However, the days when we could install some plugins and tweak a few settings to restore our privacy are, unfortunately, pretty much over. There’s only so much a plugin can do when it doesn’t have access to the core APIs of the rendering engine or the network stack.
As long as Google and Firefox are incentivized to make money by ads, user tracking and all of the rest, they won’t stop.
Long story short: the business model of the web has to change from one where the default state is to monetize the invasion of our privacy to one where we can control who gets to advertise to us and that our attention is valuable; we should be paid for it.
In short, that’s what the Brave browser is all about: https://brave.com/com465. By default, it blocks ads, tracking scripts, fingerprinting and 3rd party cookies in such a way that most pages don’t break. It even blocks those cryptocurrency mining scripts that some sites like Salon are using: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/14/salon-disable-ad-blocker-or-....
Brave allows you to pay content creators with a cryptocurrency called Basic Attention Token (BAT) based on the amount of time spent on their sites or as a percentage of a monthly contribution. BAT is based on the Ethereum token standard.
Later this year, Brave users will be able to opt-in to getting paid to watch high quality, relevant ads if they wish. How? By using zero knowledge proofs, Brave can show you these ads without leaking your personal information, based on your browsing history, that never leaves your machine.
Be aware: Brave is in beta; it’s not done yet. It’s based on Chromium but the rest of the tech is under heavy development. It has come a long way in the 3-4 months I’ve been using it regularly. And there are lots of good things in store, including Tor on a per-tab basis, which I’m looking forward to: https://github.com/brave/browser-laptop/wiki/Brave-Tor-Suppo...
Brave runs on macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android; even if Brendan Eich of Javascript and Mozilla fame weren’t involved, I’d feel this is the spiritual successor to Firefox: https://brave.com/com465.
I didn’t intend to sound like an ad——my apologies if it came off that way. No more 4am posts. ;-)
But in all seriousness, I stand by what I said—just installing plugins isn’t going to do it any longer. Blocking ads and tracking scripts and the like needs to built-in to the browser and that’s what Brave has done.
However, the days when we could install some plugins and tweak a few settings to restore our privacy are, unfortunately, pretty much over. There’s only so much a plugin can do when it doesn’t have access to the core APIs of the rendering engine or the network stack.
As long as Google and Firefox are incentivized to make money by ads, user tracking and all of the rest, they won’t stop.
Long story short: the business model of the web has to change from one where the default state is to monetize the invasion of our privacy to one where we can control who gets to advertise to us and that our attention is valuable; we should be paid for it.
In short, that’s what the Brave browser is all about: https://brave.com/com465. By default, it blocks ads, tracking scripts, fingerprinting and 3rd party cookies in such a way that most pages don’t break. It even blocks those cryptocurrency mining scripts that some sites like Salon are using: https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/14/salon-disable-ad-blocker-or-....
Brave allows you to pay content creators with a cryptocurrency called Basic Attention Token (BAT) based on the amount of time spent on their sites or as a percentage of a monthly contribution. BAT is based on the Ethereum token standard.
Later this year, Brave users will be able to opt-in to getting paid to watch high quality, relevant ads if they wish. How? By using zero knowledge proofs, Brave can show you these ads without leaking your personal information, based on your browsing history, that never leaves your machine.
Be aware: Brave is in beta; it’s not done yet. It’s based on Chromium but the rest of the tech is under heavy development. It has come a long way in the 3-4 months I’ve been using it regularly. And there are lots of good things in store, including Tor on a per-tab basis, which I’m looking forward to: https://github.com/brave/browser-laptop/wiki/Brave-Tor-Suppo...
Brave runs on macOS, Windows, Linux, iOS and Android; even if Brendan Eich of Javascript and Mozilla fame weren’t involved, I’d feel this is the spiritual successor to Firefox: https://brave.com/com465.