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Why does Firefox allow a site to change my homepage without my permission?

  • 1 reply
  • 2 have this problem
  • 2 views
  • Last reply by user1929

psmithp2
psmithp2
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OK. I want to be nice. But if Firefox (or any other browser for that matter) allows (by default) websites to exploit an extension that changes a user's chosen homepage WITHOUT THE USER'S PERMISSION, why are we to be shocked when we find that Russian hackers (who are PROs at what they do) can spread their disinformation worldwide without the slightest resistance from tech companies such as Mozilla, which is even a non-profit? Imagine what they can get away with on the for-profit platforms! Come on guys, let's get real.

OK. I want to be nice. But if Firefox (or any other browser for that matter) allows (by default) websites to exploit an extension that changes a user's chosen homepage WITHOUT THE USER'S PERMISSION, why are we to be shocked when we find that Russian hackers (who are PROs at what they do) can spread their disinformation worldwide without the slightest resistance from tech companies such as Mozilla, which is even a non-profit? Imagine what they can get away with on the for-profit platforms! Come on guys, let's get real.

All Replies (1)

user1929
user1929
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Can you explain a bit more which website and which page you're referring to?

Websites you visit don't have the ability to change your homepage on their own; the only way your homepage can change is if you set a URL in the Firefox settings, or if you install an addon to change the homepage. If an addon changes the homepage, you should see a notification like this, allowing you to undo the change: https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/files/2018/05/home-page-doorhanger.png

If your homepage changed without you doing anything, you most likely have malware on your computer that is modifying Firefox's settings. In that case, you may want to install an antivirus program such as Malwarebytes and see if it detects anything.

Hope that helps!