For this part specifically, if argue you’re trusting the distro packaging anyway because they provide pretty much everything you install anyway. Whereas f-droid is a separate entity from whatever operating system you’ve installed.
The rest of your comment, about potential lag in updates and unsupported builds in case of support tickets, is spot on, though!
I felt better off with it using it when it was hardened with an easy to use script that’s well trusted. If Arkenfox dies I’ll give Mullvad a shot as my main driver, but I try to split out my internet use between two browsers, so I dunno if it would be appropriate to put all my eggs into the Mullvad Browser basket.
Even without the controversies related to Mullvad, it shouldn’t be used as a main browser as it defeats its purpose to combat fingerprinting.
Use Librewolf or similar instead.
I hope the project finds a new maintainer. That being said, it’s not like the current version cannot be used for the foreseeable future. It’s just a user settings file and it is not security-critical in any way. I’d be surprised, in fact, if some of the tweaks are still relevant or necessary.
In any case, fighting browser fingerprinting is very much an uphill battle. Even with JS completely turned off, a far more drastic measure than anything Arkenfox does, the combination of IP + user agent is probably enough to reliably identify a large proportion of unique users.
What do you mean by “it defeats its purpose to combat fingerprinting.” ? I was under the impression that Mullvad Browser + Mullvad VPN is great for anti-fingerprinting because of PG’s recommendation?
I think what they’re saying is that the anti-fingerprinting capabilities that Mullvad browser has may make it too inconvenient to use as main browser. This is usually said about Tor.
I guess the confusion stems from labeling a browser as a “main browser”. What you consider as your main browser may not be what someone else considers as their main browser. Eg, if all you do is surf the web, I think Mullvad is just fine. If you want to stay logged into websites, though, use another browser, as @win11.shading291 said.
Ah that makes sense, thanks. For what it’s worth, I use it as my main browser and don’t feel inconvenienced by it.
I suppose this makes me glad I pivoted my model in how I use browsers. Chromium variants (Trivalent/Vanadium) for logged in usage, and Mullvad Browser for anonymous non-Tor browsing.
I am pretty sure that what @win11.shading291 meant with „don‘t use MullvadBrowser as main browser because it defeats the purpose to combat fingerprinting“ is that if you use MB while still logging into websites the anti-fingerprinting is not worth anything because when logging into websites / being logged into websites, the website can uniquely indentify you anyway. Therefore, it defeats the only purpose of anti-fingerprinting.
Plus yes it isn‘t as convenient as non TOR Browser / non MullvadBrowser too.
Yes, this makes more sense. I would clarify, though, that logging into websites only defeat the purpose of anti-fingerprinting if the accounts you are logging into are already associated with your real identity (for example, banking).
If you are logging into, say, this forum, where real identities are optional, you can still benefit from Mullvad’s anti-fingerprinting.
Yes exactly that, but also most settings you change on your browser will make you more fingerprintable. If you add any extension like a password manager for instance, that makes you more fingerprintrable. Mullvad is designed to be used out of the box without changing anything.
In other words, it’s not designed to be used as a main browser.
TL;DR, if you change mostly any setting or add any additional extensions, you shouldn’t use it.
Hi, if I may ask. What purposes would Mullvad browser be good for?
So why then does Mullvad itself recommend using password managers?
Use in a desktop app.
They recommend password managers. Not password manager extensions. They also address this in their FAQ as well.
It potentially makes you more fingerprintable. It really depends how the extension works, if it’s modifying the page and detectable
Browsing anonymously.
I main Librewolf + home country VPN (with limited extensions) + multi-account countainers.
I use Mullvad + other connection VPN (where you think there would be enough users to be in a big pool) to browse with fingerprinting protection.
In case this project stops being updated… Are there any detailed technical guides on how to manually harden firefox?
The Mozilla documentation:
As a fellow Arkenfox enthusiast, I have been considering Celenity Phoenix as a possible replacement: