X.com refuses to open with Firefox strict tracking protection enabled

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Issue: X.com blocked with Firefox strict tracking

  • Many report X/Twitter refusing to load when Firefox’s Enhanced Tracking Protection is set to “Strict”; some see the same on Safari and Firefox Focus.
  • Others say X loads fine with Strict on desktop Firefox, suggesting the problem is not universal and may depend on configuration or extensions.

Technical causes and Firefox changes

  • Strict mode blocks social media trackers, cross‑site cookies, tracking content, cryptominers, and known fingerprinters.
  • X still loads assets from twitter.com and twimg.com. With Strict lists, those can be treated as tracker domains; when blocked, site JS detects the failure and blames the browser.
  • Explanation from Firefox side: a bug in entity mapping for X/Twitter domains in Enhanced Tracking Protection was fixed ~2 months ago so that Twitter’s CDN isn’t blocked on x.com, while still blocked on third‑party sites.
  • Firefox now partitions or blocks third‑party cookies by default; entity config affects ETP’s tracker list behavior, not cookie partitioning.

Browser market power and Mozilla strategy

  • Several argue this shows the danger of Chrome/Safari dominance: sites can “afford” to break for Firefox without consequences.
  • Others blame Mozilla’s management and lost market share, saying Firefox is now hard to recommend if “privacy” modes break popular sites.
  • Some think Mozilla faces a no‑win: compromise on privacy and get slammed, or break sites and lose users.

Privacy vs usability

  • Privacy‑oriented users welcome anything that makes X harder to access; others say it prevents them from recommending Firefox to family because it “breaks the internet.”
  • Strict mode is opt‑in and explicitly warns it can break sites, but that nuance is easy to miss for non‑experts.

Debate over X/Twitter’s importance

  • One camp calls X a cesspool, login‑walled and not worth saving; many have already quit or use it much less.
  • Another calls it still the best live source for news, expert commentary, and “ground sources” (e.g., conflicts, major events), despite algorithmic and ownership issues.
  • Long subthread debates whether faster, unfiltered, user‑generated “news” is better than slower, curated journalism, and how to judge trustworthiness.

Alternatives and workarounds

  • Suggested tools: Nitter instances, user scripts redirecting twitter.com/x.com to Nitter, LeechBlock to break the habit, Firefox containers plus uBlock Origin, revanced‑modified Twitter APK, archive.today links, and XDeck on macOS.
  • Fediverse/Mastodon and other microblogging alternatives are discussed, but many note network effects keep artists, institutions, and experts on X.