The censorship circumvention extension has disappeared from the Russian version of Mozilla Addons

Add-ons Add-on Support
#23

Think about censorship as a tool.
This tool may be used for good or for bad.
E.g., it may be used to hinder piracy, provide privacy, protect citizens from being fooled by some fake propaganda. However this tool may also be abused by bad actors, e.g., power usurpators like the Russian government to present the Kremlin in a good view and gain more supporters.

Some people think that the tool of censorship brings more evil than good and so it shouldn’t be used by any actor at all. In your case, both Russian and German state censorships shouldn’t exist and consumers of propaganda should use critical thinking, doubt the information they receive and so protect themselves on their own.

Should Mozilla ban Russian state censorship but allow German? Should they give this tool to good actors/states and deprive of it bad actors/states? It depends on what role the company wants to take, its principles and values, the balance between users freedoms and compliance to the laws of acknowledged and democratically (kind of) elected governments. I hope Mozilla will clarify their stance shortly.

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#25

So you really think that closing off the ability to get information from alternative sources with an iron curtain is going to be the solution? Fascinating :slight_smile:

Two devs (@ilyaigpetrov and @zombbo) of major censorship bypass extensions are simply trying to get answers to their questions to understand the situation. None of them are blaming Mozilla for anything now.

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#26

Hello @zombbo,

As noted in the article someone linked to in this thread previously, we temporarily restricted access following a request from Roskomnadzor. Notification to the developers of the impacted extensions was not completed in a timely manner and we are reviewing our processes to ensure this does not occur in the future.

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#27

So Mozilla is now supporting censorship? That’s a shame. I’ve used Firefox from Netscape Navigator days and I always recommended FF to all people.

While Mozilla did many questionable things in the past years I stood for this browser, because well, no one is perfect and alternatives are much worse.

If they will not remove geoblocking quickly, then I’m leaving. Not because I personally need this addons, but because Mozilla doesn’t follow their own principles.

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#28

True. It was so disappointing. @Laura_Chambers Does Mozilla support Internet censorship?

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#29

Time to delete Firefox, huh?

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#30

Do you seriously think that there are democratic elections in Russia and that Russian citizens can choose their own presidents? You are very naive if you think so. And you are very naive if you think that those who live in Russia support (for the most part) what is happening now. It is also very strange that you are trying to drag politics into this. There is a problem of censorship in the country (instead of Russia there could be any other authoritarian country, be it Belarus, Uzbekistan or Iran). If tomorrow they restrict access to these extensions in these countries, will you also ask citizens to sit on their side of the fence?

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#32

I am deeply sorry to hear that. I appreciate your response.

#33

What a shame…
It seems I have to start searching for a new browser.

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#34

Why you don’t understand? This is a huge reputational blow, even if these extensions are unblocked after a while…

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#35
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#36

https://www.osnews.com/story/139928/under-pressure-from-russian-censors-mozilla-removes-anti-censorship-extensions/

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#37

This is really troubling. Mozilla should stand up for its values. If it gives in now, many other countries will start pressuring Mozilla to censor as well.

The inability to sideload unsigned extensions makes Mozilla a gatekeeper, which inevitably makes Mozilla a censor. Apple put itself in this position and routinely censors apps in China. Mozilla should have expected to be in this position and never should have made itself a gatekeeper. It’s worth rethinking the signing requirement.

1 Like
#38

Hi Folks - I wanted to provide the latest update here as well as thank you for your patience while we worked through this issue.

Thank you.
Ed

In alignment with our commitment to an open and accessible internet, Mozilla will reinstate previously restricted listings in Russia. Our initial decision to temporarily restrict these listings was made while we considered the regulatory environment in Russia and the potential risk to our community and staff.

As outlined in our Manifesto, Mozilla’s core principles emphasize the importance of an internet that is a global public resource, open and accessible to all. Users should be free to customize and enhance their online experience through add-ons without undue restrictions.

By reinstating these add-ons, we reaffirm our dedication to:

  • Openness: Promoting a free and open internet where users can shape their online experience.

  • Accessibility: Ensuring that the internet remains a public resource accessible to everyone, regardless of geographical location.

We remain committed to supporting our users in Russia and worldwide and will continue to advocate for an open and accessible internet for all.

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#39

Thank you. We appriciate that!

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#40

I appreciate your demeanor throughout this thread, even when you were receiving news you didn’t necessarily agree with. Thanks for that.

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#42

HUGE thanks! :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

#44

They wanting to have some time to check their options. Roskmondzor’s letter usually have rather harsh time interval to comply or else.
(btw, it doesn’t mean they 100% block in case of noncompliance, there some exceptions - Wikipedia or Youtube have many materials which Roskomnadzor doesn’t like and they still work, likely due to their too big influence).

#45

Thank you for doing right thing.

p.s.
I’m from Russia, I do use Firefox but don’t use mentioned extensions (I use more complex solutions)

#46

A few considerations, with my 2 cents:

  • it was very intelligent and prudent to take time to decide on the request, and a good practice to temporarily stop the extensions before taking action (imagine if the request was for malware included)
  • I appreciated the choice to reopen the extensions because it goes well with the principles of Mozilla Foundation, that’s much different from Google or Apple, just to say 2 companies…
  • this, again, put this browser in the top10 of the best things in the Internet today
  • it’s a bit OT, but… to answer to @hfa and other trolls: there is a sort of censorship in western countries, we must admit; the BIG difference is that if we don’t agree and watch RT or say something pro-Russia on socials or in the street WE WILL NOT be jailed for 15 years… this is why you can publicly criticize a EU country, something that your Russian friends cannot do on their own government
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