Firefox, the well-known web browser launched its Total Cookie Protection initiative back in 2021, then eventually made it a default setting on Windows, Mac, and Linux. Now, the company is bringing that same level of privacy to Android users.
The feature essentially limits third-party cookies and apps from tracking you throughout the web. Instead of sites sharing cookies, they’ll all stay private. On Tuesday, Mozilla confirmed the feature is now available on its Firefox for Android browser. Until today, it was only available on desktops or the Firefox Focus browser.
According to the press release, Total Cookie Protection works by “maintaining a separate “cookie jar” for each website you visit. Any time a website or third-party content embedded in a website, deposits a cookie in your browser, Firefox Android confines that cookie to the cookie jar assigned to that website.”
For example, when you look up new hiking shoes on an outdoor retailer website, then see ads for the same shoes on another website like Facebook, that’s cookie sharing. The idea with TCP is that your cookies from each website stay in that specific site’s “jar,” and others can’t look in and find more details about you.
With Firefox for Android, your browsing habits and data will stay private for each site you visit instead of getting shared throughout the web. And now that Firefox’s cookie protection is available on mobile, users can sign up for a Firefox account and get total protection across all their devices.
It’s worth mentioning that other browsers, like Microsoft Edge, offer similar cookie protection, and Apple’s Safari mobile browser has several privacy features in place as well. While there’s only so much we can do to have more privacy online, every little bit helps, so give Firefox a try today.