Waterfox: Alternative to Firefox and LibreWolf?

compass

I'm very surprised this hasn't been suggested yet - so here I am to be the first to post it.

The alternative to Firefox - Waterfox, a privacy-focused open-source Firefox fork.

TOSDR have already covered Waterfox, and have given it a grade A (which in perspective, is very hard to get):

If I write anymore I'd be re-iterating what's on the website. Feel free to post any opinions and experiences with Waterfox, though.

PrivacyTools

Hi compass, thanks for your suggestion. By any chance, have you tried Firefox Translate yet?

I just saw on the Waterfox website that it will be included, and I'm wondering if it works properly with Waterfox already. Some users have reported on Twitter and in this forum that it doesn't work with a regular Firefox installation.

https://forum.awesomealternatives.org/d/381-is-firefox-translations-by-mozilla-working-for-you

I'm also wondering why Waterfox is not included here: https://privacytests.org/

Could it be because the features / idea is basically identical with LibreWolf?

Reddit users are reporting: "I wouldn't consider Waterfox anymore since they were sold to a marketing company." https://www.reddit.com/r/LibreWolf/comments/rzspcd/how_does_librewolf_compare_to_waterfox/

I didn't dig deeper yet, but what do you think?

BurungHantu

compass

PrivacyTools This then begs the question - why is Startpage not an issue, but Waterfox is?

PrivacyTools Just had a test with it. Works to a certain extent, where portions of pages will be translated, but the extension is still not fully functional with Waterfox.

PrivacyTools

Regarding the marketing company that has bought Waterfox, it's under the same company as Startpage:

MonkeyBrain

What is the conclusion though. Because I do use Libre wolf. Is it still safe to use?

PrivacyTools

MonkeyBrain My two replies were regarding to Waterfox.

anoms

from what I know it sends a lot more data back on start up than libre wolf i belive that libre wolf is better than water fox.

SANAULLAH

Guys, there is no alternative to Firefox! Keep using and relying on Mozilla services; our contributions can at least match those of tech behemoths on a higher level.
Avoid falling into the traps big tech companies have set up by publishing anonymous misleading services like Libre Wolf, that Fox, this Fox...!

Fox

SANAULLAH I completely disagree. There are many and varied alternatives better than Firefox. Brave, LibreWolf, Tor, Waterfox also in a way (although we should study it before if we include it or not), even a well configured Vivaldi can be a good alternative to a default Firefox or with extensions. Let's be objective, and let's not fall into fanaticism, please.

Fox

SANAULLAH Do not misunderstand my message, what I mean is that if there are alternatives to Firefox as much or more valid to protect your privacy. A well configured Firefox protects you much more than the vast majority of browsers, that's true, but for example LibreWolf is basically a well configured Firefox by default, and I'm not even talking about Tor. On the other hand, the Chromium project also has its advantages, and is not a project that we should underestimate to protect your privacy, and Brave is the proof of it, in addition to other alternatives such as ungoogled chromium or Iridium (much less recommended than Brave, but they exist and are worth taking into account).
On the other hand, you talk about going against the big tech companies, but I remind you that Mozilla is another big tech company, and they also seek to profit even at the expense of their users (remember the deals that Mozilla has with Alphabet, Google). At the end of the day, we seek to analyze and recommend products, services and software by their own characteristics, or by other qualities that may affect them, and not so much by whether or not they belong to a big tech. I hope I have solved some doubt, or clarified something with this. Best regards.

Fox

Fox
PS1: This website can help us understand which browsers we recommend and why.
PS2: Clarifications, I have named Ungoogled Chromium, Vivaldi and Iridium by way of explanation. In practice, we only recommend using the browsers listed on the official website (PrivacyTools.io). What I mean is that "If you had to choose between Chrome, Edge and Vivaldi, we would recommend using Vivaldi, but if among the options to choose were included Brave or Firefox, we would recommend the latter before Vivaldi, because they have greater potential to protect your privacy than Vivaldi, even if the latter has greater potential to protect privacy than Edge and Chrome", I don't know if I make myself clear.... I know: for us Chrome and Edge are Charmander, Vivaldi would be Charizard, and Brave, LibreWolf, Tor and Firefox (the latter only if properly configured) would be Reshiram. I think that's understood XD.

SANAULLAH

Fox Okay, buddy. Let's dive deeper.
I have a question for you. What are your goals while using privacy-respecting services from minor corporations that directly or indirectly imitate other successful initiatives, such as LibreFox, or when switching from Telegram to Signal because it is not end-to-end encrypted and using a Facebook account simultaneously?

By responding to you in this forum, I can get a sense of what your intentions are with installing LibreFox, which may be to minimise the use of fingerprints, tracking, and data leakage or even completely eliminate technical interaction, backlogged crash reports, and so on. Everyone enjoys doing this, so it's not a negative thing. Humans naturally operate in ways that prioritise their own interests, but there needs to be a balance.
Just so you know, I don't share your goals and aspirations. I am certain that using LibreFox will be beneficial for me, but I am also conscious of the fact that by choosing "Allow Firefox to install and run studies" I will be able to think more broadly and contribute to a non-profit organisation that values privacy by default. I don't really care if Crashlytics monitors my movements, but I do care if Google is aware of my IP address!

The exponential growth of big tech corporations that take advantage of their reputation for control is one of the reasons anti-monopoly laws are in existence. Using a LibreFox won't be able to stop them from compromising our privacy because those who took part in the early days of the internet are now enormously powerful and their influence is growing by the second. If we truly value privacy, we must cooperate by supporting organisations that support thousands of small privacy-driven businesses, invest in studies into how tech companies are influencing our thoughts through algorithmic programming and exploiting artificial intelligence, as well as organisations that fund and support these non-profit organisations. I personally enjoy using duckduckgo.com services, giving $5 a year to eff.org, taking part in rally.mozilla.org research programs, and eagerly anticipating their surveys.

Some people may understand this fast, while others will relish their overall security.
I hope my message was clear, and I wish you well 🙂