Mozilla Firefox for Linux STIG SCAP Benchmark

When a website asks for a certificate for user authentication, Firefox must be configured to have the user choose which certificate to present. Websites within DoW require user authentication for access, which increases security for DoW information. Access will be denied to the user if certificate management is not configured.

Set this to false to disable checking for updated versions of the Extensions/Themes. Automatic updates from untrusted sites puts the enclave at risk of attack and may override security settings.

Firefox can be set to store passwords for sites visited by the user. These individual passwords are stored in a file and can be protected by a master password. Autofill of the password can then be enabled when the site is visited. This feature could also be used to autofill the certificate PIN, which could lead to compromise of DoW information.

JavaScript can make changes to the browser's appearance. This activity can help disguise an attack taking place in a minimized background window. Configure the browser setting to prevent scripts on visited websites from moving and resizing browser windows.

A browser extension is a program that has been installed into the browser to add functionality. Where a plug-in interacts only with a web page and usually a third-party external application (e.g., Flash, Adobe Reader), an extension interacts with the browser program itself. Extensions are not embedded in web pages and must be downloaded and installed in order to work. Extensions allow browsers to avoid restrictions that apply to web pages. For example, an extension can be written to combine data from multiple domains and present it when a certain page is accessed, which can be considered cross-site scripting. If a browser is configured to allow unrestricted use of extensions, plug-ins can be loaded and installed from malicious sources and used on the browser.

Information needed by an attacker to begin looking for possible vulnerabilities in a web browser includes any information about the web browser and plug-ins or modules being used. When debugging or trace information is enabled in a production web browser, information about the web browser, such as web browser type, version, patches installed, plug-ins and modules installed, type of code being used by the hosted application, and any back ends being used for data storage may be displayed. Because this information may be placed in logs and general messages during normal operation of the web browser, an attacker does not have to cause an error condition to gain this information.

Private browsing allows the user to browse the internet without recording their browsing history/activity. From a forensics perspective, this is unacceptable. Best practice requires that browser history is retained.

Autoplay allows the user to control whether videos can play automatically (without user consent) with audio content. The user must be able to select content that is run within the browser window.

The Content Blocking/Tracking Protection feature stops Firefox from loading content from malicious sites. The content might be a script or an image, for example. If a site is on one of the tracker lists that Firefox is set to use, the fingerprinting script (or other tracking script/image) will not be loaded from that site. Fingerprinting scripts collect information about browser and device configuration, such as operating system, screen resolution, and other settings. By compiling these pieces of data, fingerprinters create a unique profile that can be used to track the user around the web.

Tracking generally refers to content, cookies, or scripts that can collect browsing data across multiple sites. It is detrimental for applications to provide, or install by default, functionality exceeding requirements or mission objectives. These unnecessary capabilities or services are often overlooked and therefore may remain unsecured. They increase the risk to the platform by providing additional attack vectors. Applications are capable of providing a wide variety of functions and services. Some of the functions and services, provided by default, may not be necessary to support essential organizational operations (e.g., key missions, functions). Examples of nonessential capabilities include but are not limited to advertising software or browser plug-ins that are not related to requirements or provide a wide array of functionality not required for every mission but that cannot be disabled.

A weak cipher is defined as an encryption/decryption algorithm that uses a key of insufficient length. Using an insufficient length for a key in an encryption/decryption algorithm opens up the possibility (or probability) that the encryption scheme could be broken.

The New Tab page by default shows a list of built-in top sites, as well as the top sites the user has visited. It is detrimental for applications to provide, or install by default, functionality exceeding requirements or mission objectives. These unnecessary capabilities or services are often overlooked and therefore may remain unsecured. They increase the risk to the platform by providing additional attack vectors. Applications are capable of providing a wide variety of functions and services. Some of the functions and services, provided by default, may not be necessary to support essential organizational operations (e.g., key missions, functions). Examples of non-essential capabilities include but are not limited to advertising software or browser plug-ins that are not related to requirements or provide a wide array of functionality not required for every mission but that cannot be disabled. The new tab page must not actively show user activity.

Disable Firefox Accounts integration (Sync). It is detrimental for applications to provide, or install by default, functionality exceeding requirements or mission objectives. These unnecessary capabilities or services are often overlooked and therefore may remain unsecured. They increase the risk to the platform by providing additional attack vectors. Applications are capable of providing a wide variety of functions and services. Some of the functions and services, provided by default, may not be necessary to support essential organizational operations (e.g., key missions, functions). Examples of non-essential capabilities include but are not limited to advertising software or browser plug-ins that are not related to requirements or provide a wide array of functionality not required for every mission but that cannot be disabled.

Enable or disable Encrypted Media Extensions and optionally lock it. If "Enabled" is set to "false", Firefox does not download encrypted media extensions (such as Widevine) unless the user consents to installing them. If "Locked" is set to "true" and "Enabled" is set to "false", Firefox will not download encrypted media extensions (such as Widevine) or ask the user to install them. It is detrimental for applications to provide, or install by default, functionality exceeding requirements or mission objectives. These unnecessary capabilities or services are often overlooked and therefore may remain unsecured. They increase the risk to the platform by providing additional attack vectors. Applications are capable of providing a wide variety of functions and services. Some of the functions and services, provided by default, may not be necessary to support essential organizational operations (e.g., key missions, functions). Examples of non-essential capabilities include but are not limited to advertising software or browser plug-ins that are not related to requirements or provide a wide array of functionality not required for every mission but that cannot be disabled.

Studies try out different features and ideas before they are released to all Firefox users. Testing beta software is not in the DoW user's mission.