Mozilla has announced an upcoming new security tool for users of its popular Firefox web browser. Firefox Monitor will allow users to check to see if their accounts are included in known data breaches and what types of data was exposed in each breach.
The security tool is the result of a partnership between Mozilla and HaveIBeenPwned.com (HIBP), a site set up by security researcher Troy Hunt that includes a database of email addresses that are known to have been compromised in data breaches.
The partnership with HIBP allows the Firefox browser to check a user’s email address against the HIBP database via anonymized data sharing. The new tool builds on previous Firefox integration with HIBP, which informs users if a website they’re visiting had data exposed in a previous data breach.
It is important that we not violate our users’ privacy expectations with respect to the handling of their email address. As such, we’ve worked closely with HIBP and Cloudflare to create a method of anonymized data sharing for Firefox Monitor, which never sends your full email address to a third party, outside of Mozilla. You can read the full details of the solution here.
Mozilla plans on beginning trials of the new feature over the coming weeks, and expects expects to invite approximately 250,000 users (mainly in the US) to try out the feature.
Firefox is available for macOS and other platforms, free from the Mozilla website.