Firefox Focus is a free and open-source privacy-focused

mobile browser A mobile browser is a web browser designed for use on a mobile device such as a mobile phone or PDA. Mobile browsers are optimized to display Web content most effectively on small screens on portable devices. Mobile browser software must be smal ...

based on

Firefox Mozilla Firefox, or simply Firefox, is a free and open-source web browser developed by the Mozilla Foundation and its subsidiary, the Mozilla Corporation. It uses the Gecko rendering engine to display web pages, which implements current ...

from

Mozilla Mozilla (stylized as moz://a) is a free software community founded in 1998 by members of Netscape. The Mozilla community uses, develops, spreads and supports Mozilla products, thereby promoting exclusively free software and open standards, w ...

, available for Android and

iOS iOS (formerly iPhone OS) is a mobile operating system created and developed by Apple Inc. exclusively for its hardware. It is the operating system that powers many of the company's mobile devices, including the iPhone; the term also include ...

smartphones and tablets. Firefox Focus was initially a tracker-blocking application for mobile iOS devices, released in December 2015. It was developed into a minimalistic

web browser A web browser is application software for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's screen. Browsers are used o ...

shortly afterwards. However, it can still work solely as a tracking-blocker in the background of the Safari browser on

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus ''Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancestor, ' ...

devices. In June 2017, the first release for Android went public and was downloaded over one million times in the first month. As of January 2017, it is available in 27 languages. Since July 2018, Firefox Focus is preinstalled on the

BlackBerry Key2 The BlackBerry Key2 (stylized as BlackBerry KEY²) is a touchscreen-based Android smartphone with a portrait-oriented, fixed (not sliding) integrated hardware keyboard that is manufactured by TCL Corporation under the brand name of BlackBerry M ...

as part of the application ''Locker''. To bypass content-blocker restrictions from Apple, Firefox Focus uses the UIWebView

API An application programming interface (API) is a way for two or more computer programs to communicate with each other. It is a type of software interface, offering a service to other pieces of software. A document or standard that describes how ...

on iOS devices. On Android, it used the Blink engine in version 6.x and earlier, and it has used GeckoView since version 7.0.

Tracking protection

Firefox Focus is designed to block online trackers, including third-party advertising, with the end goal of both improving browsing speed and protecting users' privacy. Content blocking is achieved using the Disconnect block lists. The blocking of third-party trackers (except "other content trackers") is enabled by default. In the other Firefox browsers, users have to enable the tracking protection feature inside the browser preferences manually. Users can also view types of trackers on a page by tapping on the shield icon next to the URL bar. A panel will pop-up and shows what kind of trackers are on that page: ad trackers, analytics trackers, social trackers or content trackers. On December 20, 2018, Mozilla announced that Firefox Focus now checks all URLs against the

Google Safe Browsing Google Safe Browsing is a service from Google that warns users when they attempt to navigate to a dangerous website or download dangerous files. Safe Browsing also notifies webmasters when their websites are compromised by malicious actors and h ...

service to help prevent people from accessing fraudulent sites.

Functions

Firefox Focus can be set as content-blocker in the Safari web browser options. After activating the Safari integration in the Firefox Focus settings, it will disable trackers automatically in the background when browsing using the Safari browser. Pressing the trash icon while browsing will delete all session data and refer to the startscreen, that is displaying the customisable search bar. Tabs can be opened by long-pressing a URL on a website. Favourite links can be set on the homescreen of the device. Firefox Focus contains a option called

telemetry Telemetry is the in situ collection of measurements or other data at remote points and their automatic transmission to receiving equipment (telecommunication) for monitoring. The word is derived from the Greek roots ''tele'', "remote", an ...

. By activating it, users can allow Mozilla to collect and receive non personal-identifiable information to improve Firefox. Due to privacy concerns, telemetry of Firefox Klar is disabled by default. October 15, 2018, Mozilla announced that Firefox Focus is being updated with a new search feature and visual design. That means the browser will conceptually tell users about its features and options.

Minimum device requirements

Apple mobile devices

There are some minimum hardware requirements to remove tracking contents. The mechanism needs hardware that can handle the extra load of content blocking so it only works on 64-bit devices running

iOS 9 iOS 9 is the ninth major release of the iOS mobile operating system developed by Apple Inc., being the successor to iOS 8. It was announced at the company's Worldwide Developers Conference on June 8, 2015, and was released on September 16, ...

and above including: * iPhone 5s and newer * iPad Air and newer * iPad mini 2 and newer * iPod touch from the 6th generation , iOS 11.4 or above is required to download Firefox Focus on the

App Store An App Store (or app marketplace) is a type of digital distribution platform for computer software called applications, often in a mobile context. Apps provide a specific set of functions which, by definition, do not include the running of the c ...

Android mobile devices

Android version 5.0 or higher is required to use the latest version of Firefox Focus.

Firefox Klar

"Firefox Klar" is the modified version with telemetry disabled released for

German-speaking German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is also a ...

countries in order to avoid the ambiguity with the German news magazine ''

FOCUS Focus, or its plural form foci may refer to: Arts * Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in South Australia Film *''Focus'', a 1962 TV film starring James Whitmore * ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based ...

''.

Gallery

File:EN-Find-in-Page-2-600x1000.jpg, Find in Page File:Options EN-600x1067.jpg, Block cookies File:Firefox Focus settings.png, Settings

References

External links

*
Firefox Focus for iOS
on the

Firefox Focus for Android
on

Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store and formerly the Android Market, is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certified devices running on the Android operating sy ...

Firefox Klar for Android
on

F-Droid F-Droid is an app store and software repository for Android, serving a similar function to the Google Play store. The main repository, hosted by the project, contains only free and open source apps. Applications can be browsed, downloaded and ...

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