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Firefox geolocation returns fixed incorrect US location despite correct UK IP

  • Akukho zimpendulo
  • 0 zinale nkinga
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  • Open

I am investigating a persistent geolocation issue affecting Firefox, where the browser geolocation API returns a precise but incorrect location in the United States.

Actual location: United Kingdom (precise location not shared for privacy)

Incorrect location returned: 39.264542, -76.765924 (Catonsville, Maryland, USA) Reported accuracy: approximately 185 meters around this incorrect point

This issue has been extensively tested and does not appear to be related to IP geolocation, system configuration, or local network setup.

Summary of findings: Reproduced in Firefox and across other browsers:

Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Google Chrome Brave

Reproduced across multiple systems: Windows 11 Windows Server 2025

Reproduced across multiple public IPs: Static /29 allocation BT dynamic IP (completely different address) → Same incorrect Maryland location returned in all cases

Wi-Fi vs Ethernet: Wi-Fi (with SSID/location services) returns correct UK location Ethernet consistently returns Maryland → Indicates fallback to provider-based geolocation rather than IP-based resolution

All standard IP geolocation sources are correct (UK): ipinfo.io ifconfig.co DB-IP / BrowserLeaks IP lookup RIPE allocation Reverse DNS (BT Openworld)

Command-line and non-browser tests confirm correct UK location: curl / PowerShell requests return UK consistently No evidence of US routing, proxying, or DNS leakage

Critical observation: Firefox geolocation (navigator.geolocation) returns:

Exact same coordinates every time Same result across all browsers and machines Consistent high-precision accuracy (~185 meters) around the incorrect Maryland location

Control comparison: Pale Moon (more IP-based geolocation path) returns correct UK location

Conclusion: This does not appear to be a traditional IP geolocation issue.

All IP-based systems resolve correctly to the UK. The incorrect result only occurs when using browser geolocation APIs.

Given: The consistency across browsers and systems The identical coordinates returned each time The high-precision accuracy around the incorrect location

This strongly suggests a provider-side geolocation dataset issue.

Since Firefox uses Mozilla Location Services, I would like to confirm whether:

This result is coming from Mozilla Location Services directly, or from an upstream/shared dataset Whether this type of persistent incorrect high-confidence location can be corrected or escalated within Mozilla’s geolocation system

Thank you.

I am investigating a persistent geolocation issue affecting Firefox, where the browser geolocation API returns a precise but incorrect location in the United States. '''Actual location:''' United Kingdom (precise location not shared for privacy) '''Incorrect location returned:''' 39.264542, -76.765924 (Catonsville, Maryland, USA) Reported accuracy: approximately 185 meters around this incorrect point This issue has been extensively tested and does not appear to be related to IP geolocation, system configuration, or local network setup. '''Summary of findings:''' Reproduced in Firefox and across other browsers: Mozilla Firefox Microsoft Edge Google Chrome Brave '''Reproduced across multiple systems:''' Windows 11 Windows Server 2025 '''Reproduced across multiple public IPs:''' Static /29 allocation BT dynamic IP (completely different address) → Same incorrect Maryland location returned in all cases '''Wi-Fi vs Ethernet:''' Wi-Fi (with SSID/location services) returns correct UK location Ethernet consistently returns Maryland → Indicates fallback to provider-based geolocation rather than IP-based resolution '''All standard IP geolocation sources are correct (UK):''' ipinfo.io ifconfig.co DB-IP / BrowserLeaks IP lookup RIPE allocation Reverse DNS (BT Openworld) '''Command-line and non-browser tests confirm correct UK location:''' curl / PowerShell requests return UK consistently No evidence of US routing, proxying, or DNS leakage '''Critical observation:''' Firefox geolocation (navigator.geolocation) returns: '''Exact same coordinates every time''' Same result across all browsers and machines Consistent high-precision accuracy (~185 meters) around the incorrect Maryland location '''Control comparison:''' Pale Moon (more IP-based geolocation path) returns correct UK location '''Conclusion:''' This does not appear to be a traditional IP geolocation issue. All IP-based systems resolve correctly to the UK. The incorrect result only occurs when using browser geolocation APIs. '''Given:''' The consistency across browsers and systems The identical coordinates returned each time The high-precision accuracy around the incorrect location This strongly suggests a provider-side geolocation dataset issue. Since Firefox uses Mozilla Location Services, I would like to confirm whether: This result is coming from Mozilla Location Services directly, or from an upstream/shared dataset Whether this type of persistent incorrect high-confidence location can be corrected or escalated within Mozilla’s geolocation system Thank you.

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