Mozilla Update And Calls For Move Away From Insecure HTTP

One of the top three web browsers has issued an update today, opening up the beta of Mozilla 38.0. This is just another in an ongoing line up of adjustments, tweaks, and bug fixes that has kept FireFox in the forefront of both users” and developers’ minds.

What may be more interesting is the speculation that Mozilla may be getting away from HTTP and shifting to the more secure HTTPS. The more secure designation used to be relegated to online payment systems and stood as a hallmark of security for inputting personally identifiable and sensitive financial information on the web. Now, with more and more vocal support for the security protocol, key people have come forward and said the time has come to move away from HTTP.

One individual, security engineer Richard Barnes, told The Register UK that everyone from communications platforms to the government have been calling for a more secure web, and that the only way to do that is to move towards full-scale adoption of HTTPS. He’s even proposed a plan to phase out HTTP in order to move to a more secure web.

“Having an overall program for HTTP deprecation makes a clear statement to the web community that the time for plaintext is over — it tells the world that the new web uses HTTPS, so if you want to use new things, you need to provide security,” said Barnes.

Mozilla is not one to shy away from game-changing innovations. They’re the whole reason other browsers have moved towards tabs, for example. They’re latest update includes preferences tabs, suggested tiles, a reading list feature, and the ability to share windows in a conversation, among other changes. But let’s see how long it will be before the full-fledged security protocol demand is in place.

To download the latest Mozilla Firefox update, click HERE.