Confusion about Firefox: Mozilla changes terms of use

Firefox's FAQs now state that the personal data of Firefox users is protected. Previously, it explicitly stated that it "is not sold to advertisers". Since last week, another section no longer states that Firefox is free and that you don't even have to pay with your data, but only that the browser has "no hidden costs" and that you don't have to pay anything.

Some people are concerned that the browser provider is now selling their data. A statement from Mozilla reads: "Mozilla does not sell data about you (in the way that most people understand the sale of data) and we do not buy data about you." The wording has been changed for legal reasons. The term "sell" encompasses more than people normally associate with it.

Firefox and the amended terms of use

It is well known that what is written in a FAQ does not correspond to the terms of use or privacy policy. There has also been a change there – in the short term. Mozilla has already changed it again. It said: "When you upload or submit information to Firefox, you hereby grant us a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to use that information to help you navigate, experience, and interact with online content as you indicate through your use of Firefox."

Mozilla responded to the accusations on the same day by describing the passage as a standard phrase. It was subsequently added that the paragraph did not grant Mozilla any ownership rights to the data. The statement also reads: "We need a license to enable some of the basic features of Firefox. Without it, for example, we would not be able to use the information entered into Firefox."

It is indeed possible to use a browser with minimal data transfer – The best known is probably the Tor browser, which does not even pass on the IP address. However, there are also several browsers that are based on the Firefox codebase and are even more data protection-friendly. Waterfox, for example, does not collect any telemetry data and allows unsigned extensions.

However, Firefox is not concerned with data that relates to user behavior and is sold for advertising purposes, but with data that is necessary to ensure that all websites visited function correctly.

Mozilla emphasizes that the change in the terms of use does not give Mozilla the right to use the data for anything other than what is described in the privacy policy. It states: "Mozilla collects certain data, such as technical and preferences data, to provide the core functionality of the Firefox browser and related services, to distinguish your device from others, to remember and honor your preferences, and to provide you with standard features such as New Tab, PDF editing, password manager, and full cookie protection."

(emw)