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How secure is Hello for Firefox? Details?

Flatpicker64
Flatpicker64
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Hi there.

I've recently switched to Windows 10 after eight years with OS X, so I'm back to being a Windows noob and I find myself plugging privacy holes left, right and center. In addition to configuring all the privacy options Microsoft has actually bothered to make available, I've also installed SpyBot Anti-Beacon so that I can cut off all telemetry and do a few other little things. I'm not using Cortana or any of the MS apps. I've dumped Gmail and Google Search in favor of Runbox and Startpage; I use a VPN and an anti-keylogger, in addition to other protections. I'm running some privacy-related extensions on Firefox as well.

Currently, the most gaping hole that remains is Skype, at least in terms of things I can actually alter myself.

So, I'm interested in knowing what security measures, if any, are actually built into Hello. I'm hoping for a bit more info than " you're using Firefox, so your chats are secure."

Sorry if this is too noobish, but coming back to Windows has been, thus far, a sort of "Brave New World" experience. Thanks in advance....

Hi there. I've recently switched to Windows 10 after eight years with OS X, so I'm back to being a Windows noob and I find myself plugging privacy holes left, right and center. In addition to configuring all the privacy options Microsoft has actually bothered to make available, I've also installed SpyBot Anti-Beacon so that I can cut off all telemetry and do a few other little things. I'm not using Cortana or any of the MS apps. I've dumped Gmail and Google Search in favor of Runbox and Startpage; I use a VPN and an anti-keylogger, in addition to other protections. I'm running some privacy-related extensions on Firefox as well. Currently, the most gaping hole that remains is Skype, at least in terms of things I can actually alter myself. So, I'm interested in knowing what security measures, if any, are actually built into Hello. I'm hoping for a bit more info than " you're using Firefox, so your chats are secure." Sorry if this is too noobish, but coming back to Windows has been, thus far, a sort of "Brave New World" experience. Thanks in advance....

All Replies (2)

philipp
philipp
  • Moderator
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hi, i'm not sure how much detail you want to get. hello is using webrtc - which means the data of the actual exchange of communication happens peer-to-peer and end-to-end encrypted between the two talking parties.

the call setup happens through a central server though. for more information about the firefox hello architecture see: https://wiki.mozilla.org/Loop/Architecture

Flatpicker64
Flatpicker64 Question owner
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philipp, thanks for your reply. That does help, somewhat.

Most of the architecture info is beyond me, I'm afraid. However, it's at least somewhat reassuring to know that the actual communication exchange is encrypted p2p and end-to-end, even if the communication does go through a central server.

Finding a viable alternative to Skype that offers a greater level of security without technical hassles or reliability problems has proven to be more difficult than I'd anticipated. Maybe Hello will be the answer. I'll keep poking around.

Thanks again...:)