Firefox tracks you with “privacy preserving” feature

Scope of the PPA Feature

• PPA (Private/Privacy-Preserving Attribution) measures whether users who saw an ad later visit or convert on the advertiser’s site. It focuses on attribution, not ad targeting.
• Data is described as aggregated (e.g., histograms of ad views/clicks) and processed via a separate DAP service; critics find the implementation complex and hard to fully assess.
• It can be disabled via a normal preferences checkbox (“Allow websites to perform privacy-preserving ad measurement”), and via about:config (dom.private-attribution.submission.enabled = false).
• Several comments note that PPA is implicitly off when Firefox telemetry is disabled, and that on Android it isn’t enabled because there’s no opt‑out UI yet.

Privacy, Tracking, and Ad Ecosystem

• Many commenters see any browser‑level ad measurement as tracking, regardless of technical mitigations; they want zero profiling, only contextual ads.
• Supporters argue that advertising is not going away and a privacy‑respecting measurement system could reduce reliance on today’s invasive tracking.
• Skeptics question why ad companies would ever drop existing tracking instead of using PPA in addition, and doubt advertisers’ incentives or track record.
• Some see ad‑blocking users as “free‑riders,” others reject that framing and would gladly accept fewer or more expensive sites in exchange for privacy.

Consent, UX, and “Sneaking In”

• Strong criticism that PPA was enabled by default and added without an explicit in‑browser prompt; some call that “sneaking it in.”
• Others counter that Mozilla did publicly document it, that early versions ran on an empty allow‑list, and that the setting is visible when telemetry is on.
• Multiple users report confusion about whether the feature is truly off when the checkbox is greyed out; behavior is seen as unclear and poorly communicated.
• EU commenters argue that opt‑out tracking likely conflicts with GDPR’s consent requirements; whether PPA’s data counts as “personal data” is debated but unresolved.

Mozilla’s Role, Funding, and Trust

• Many express disappointment that a historically “user‑side” browser is now building ad‑measurement infrastructure and has acquired an ad‑tech/analytics company.
• There is concern that reliance on search deals and ad revenue distorts Mozilla’s priorities, leading to features that serve advertisers over users.
• Some still view Mozilla as a public‑interest actor trying to improve a bad ecosystem; others say its leadership and structure now create conflicting incentives.

Alternatives and Browser Comparisons

• Some propose sticking with Firefox and toggling settings; others contemplate or have moved to LibreWolf, Brave, Safari, or emerging projects like Ladybird.
• Tradeoffs noted: Firefox vs Chrome on dev tools, UX quirks, extension support, performance, and site compatibility (e.g., Meet, Slack).
• Several users say incidents like PPA erode their trust and push them to reconsider Firefox despite wanting a non‑Chromium engine.