A new patch developed by Mozilla for its Firefox web browser will block third-party advertising cookies by default, which will greatly hinder the ability of third-parties to track Firefox users’ online activities. Prior versions of the Firefox browser enabled users to manually turn-off cookies, but the new patch automatically blocks cookies. A “cookie” is a piece of data that a website may store on an end-user’s hard drive containing non-personally identifiable information about that end-user and which enables the website operators to track that end-user’s web browsing behavior.
The Firefox patch does allow cookies from websites that users visit, but blocks cookies from third-party websites that have not been visited by users. Firefox would not be the first web browser to create such a default setting, as Apple’s Safari browser already blocks third-party cookies.
Regardless of which browser an end-user is utilizing, state and federal law requires that website and mobile app operators disclose to visitors, via a prominently posted privacy policy, whether the website or mobile app, as applicable, uses cookies and/or other web-based tags to track user activity.
If you are interested in learning more about this topic or need to review your privacy disclosures related to the use of cookies and other web-based tags, please contact us at your convenience.
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