What Is Firefox’s SmartBlock Feature And How To Get It Now?

One of the things your Firefox browser can do is limit the amount of tracking on websites. However, trying to stop the tracking can sometimes slow the loading of websites or break webpages. To fix this, Mozilla has introduced the Firefox SmartBlock feature with the release of Firefox 87.

So, let’s explore what’s the purpose of the SmartBlock on Firefox 87 and how you can use it on your device.

What is SmartBlock on Firefox?

Smart Block is a new intelligent tracking mechanism for Firefox Private Browsing and Strict mode. To recall, the Strict Mode in the Firefox browser is meant to prevent various tracking activities from social media trackers, cross-site cookies, cryptominers, fingerprinters, etc.

These trackers on websites are generally used to monitor user activity and collect data, which in turn fuels the ad business of various tech giants.

Sometimes, the browser ends up breaking some webpages while attempting to block the trackers. This is where SmartBlock comes into the picture. It tries to prevent the breaking of websites while keeping the trackers behind hurdles.

It supplies local stand-ins for blocked third-party tracking scripts. In other words, it adds scripts that are similar to the original tracking scripts to reduce the amount of breakage on a webpage. Of course, these stand-in scripts won’t track your activity and they’re not associated with any third-party website.

How to enable SmartBlock on Firefox 87?

The Firefox tracking protection feature is preloaded into the browser and works in the background while you’re using Strict Mode or Private Browsing Mode. It automatically jumps when it detects a website tracker that’s present on the Disconnect Tracking Protection List.

To get the SmartBlock on your browser, you just have to update your Firefox browser to the latest version. You can download the latest Firefox 87 from the official website.