firefox

Extensions

Not to be confused with plugins. Those are video/audio codecs, flash support, etc.

Extension Name
URL
Description
Why

Diigo

Bookmarks, annotations, organize research

Research

Auto reload Tab

Enable on a per-tab basis, each with custom time limit.

Ease of use

Evernote page clipper

PDFs are broken! But it does clip webpages and can strip out all the ads and sidenav and whatnot

Research

Cookie Manager

Easily search, review, modify, remove cookies. Container support. Handy for nuking pesky Google ReCaptcha cookie after you fail.

Privacy, Security

I Don't Care About Cookies

Auto-clicks those annoying "HEY WE USE COOKIES! READ ALL ABOUT IT!" popups caused by GDPR

Ease of use

Multi-Account Containers

Sep cookie jars so Amazon, FB, Google, etc can't follow you all around the internet. Also allows multiple accounts logged into same service (ex: gmail).

Privacy, Recon, Security

Cookie AutoDelete

Delete cookies for a site, and all its trackers, when you close a tab or navigate to new site/domain.

Privacy

DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials

Forces HTTPS, blocks most trackers.

Browser speed, Privacy, Security

LastPass Password Manager

Password storage, form fills, and more

Ease of use, Security

Skip Redirect

Skips any intermediate pages, like trackers, affiliates, etc, sending you straight to destination

Privacy, Security

uBlock Origin

Blocks ads, trackers, hosts, anything you can write a regex for. Light on memory and high in performance (vs AdBlock Plus)

Browser speed, Privacy, Security

Tab Session Manager

Backup all open windows and tabs automatically. Easily recover from crashes or windows you closed accidentally.

Ease of use

IP Address & Domain Information

Lookup info about the DNS and IP address of the site you're visiting, or any other

Recon

NoScript Security Suite

Protects you from multiple JS attack vectors like XSS and Clickjacking and many others

Security

Privacy Badger

Created by EFF to block page and link trackers; learns as you browse

Privacy

Link Gopher

Extracts all links on a page into a new HTML file you can save

Tool

Ad Blocker for YouTube

Removes ads in the page AND in videos

Browser speed

Library Extension

Looking at book details on Amazon, Goodreads, AbeBooks, etc will show you if book is available at 1+ local libraries as well as Archive.org. Can search Overdrive, Axis360, and regular library catalog & overlays this info on whatever book page you are viewing

Tool


DEBUG extensions!

about:addons

Click gear/cog icon and choose "Debug Add-ons"

Shortcut:

about:debugging#/runtime/this-firefox
  • Find the extension to troubleshoot/debug and click "Inspect"

    • This will open a special Developer Tools window, to the Network tab, so you can watch all interactions!

    • Example: about:devtools-toolbox?type=extension&id=support%40lastpass.com -- LastPass

    • Example: about:devtools-toolbox?type=extension&id=uBlock0%40raymondhill.net -- uBlockOrigin

    • All the usual Dev Tools functions are available

      • Use "Inspector" tab to see the source of whatever javascript is loaded by the extension

      • Use "Storage" tab to checkout the cookies, local storage, etc

      • Use "Console" for troubleshooting (also available within Network view if you have Split Console enabled)

  • Optional: Click the "Manifest URL" link to show the manifest.json file, which contains associated metadata (such as permissions used, associated keyboard shortcuts, etc)

Reference: https://developer.mozilla.org/en-US/docs/Tools/about:debugging

See / Set all extension keyboard shortcuts

about:addons

Click gear/cog icon and choose "Manage Extension Shortcuts"


Config settings to enable/customize

Resource: http://kb.mozillazine.org/About:config_entries

Get a list of all the config vars that you have customized

about:support

This page will show you related env vars, file locations (like your profile!), add-ons, crash reports, experimental features enable/disable list, and more

Reference: https://www.ghacks.net/2011/09/18/display-all-modified-firefox-preferences/

Expose phishing sites using non-ASCII characters in domain name

network.IDN_show_punycode = true

Check these resources to see examples of domains that are impossible to identify visually as being likely phishing sites:


Enable U2F hardware key authentication

NOTE: This is only needed in OLDER FIREFOX VERSIONS. Newer versions have this enabled by default. Double check your current value

security.webauth.u2f = true

Fix warnings about refusing to do automatic redirect

accessibility.blockautorefresh = false

Disable these "features" in Firefox that are invading your privacy

WARN: certain sites (ex: ProtonMail) may behave differently with privacy.resistFingerprinting disabled, ex: timestamps in GMT instead of your localtimezine

#! SET THESE TO FALSE, UNLESS SPECIFIED OTHERWISE
app.normandy.enabled
app.shield.optoutstudies.enabled = true
browser.library.activity-stream.enabled
browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.feeds.telemetry
browser.newtabpage.activity-stream.telemetry
browser.ping-centre.telemetry
browser.send_pings
browser.urlbar.autofill.enabled            NOTE: in older version of Firefox, this is named browser.urlbar.autocomplete.enabled
datareporting.policy.dataSubmissionEnabled
datareporting.healthreport.uploadEnabled 
geo.enabled
media.peerconnection.enabled
network.dns.disableIPv6 = true
network.dns.disablePrefetch = true
privacy.resistFingerprinting
toolkit.telemetry.bhrPing.enabled
toolkit.telemetry.enabled
toolkit.telemetry.firstShutdownPing.enabled
toolkit.telemetry.shutdownPingSender.enabled

Config via UI (Preferences)

  • General --> Startup --> UNcheck "Restore previous session", if using Tab Session Manager extension.

  • General --> Language & Appearance --> Fonts & Colors --> Advanced --> Minimum Font Size, set to 12pt or higher otherwise some text could be far too small on a high-res display.

  • General --> Browsing --> UNcheck "Recommend extensions as you browse"

  • Home --> New Windows & Tabs --> Set "Blank page" for both values

  • Home --> Firefox Home Content --> UNcheck everything

  • Search --> Default search engine --> UNcheck "Provide search suggestions"

  • Privacy & Security --> Content blocking --> UNcheck everything, if using any extensions that block content (makes for easier troubleshooting of broken pages)

  • Privacy & Security --> Logins & Passwords --> UNcheck "Ask to save logins and passwords for websites", if using a password manager extension

  • Privacy & Security --> Forms & Autofill --> UNcheck "Autofill addresses", if using an extension like LastPass to fill forms

  • Privacy & Security --> Address Bar --> UNcheck everything

  • Privacy & Security --> Firefox Data Collection & Use --> UNcheck everything

  • Privacy & Security --> Deceptive Content and Dangerous Software Protection --> UNcheck everything because this will just get in your way and invades your privacy

Specifically for application security testing: remove several browser protections to make your browser vulnerable

#! SET THESE TO FALSE, UNLESS SPECIFIED OTHERWISE
browser.safebrowsing.blockedURIs.enabled
browser.safebrowsing.downloads.enabled
browser.safebrowsing.downloads.remote.enabled
browser.safebrowsing.malware.enabled
browser.safebrowsing.phishing.enabled
browser.urlbar.filter.javascript
network.captive-portal-service.enabled
plugins.flashBlock.enabled
privacy.trackingprotection.annotate_channels
privacy.trackingprotection.pbmode.enabled
security.tls.version.min = 0
security.mixed_content.block_active_content
security.ssl.enable_ocsp_stapling
security.ssl.errorReporting.enabled

Resources:


Last updated