Key Takeaways
- Mozilla faced backlash after updating Firefox’s Terms of Use, which initially suggested the company could exploit user data under a broad license.
- Concerns grew when users noticed that Mozilla had removed a key statement from its Privacy Notice and FAQ, which previously assured them that Firefox did not sell personal data.
- In response, Mozilla admitted to poor wording, revised the terms, and clarified that it does not sell or claim ownership of user data.
Mozilla rolled out new Terms of Use for Firefox and updated its Privacy Notice last week. However, the changes were not received well by the users, to say the least. A strong backlash from netizens started on social media soon after the update, as the new T&Cs raised concerns about how the company would use customer data.
For starters, the Terms of Use initially stated that by uploading information on the platform, you can grant the company a ‘nonexclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to use that information.’ The phrase ‘use that information’ could mean that the company is imposing its own ownership on the data that users put there.
What looked like a mere issue of wrong wording started a wave of concern among users, and the case went further downhill when users realized that the updated Privacy Notice and FAQ section no longer stated that the company isn’t selling your data to advertisers.
Earlier, the privacy notice read, ‘The Firefox Browser is the only major browser backed by a not-for-profit that doesn’t sell your personal data to advertisers while helping you protect your personal information,’ but it was then updated to exclude ‘that doesn’t sell your personal data to advertisers.’
Additionally, the FAQ ‘Is Firefox Free?’ previously stated that it doesn’t sell personal data. However, the statement about it not selling personal data is gone. The rest of the answer remains the same in the updated version: ‘Yep! The Firefox browser is free. Super free, actually. No hidden costs or anything. You don’t pay anything to use it.’
These policy changes come shortly after the company underwent major management changes in December, with new executives stepping in.
Firefox’s Response to the Backlash
Ajit Varma, vice president of Firefox Product, accepted the mistake on their part.
We’ve been listening to some of our community’s concerns with parts of the TOU, specifically about licensing. Our intent was just to be as clear as possible about how we make Firefox work, but in doing so, we also created some confusion and concern – Mozilla in a blog post
Mozilla added context to the controversial statement in its updated Terms of Service clause. It clarified that the said license does not give any data ownership to Firefox but only permission to use the information for making the platform useful for searching and enabling basic functionalities of Firefox.
Ajit also addressed the users’ concerns by reassuring that the platform did not actually begin selling data anywhere. The only reason the terms were revised was because ‘some jurisdictions define ‘sell’ more broadly than most people would usually understand that word.’
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Vlad is Techreport’s in-house Executive Editor. With over a decade of experience in tech content, he’s passionate about computer hardware, an advocate of online privacy, and strongly believes in the open-source, scarce-money nature of cryptocurrency. Read more
When he’s not working, he’s traveling with his partner and their cat, learning Python, or reading good books. He never owned a PC he did not build. Read less
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