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why does my update.exe file contain personal information?

  • 4 replies
  • 60 have this problem
  • 5 views
  • Last reply by cor-el

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My friend could not connect to websites. Upon trying to assist with his problem, I found out he was using Internet Explorer, and not Firefox. Since he could not access website to download, I downloaded the firefox .exe file and sent it to him over the instant message.

Upon successful installation he found his browser contained my bookmarks and other personal information. How is this possible, or even acceptable?

My friend could not connect to websites. Upon trying to assist with his problem, I found out he was using Internet Explorer, and not Firefox. Since he could not access website to download, I downloaded the firefox .exe file and sent it to him over the instant message. Upon successful installation he found his browser contained my bookmarks and other personal information. How is this possible, or even acceptable?

All Replies (4)

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Which file(s) did you send?
Did you download a fresh copy of the Firefox installer?

If you send the Firefox set file from http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/all.html then that shouldn't happen. Only if you send your profile folder or used Firefox Sync then that can happen.

See How do I set up Sync on my computer?

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All i did was click on link to 'update firefox', it opened dialog for save or open, from which i saved to desktop. It was an 8+MB .exe file.

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Meaning, I did not use Firefox Sync, nor did i send a profile set. I would not know how to do either.

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That shouldn't cause personal data to appear, unless you have had installed Firefox in the past on that computer and Firefox has been uninstalled, but the personal data has not been removed. In that case the previously created profile will be found and used automatically.