The Next and Final Firefox 2.0 Update Rolls Back Phishing Protection
Mozilla just a couple of days ago updated Firefox to version 2.0.0.18, and used this occasion to advise users to upgrade to Firefox 3.0.4 (the latest Firefox build). At the time Mozilla said that it will issue just one more update, Firefox 2.0.0.19, but now we find out that one of the features that made Firefox so popular back in the day, phishing protection, will not be included in this final update. To my mind this is just one more reason to update.
Mike Beltzner explains: “The latest published update for Firefox 2, which is version 2.0.0.18, has the Phishing Protection feature enabled and working. However, the next planned update for Firefox 2, version 2.0.0.19, will be required to disable this feature.” Firefox 2.0.0.19 is expected to be made available to the general public by the middle of December, the current year.
The thing is Mozilla’s first attempt of getting users to leave Firefox behind and switch to version 3.0 was a big success – an estimated 50% of users made this decisive step. With Firefox 2.0.0.18, which was released yesterday, the 4th of December, Mozilla once again put forward the proposition to switch. If the measure will be just as successful, not many Firefox 2.0 users will be left out there.
If you insist on using Firefox 2.0 in the future, then you must know that Mozilla can no longer bother with this outdated piece of software and is instead shifting all its resources towards Firefox 3.0 (version 3.0.5 is expected to drop by the middle of the month and rumors have it to be something rather special) and Firefox 3.1 (which has already reached Beta 3 status). If you will continue to use Firefox 2.0 after Mozilla pulls support for the browser then you must realize that doing so poses a certain amount of risk. If you really don’t want to switch, then may I at least suggest switching over to another browser (there are plenty other to choose from, even though few can boast about being better than Firefox).
Mike Beltzner explains: “The latest published update for Firefox 2, which is version 2.0.0.18, has the Phishing Protection feature enabled and working. However, the next planned update for Firefox 2, version 2.0.0.19, will be required to disable this feature.” Firefox 2.0.0.19 is expected to be made available to the general public by the middle of December, the current year.
The thing is Mozilla’s first attempt of getting users to leave Firefox behind and switch to version 3.0 was a big success – an estimated 50% of users made this decisive step. With Firefox 2.0.0.18, which was released yesterday, the 4th of December, Mozilla once again put forward the proposition to switch. If the measure will be just as successful, not many Firefox 2.0 users will be left out there.
If you insist on using Firefox 2.0 in the future, then you must know that Mozilla can no longer bother with this outdated piece of software and is instead shifting all its resources towards Firefox 3.0 (version 3.0.5 is expected to drop by the middle of the month and rumors have it to be something rather special) and Firefox 3.1 (which has already reached Beta 3 status). If you will continue to use Firefox 2.0 after Mozilla pulls support for the browser then you must realize that doing so poses a certain amount of risk. If you really don’t want to switch, then may I at least suggest switching over to another browser (there are plenty other to choose from, even though few can boast about being better than Firefox).
