Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

General discussion

I run Firefox but I dont have any illusions

Apr 2, 2005 3:24PM PST

Im fully aware that this comment is going to draw howls of protest from the one eyed at all costs supporters of Mozilla?s Firefox browser. But to me it only goes to prove we as the consumers are fed a diet of what many developers want us to know or more to the point, want us to believe and if you have thought that was purely the domain tactic of Microsoft, think again.

I moved over to Firefox at a time when its market share was almost non existent, so before any of you want to paint me as a so called ?Microsoftie? try to keep some rational and mature objectiveness in your opinions, because I was using Firefox while most of you were saying "what the heck is Firefox".

My point is there is no such thing as a totally secure anything when it comes to the internet and Firefox is by no means the exception. To all those who crowed about IE heading into its 7th version soon to be released and good ole Firefox was still on the Mk I version until recently, obviously oblivious to the apparent ?fixed hundreds if not thousands of security vulnerabilities? Firefox has undergone that we werent told about.

This is a copy word for word of an article in PCworld.com regarding ?Firefox security holes?

Quote PCworld:-
"The public warning of the security vulnerabilities is evidence that the Mozilla Foundation's products give a false sense of security, says Thor Larholm, a senior security researcher with PivX Solutions in Newport Beach, California."

"The only reason Mozilla and Firefox have a good track record in security with a low number of security vulnerabilities is simply because they don't tell anyone about them," Larholm says via e-mail."

"The Mozilla Foundation has fixed hundreds if not thousands of security vulnerabilities over the last few years without notifying the world and without providing security patches, instead they have simply just told their users to upgrade," he says. "We have to remember that all software has security vulnerabilities, the only difference is in how we anticipate them and inform the world about their existence."

End quote.

My advice, get real because Firefox is not the panacea too many of its most ardent supporters claim it to be. To date its the best around and I will keep on using it until something better comes around and one day that will happen, regardless if its IE or some other developer. But for now if you believe the sun shines out of the Foxes you know where, seems the truth is there have been way too many eclipses that Mozilla have not told us about.

Discussion is locked

- Collapse -
Excellent
Apr 2, 2005 4:11PM PST

About time. For once we have someone who's had the guts to call it how it is without the emotional BS bias.

I use Firefox too but I get soooo damn tired of all the dummies who claim its so good God uses it. NOTHING is that perfect.

Damn good post Sidey.

- Collapse -
Why am I not surprised
Apr 2, 2005 8:20PM PST

Its hard not to be cynical these days and reading stuff like that only goes to reinforcing that attitude.
I think its shameful that Mozilla would be so willing to deceive everyone by claiming to have such an exemplary security record when in fact the truth was the complete opposite. So by the looks of it if there was indeed thousands of security vulnerabilities over years maybe the current version should be 10.2. A lie by omission is still a lie.
But like both of you guys I will also continue to use it as my primary browser, at least until something better comes along and if that is IE7 so be it.