my passwords are lost
firefox crashed and now I have to recover my passwords on various websites. I am worried the security has been compromised. How to I find out if this is the case?
All Replies (5)
In the event that the passwords information is lost, you should record all information in a separate text file somewhere else on your hard drive, or written down. You can easily copy and paste if you need to do so. If you are concerned about someone else looking at that file, you can compress it using a password.
What about the rest of the user settings? Bookmarks, history . . . .
Look on your desktop. Do you see a folder called; Old Firefox?
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/recovering-important-data-from-an-old-profile
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/back-and-restore-information-firefox-profiles
https://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/how-run-firefox-when-profile-missing-inaccessible
You would need an older (backup) copy of logins.json and key3.db to restore the passwords.
Do you have an "Old Firefox Data" folder on the desktop in case the Refresh feature in Firefox has been used and a new profile has been created?
You can check if you have orphaned profiles that aren't registered in profiles.ini and that do not show in the Firefox Profile Manager. You can check that by opening the current profile folder and go up one level.
If you have found an orphaned profile then you may want to recover some personal data.
You can use the button on the "Help -> Troubleshooting Information" (about:support) page to go to the current Firefox profile folder or use the about:profiles page.
- Help -> Troubleshooting Information -> Profile Directory:
Windows: Show Folder; Linux: Open Directory; Mac: Show in Finder - http://kb.mozillazine.org/Profile_folder_-_Firefox
- http://kb.mozillazine.org/Transferring_data_to_a_new_profile_-_Firefox
I don't need to recover the passwords. My concern is that this happened at all and why. Was there a security breach?
This shouldn't happen, but unless you confirm if this is about passwords in the Password Manager or something else like cookies then it is not possible to guess what happened in your case.
Did you lose the passwords as seen in the Password Manager or are you referring to special remember me cookie to make a website remember you?
- Options/Preferences -> Security: Logins: "Saved Logins" -> "Show Passwords"
The former shouldn't happen unless something went wrong with your Firefox profile folder. The latter is about losing cookies and you would have to login again.
These can't get your data back, but will help in the future.
These add-ons can be a great help by backing up and restoring Firefox
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/febe/ FEBE (Firefox Environment Backup Extension)
FEBE allows you to quickly and easily backup your Firefox extensions, history, passwords, and more. In fact, it goes beyond just backing up -- It will actually rebuild your saved files individually into installable .xpi files. It will also make backups of files that you choose.
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/opie/ OPIE
Import/Export extension preferences