On Sunday, December 10, 2017 at 11:25:51 PM UTC-8, Joe Smith wrote: > Hi there, > > I wanted to express my thoughts over Firefox. Firefox may be a great > browser especially with the new browser that has been released but there is > something that violates the term "Free (as in freedom, not beer) and Open > Source", is the fact that Firefox does not allow users to use the cloud > features such as sync etc if the user is below 13 years old. > > If a software claims to be a "free and open source software", why does > Firefox violate that principle by preventing users from doing something. A > free and open source software should NEVER restrict a user from doing > something and/or has features that can be used against user(s). > > Also may I suggest if a user wanted to use the cloud features, why doesn't > it use end-to-end encryption? Due to the massive surveillance program > conducted in countries such as USA and China, it is very important for > Firefox to start using end-to-end encryption. > > Kind regards > > Joe Smith
Dear Joe, Thank you for your post. We appreciate your taking the time to express your concerns about Firefox and its accessibility to everyone. We wanted to specifically address your concern about users under the age of 13 having access to certain Mozilla services. Mozilla, like other companies that provide online services where personal information may be shared, is bound by the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) (https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/media-resources/protecting-consumer-privacy/kids-privacy-coppa). This federal law requires companies like Mozilla to protect the privacy of younger users by, among other things, imposing restrictions on how they collect or use the personal information (including, for example, an email address) of any user under the age of 13. This is a federal law with which Mozilla must comply. So, while we strive to provide our products and services to as many users as possible, we must still comply with this important law intended to protect the privacy of younger users. In some cases, we do not allow users under the age of 13 to use certain products or services due to the potential compliance challenges and/or privacy risks posed by such use of certain products or services. Since protecting u ser privacy is a core component of Mozilla's mission, we will always err on the side of caution in order to ensure that a user's privacy is always maintained and never compromised. Please let us know if you have any additional questions or comments, and thank you again for your feedback. _______________________________________________ governance mailing list governance@lists.mozilla.org https://lists.mozilla.org/listinfo/governance
