh, and someone changed the “loading” icon in tabs from a filled-in to an outline hourglass — why? Again, the documentation is silent.
seriously? they brought back the pesky “private browsing” text back in tabs bar, taking the entire tab length?.. just why on Earth?.. :/ unless one is absolutely on the mission to annoy the heck out of their users, are we Mozilla..
how do we get rid of it this dumb text time around, did anyone figure out yet?
Yep, screws up you tabs again
I run both in 64-bit, standard + ESR.
Thanks Martin for the news.
I believe that you run Chrome as mostly all people here, we all know so close enough.
Bounce tracking a non-issue for uBlock Origin/AdGuard/etc users on any browser, as the tracking server is blocked anyway.
Ditto for anyone using DNS-level blocking (I recommend Mullvad’s, it’s free to the public).
The EasyPrivacy blocklist is enabled in uBO by default, and that takes care of this. Add AdGuard’s Tracking blocklist if you want more coverage (I do).
This is why Mozilla didn’t prioritize the issue.
Updated to 133, but I’ve noticed a lot of display issues lately with FF. I’ll go to some simple page with a chart or graph, and FF can’t/doesn’t render the page–blank space. I’ll try a Private Window to make sure it’s not an extension. Same result.
I’ll open Edge [which is really super fast compared to FF] and the page rendering is faultless. A bit disappointed. It happens on government sites, banking, stock, etc. I don’t know why.
If I continue having to switch browsers as often as I am having to, I may have to go to a different browser. That would be difficult after being in a long term relationship.
Yeah, I’m noticing more and more websites adding Google Chrome specific code that breaks under Mozilla Firefox. Blame web developers only testing websites under Google Chrome.
That’s good news to know. I’m glad this outdated piece of trash Firesux is being phased out. It’s a detriment to everything.
The sooner it dies, the better. I hope Mozilla goes bankrupt, out of business, Google stops supporting their pathetic existence and Blink becomes the standard.
Maybe soon another rendering engine will emerge, like Ladybird for example:
ladybird (dot) org
or Servo
I’m sure there was a third one that I can’t remember right now, but I’m sick and tired of tinfoil hat wearing nerds preaching how Firesux is “the savior of the free internet”, because it’s not, it’s ran by woke fascists.
“I’m sure there was a third one that I can’t remember right now, but I’m sick and tired of tinfoil hat wearing nerds preaching how Firesux is “the savior of the free internet”, because it’s not, it’s ran by woke fascists.”
“Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement,”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fascism
Hope this helps.
Wow. You really love Google.
That usually happens when a website uses Chrome specific code rather than web standard code, Internet explorer used to have this also, HTML code that was that wasn’t standard HTML but would work in IE but not other browsers. The more things change the more they stay the same.
Only ESR, just only ESR.
The Firefox 128.x ESR branch is by far the best browser that you can use for mostly the 90% of the common browsing. However, Chrome is the only one that works with all the sites, and I meant all.
Is this not incorporated in the likes of Adguard and uBlockOrigin too?
not honoring tabs on bottom userchrome.css. reverting back.
Not only that. My custom tabs on top now has the upper part cut off. I can still interact with tabs somewhat but i dont see tab names anymore. I will try and fix it in code…