Security News > 2021 > August > Firefox adds enhanced cookie clearing, HTTPS by default in private browsing
This change builds on the inclusion of default blocks for cross-site tracking in private browsing, first introduced after Total Cookie Protection was released with Firefox 86 in February.
Enhanced Cookie Clearing is triggered automatically whenever you're clearing cookies and other site data after enabling Strict Tracking Protection.
"When you decide to tell Firefox to forget about a website, Firefox will automatically throw away all cookies, supercookies and other data stored in that website's cookie jar," Mozilla said.
Mozilla also announced today that, starting with Firefox 91, private browsing windows will automatically switch to secure HTTPS connections by default.
"Whenever you enter an insecure URL in Firefox's address bar, or you click on an insecure link on a web page, Firefox will now first try to establish a secure, encrypted HTTPS connection to the website," Mozilla explained.
Mozilla has added an HTTPS-Only Mode starting with Firefox 83 to secure web browsing by rewriting URLs to use HTTPS. Microsoft Edge can also be configured to switch secure HTTPS connections when connecting over HTTP by enabling an experimental Automatic HTTPS option available in the Canary and Developer preview channels.