# Does partial resistFingerprinting make any sense?

**URL:** https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/does-partial-resistfingerprinting-make-any-sense/18827
**Category:** Questions
**Tags:** browsers
**Created:** 2024-06-11T14:21:17Z
**Posts:** 5

## Post 1 by @Regime6045 — 2024-06-11T14:21:17Z

I’ve been playing around with resistFingerprinting in Firefox.

I started out with `privacy.resistFingerprinting = yes`.

Then, I noticed this would break the dark mode in websites. So I disabled resistFingerprinting again and instead added `privacy.fingerprintingProtection.overrides = +AllTargets,-CSSPrefersColorScheme`.

> **Explanation**
>
> This basically means: RFP disabled [default], FPP enabled [default], FPP to use all RFP protections, except for the CSSPrefersColorScheme one

Then, I noticed that in my web calendar and other places, it would always show me everything in UTC time. So I added `-JSDateTimeUTC` as well.

Then, I noticed that Google Maps (the only Google product I’m still using) wouldn’t allow me to enable the 3D/Globe View. So I added `-WebGLRenderCapability`.

Then, I noticed that in browser-based OnlyOffice I couldn’t use keyboard shortcuts anymore. So I added `-KeyboardEvents`.

So now I have `privacy.fingerprintingProtection.overrides = +AllTargets,-CSSPrefersColorScheme,-JSDateTimeUTC,-WebGLRenderCapability,-KeyboardEvents`

So far, I haven’t had any issues. Web apps seem to work fine, nothing breaks (as long as I sometimes give canvas access), and I feel like I’ve got a good balance between the compatibility of vanilla Firefox and the privacy of Librewolf/MullvadBrowser/Arkenfox.

Is there any point in having such a Frankenstein configuration? On the one hand, I’m still benefitting for the majority of the [resistFingerprinting protections](https://searchfox.org/mozilla-central/source/toolkit/components/resistfingerprinting/RFPTargets.inc). On the other hand, I’m not really blending in with the rest of the RFP crowd anymore. How sophisticated are the fingerprinting scripts used in practice? Is a little bit of RFP better than none? Or is it all or nothing?

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## Post 2 by @jonah — 2024-06-11T14:32:13Z

Well, realistically all you need to do to avoid most third-party trackers is use uBlock Origin, and to avoid most first-party trackers use a VPN (in both cases “most” = the _vast_ majority). Anything beyond that is bonus points already.

> [@Regime6045](#):
>
> How sophisticated are the fingerprinting scripts used in practice?

[Not very.](https://github.com/arkenfox/user.js/wiki/3.3-Overrides-%5BTo-RFP-or-Not%5D#-arkenfox)

> [@Regime6045](#):
>
> Is a little bit of RFP better than none?

Yes.

> [@Regime6045](#):
>
> Or is it all or nothing?

If the question is whether you _can_ be fingerprinted then it is all or nothing: You can be fingerprinted.

If the question is whether you _will be_ fingerprinted, then it is not all or nothing, and you probably won’t be.

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## Post 3 by @sha123 — 2024-06-11T14:32:35Z

> Does partial resistFingerprinting make any sense?

Plain and simple: No.

RFP is an all-or-nothing approach. If you don’t want to do that, use FPP, also as-is.

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## Post 4 by @jonah — 2024-06-11T14:58:37Z

> [@sha123](#):
>
> If you don’t want to do that, use FPP,

Note that they are doing so.

* * *

> [@sha123](#):
>
> also as-is.

> [@Regime6045](#):
>
> So now I have `privacy.fingerprintingProtection.overrides = +AllTargets,-CSSPrefersColorScheme,-JSDateTimeUTC,-WebGLRenderCapability,-KeyboardEvents`

Given that most of your overrides are site-specific, you could use `privacy.fingerprintingProtection.granularOverrides` instead though. The syntax (JSON) is:

```
[{ "firstPartyDomain": "example.com" , "overrides": "+Example1" }, { "firstPartyDomain": "example.org" , "overrides": "+Example2" }]
```

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## Post 5 by @Regime6045 — 2024-06-11T15:32:57Z

> [@jonah](#):
>
> Given that most of your overrides are site-specific, you could use `privacy.fingerprintingProtection.granularOverrides` instead though. The syntax (JSON) is:

That’s an excellent idea, thank you