Compare Revisions

login encryption

Learn how Firefox securely saves your passwords.

[[Access Mozilla Services with Firefox Account|Firefox Accounts]] and [[How do I set up Sync on my computer?|Firefox Sync]] allow you to save and sync your logins as well as let you know if any of your passwords are vulnerable. They both also protect your passwords with [https://wikipedia.org/wiki/Encryption encryption] so that even Mozilla can’t see them. Meanwhile, Firefox checks your saved websites against a database of breached websites to let you know if your logins are vulnerable. For more information, see [[Firefox Password Manager - Alerts for breached websites]]. __TOC__ =Firefox Sync= If you have Firefox Accounts and enabled the Sync functionality, your [[Sync logins in Firefox desktop|sync login data]] (usernames, passwords, hostnames) is fully encrypted once it's created and/or modified. However, Mozilla cannot decrypt your usernames and passwords when they are stored on the sync server. {note}If you forget your Firefox Accounts email and password, Mozilla will not be able to recover your sync data as we do not have access to it.{/note} =Firefox Desktop= Firefox Desktop encrypts your passwords locally in your [[Profiles - Where Firefox stores your bookmarks, passwords and other user data|user profile directory]] using a ''logins.json'' file. Firefox Desktop uses simple cryptography to obscure your passwords. Mozilla doesn’t have the ability to see passwords, but Firefox Desktop does decrypt the password locally so that it can enter them into form fields. For the best security, use a [[Use a Primary Password to protect stored logins and passwords|Primary Password]] to encrypt your passwords. To learn more about how Firefox saves and stores your logins and passwords, see these articles: *[[Using a Primary Password with Sync]] *[[Where are my logins stored?]] *[[Password Manager - Remember, delete and edit logins and passwords in Firefox]] =Technical details (for advanced users)= For technical details about Firefox Sync and Firefox Accounts security, see: * [https://hacks.mozilla.org/2018/11/firefox-sync-privacy/ Private by Design: How we built Firefox Sync] at Mozilla Hacks * [https://blog.mozilla.org/security/2017/07/18/web-service-audits-firefox-accounts/ A Security Audit of Firefox Accounts] (Mozilla Security blog post, July 18, 2017)