Firefox Will Soon Block Third-Party Cookies

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Firefox Will Soon Block Third-Party Cookies

Posted by timothy on Saturday February 23, 2013 @09:30AM from the accept-only-genuine-chocolate-chip dept.

An anonymous reader writes "Stanford researcher Jonathan Mayer has contributed a Firefox patch that will block third-party cookies by default. It's now on track to land in version 22. Kudos to Mozilla for protecting their users and being so open to community submissions. The initial response from the online advertising industry is unsurprisingly hostile and blustering, calling the move 'a nuclear first strike.'"

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Online Advertising Response by FSWKU · 2013-02-23 09:33 · Score: 5, Insightful

The initial response from the online advertising industry is unsurprisingly hostile and blustering, calling the move 'a nuclear first strike.'
Translation: Boo-fucking-hoo. Online marketing scum have been abusing users for years, making this a retaliatory measure. Let them cry all they want, because nobody gives a shit.

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"So after all this, you make my case for me. To end this stalemate, you must die..."
1. Re:Online Advertising Response by JaredOfEuropa · 2013-02-23 10:00 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Killing 3rd party cookies doesn't mean the end of advertising, not even the end of targetted ads like Google adwords. Neither rely on 3rd party cookies. It will mean the end of tracking users across sites, collecting browsing history that they have no business collecting (and which most users are not even aware of).
  
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  If construction was anything like programming, an incorrectly fitted lock would bring down the entire building...
2. Re:Online Advertising Response by PopeRatzo · 2013-02-23 11:03 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Sorry Charlie, but advertising and monetization drives the "free content" you see on the web.
  
  And blocking third party cookies does nothing to stop advertising and monetization.
  It just puts it on a more honest footing.
  By the way, there was free content on the web before there was advertising. Maybe you're not old enough to remember.
  
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  You are welcome on my lawn.
3. Re:Online Advertising Response by TheGratefulNet · 2013-02-23 12:51 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  I have not watched network/premium tv for quite a while, now (3 yrs, maybe longer).
  recently, I was staying in some hotels and wanted to see what 'was on'. realize, I have not seen the state of 'current tv' for years.
  the moving ads at the bottom and all the rest that you and parent posters have said really turned me off. enough that I will still not consider paying for satellite, cable or anything else 'pay tv'.
  really gross and hard for me to accept. I'm over 50 and I do remember when tv was watchable. (yes, goml, etc). but if you have not been desensitized by it gradually, the jump in annoyance factor is too great. I think they have lost me, forever now, as a customer.
  tv was always an ad medium, but now its just too absurd!
  I can fully, fully understand why the youth culture is all about capturing shows, editing the BS out of them and reuploading them. I fully understand that and I can't blame anyone for wanting to get around the crap.
  sorry, industry; you pissed off your customers and many have rebelled and won't ever come back.
  
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  "It is now safe to switch off your computer."
Why wait for v22? by Jimbookis · 2013-02-23 09:34 · Score: 5, Insightful

Stick it in v19.0.1. Bring it on!
A nuclear first strike... by John+Hasler · 2013-02-23 09:37 · Score: 5, Insightful

...would be incorporating AdBlockPlus and NoScript and enabling both by default.
Do it.

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Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
Re:Nuclear Response by Blue+Stone · 2013-02-23 11:01 · Score: 5, Insightful

The ad industry launched several nuclear 'first-strike' slavos against browsers: pop-ups, pop-unders, interstitials, flashing seizure-inducing Gif ads, javascript pop-overs, flash audio adverts, scroll-overs, surreptitious super cookies, etc, etc, etc.
Fuck them. In the ass.
No lube.

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Corporation, n. An ingenious device for obtaining individual profit without individual responsibility. - Ambrose Bierce
Re:Not that simple (Re:Online Advertising Response by Anonymous Coward · 2013-02-23 11:08 · Score: 5, Insightful

Above post should be moderated to +10.
Sounds like the big guys are looking to squeeze out any smaller competition. Not a surprise, since Mozilla is pretty much Google's bitch.
Although I'd prefer that tracking would simply be made illegal, I tell you what: I'm less concerned about letting the big guys doing it because they are more likely to have some basic security in place and controls to at least respect the TOS. I'm more concerned about small guys...
Re:Not that simple (Re:Online Advertising Response by eric_herm · 2013-02-23 11:57 · Score: 5, Insightful

I also think this could block lots of cookies used for SSO. Some people do actually like to be able to log using their twitter or github credentials.
- is tired of hyperbole by SampleFish · 2013-02-23 12:53 · Score: 5, Insightful

Fuck these assholes until they bleed.
"Nuclear first strike"? It's a counter-measure. I'm so sick of people using war rhetoric inappropriately. There is no "nuclear cookie blocker" and there is no "war on Christmas". There are no bombs going off and nobody is dying in the streets. This statement makes me want to bomb the corporate office of an ad agency so they have something to complain about*. Might stop the spam for a week too.
*This user does not support the actual use of explosives to make a point. Bombs are not educational tools and should be used responsibly. We now return to your regularly scheduled flame war.