Business Security Information

Since Facebook privacy issues have been a hot topic in security, I thought it would be a good idea to take a look at some of the add-ons or plug-ins you can get for the Firefox web browser that will help  protect your privacy when on-line.  While a lot of businesses and users still use Internet Explorer, many people and businesses are switching to Firefox which has a ton of plug-ins available.  When I wrote this article, there were 221 add-ons or plug-ins available for Firefox that touched on some element of privacy.  If you search for security-related add-ons, the list gets even bigger.  While I cannot address all of them in this article, I want to highlight a few that can help protect your privacy.

Privacy Plug-Ins

1. NoScript – This is a very popular add-on that I actually use on Firefox for one of my Windows computers.  This add-on blocks the use of scripts such as Java, Flash, JavaScript and other similar types of scripts but is not full proof.  As I noted in a recent article on TabNapping, a new form of phishing attack, there is malicious code available that can bypass the NoScript plug-in.  No-script is useful in protecting against cross-site scripting and clickjacking attacks.  The user can temporarily or permanently allow certain scripts on a website, but the user must understand what should be allowed, or otherwise they will end up allowing everything just so they can use a particular website.  While this plug-in is helpful, it can also be a nuisance until you have basically trained it to do what you want.
2. Better Privacy – This helps protect against what is called Flash cookies which are a newer form of cookie that stores information about you and your online activities.  Flash cookies do not expire and can’t be deleted by the browser even if you delete recent history.  The Better Privacy plug-in allows you to manage and remove this new type of cookies.  Another similar type of plug-in is Privacy+ which manages Flash cookies.  Better Privacy is rated high and such a plug-in is necessary since so many websites I have seen recently are using the newer Flash Plug-ins.
3. Torbutton -  This plug-in allows you to configure Firefox to use Tor. You must have Tor installed on your computer to use this plug-in.  Tor allows you to use a community-run network that allows the user to have some anonymity when using the internet. Another similar plug-in is FoxTor.

Other plug-ins that I did not put on the short list, but I noted during my review are Safecache and Finjan Secure Browsing.  Take a look at these add-ons and plug-ins and let me know what you think.  If you already use one or more of these and want to share your insight, send me an email using my contact form or leave a comment.

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