New Update Waterfox web browser & updates

[silversurfer]

6.5.3​

Fixes​

• Fixed various theming issues.
• Updated base configurations, removing unused values.
• Latest security fixes1.

Known Issues​

• The Restart button is missing on Linux and Windows.
• Some users may experience that their session may not be able to be restored (your sessions are still in your profile, so your data is still available). May be related to Bug 1901899.

---

Footnotes​

1. MFSA 2025-02 ↩

6.5.3

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.4

Fixes​

• Latest security fixes1.

Known Issues​

• The Restart button is missing on Linux and Windows.

---

Footnotes​

1. MFSA 2025-09 ↩

6.5.4

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.5

Fixes​

• Latest security fixes MFSA 2025-13
• The Restart button is present again on Linux and Windows.
• (NULL) is no longer present next to the Status Bar text on Linux and Windows.

6.5.5

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.6

Fixes​

• Updated JPEG-XL library to fix two security issues.
• We temporarily disabled WASM sandboxed libraries for v6.5.5 due to build bustage in our release build pipeline. This has now been reverted due to fixing the underyling issues.
• Latest security fixes MFSA 2025-13

6.5.6

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.7​

Fixes​

• Latest security fixes MFSA 2025-29
• Vertical Tabs improvements:
  • Better favicon handling and loading performance
  • Better handling with the bookmarks sidebar and library windows
  • Fixed issues with popup menus and tab previews
  • Improved stability for private browsing windows
  • Enhanced drag-and-drop behavior for moving tabs

6.5.7

www.waterfox.net

 

[simmerskool]

Waterfox 6.5.7​

noticed this > settings | privacy I switched Browser Privacy from Standard to Strict (& tweaked a few other settings) then closed and reopened and Privacy is switched back to Standard? Is this a "feature," an anomaly, a known bug, unknown bug or unique to me running win10_VM... (does this need its own thread?)

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.8​

Latest security fixes 1

1. MFSA 2025-37 & MFSA 2025-43

6.5.8 - Security update and media crash hotfix - Waterfox Release

Security-focused 6.5.8 release with the latest upstream fixes, a short-lived media crash issue resolved in 6.5.9, and continued promotion of the Waterfox Private Search open beta.

www.waterfox.net

 

[simmerskool]

Waterfox 6.5.8​

6.5.8 - Security update and media crash hotfix - Waterfox Release

Security-focused 6.5.8 release with the latest upstream fixes, a short-lived media crash issue resolved in 6.5.9, and continued promotion of the Waterfox Private Search open beta.

www.waterfox.net

fwiw I just opened Waterfox and checked and it says I'm current with 6.5.7 now 1535 utc

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.10​

Fixes​

• Latest security fixes 1.
• Startpage is now temporarily the default search 2.

---

1. MFSA 2025-55 ↩
2. Bing has terminated all of its search syndication and API services, and will likely be removed completely in a future version. As it is a struggle to monetise Waterfox Private Search with an ad-supported free version, it’s unlikely it will ever be default and instead will be a subscription-only based service. ↩

6.5.10 - Security fixes and Startpage default search - Waterfox Release

Patch release that includes the latest security fixes and temporarily switches the default search engine to Startpage while Bing syndication is being retired.

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.5.11

Latest security fixes MFSA 2025-58

6.5.11

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.0​

Waterfox 6.6.0 is a major release that upgrades the underlying platform from 128.0 to 140.0 and delivers first‑party vertical tabs, private tabs in the same window, tab grouping, new‑tab wallpapers, expanded media and hardware acceleration, and sensible privacy defaults. This final release rolls up all changes from the beta series and includes stability and polish fixes.

Highlights​

• Vertical Tabs with optional Tree view
• Private Tab button next to New Tab
• Automatic Tab Grouping (configurable)
• New Tab wallpapers, optional search bar and weather
• Firefox profile import (bookmarks, history, passwords, cookies, form data)
• WebGPU enabled; VP8/VP9 hardware acceleration for WebRTC
• JPEG XL support; improved MathML rendering
• Privacy‑friendly defaults (less promos, fewer speculative/remote fetches)
• Numerous UI refinements and performance improvements

New​

Tabs & Sidebar​

• Vertical Tabs: First‑party vertical tabstrip integrated into the sidebar, with customization options.
• Tree‑Style Vertical Tabs: Optional tree layout for vertical tabs.
  • How to enable: Show sidebar → Customize sidebar → Sidebar settings → Vertical tabs → Tree vertical tabs.
• Private Tab Button: Quick “New Private Tab” button next to the New Tab button.
• Automatic Tab Grouping: New tabs can automatically open within your existing tab groups for a more organized session.
  • Config (about:config):
    • browser.tabs.autoGroupNewTabs: true/false (default: true)
    • browser.tabs.autoGroupNewTabs.placement: "after" (default), "first", or "last"
    • browser.tabs.autoGroupNewTabs.delayEnabled: true/false (default: false)
    • browser.tabs.autoGroupNewTabs.delayMs: milliseconds (default: 1000)
    • browser.tabs.autoGroupNewTabs.cancelShortcut: defaults to Alt+ (macOS) / Ctrl+ (Windows/Linux)

New Tab Page​

• Wallpapers: Use curated solid colors, custom colors, or your own image.
• Optional search bar toggle.
• Optional weather widget (opt‑in; see Mozilla’s documentation for data usage details).

Migration​

• Firefox Profile Import: Import bookmarks, history, cookies, form history, and passwords directly from a Firefox profile.
  • Note: After importing passwords, restart Waterfox to apply changes.

Web Platform & APIs​

• WebGPU: Enabled, including Web Workers support.
• Web Share API: Native OS sharing integration.
• Media: VP8/VP9 hardware‑accelerated decoding for WebRTC video calls.
• MathML: Updated rendering.
• Experimental/Behind‑the‑Pref features (availability varies):
  • CSS Masonry layout
  • Prioritized Task Scheduling API
  • DOM: CloseWatcher, H.265 in WebCodecs, Screen Orientation lock, improved Shadow DOM selection, Web Notifications actions
  • CSS: shape() function, font-variant-emoji, @scope rule, scroll‑driven animations
  • SVG: SVG 2 getBBox, improved stroke bounds rendering

Improvements​

UI & Customization​

• Menubar styling and tab bar positioning refinements.
• Default Proton colors aligned with system accent colors.
• Compact density by default for tighter UI.
• Status bar restored with hover link readout and widget area.
• Layout flexibility: move tab bar (top above/below, or bottom) and bookmarks bar (top/bottom).
• Rich built‑in toggles for tab shapes, spacing, separators, icons, and more.
• Platform polish:
  • Windows: Mica/backdrop effects where supported.
  • macOS: Titlebar/sidebar blending for a more native feel.
• Default bookmarks updated with Waterfox‑related links.
• Smooth scrolling: alternative smooth scroll physics implementation.

Network & Performance​

• POST request efficiency: idempotency‑key headers enabled.
• Cookies: CHIPS and schemeful SameSite support.
• Network optimizations:
  • Disabled requests to 0.0.0.0
  • HTTP/3 ECN marking and IP family retry support
  • HTTP retry with half‑open connections
• Windows: On‑demand loading of keyboard layouts for improved efficiency.
• Rendering: Dynamic reflow roots enabled.

Privacy & Defaults​

• Reduced promotions: Disabled mobile‑related promos and various third‑party promotional surfaces by default.
• New Tab Page: Removed search shortcuts from Top Sites.
• Extension security: Block picker opening from hidden extension pages.
• Pointer Events: Restricted to secure contexts per spec.
• macOS: Ctrl‑click no longer defaults to right‑click.
• Speculative connections: Disabled when typing in the address bar.
• Remote config: Disabled fetching of remote settings lists; bundled offline copies used instead.
• A/B testing: Disabled and related code not packaged.

Fixes​

• Private Tabs: No longer retain history.
• Web Page Translations: Model downloads no longer blocked.
• Passwords: Autofill works reliably again.
• Screenshot tool: Restored in the context menu.
• Duplicate Tabs: Opening a duplicate no longer produces two.
• Classic extensions: Fixed compatibility so classic style extensions (e.g., TabMixPlus) can be installed again.
• Theming: Various small polish fixes.
• Stability: Resolved crashes on certain systems related to optimization flags.

Release 6.6.0 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

Waterfox 6.6.0 is a major release that upgrades the underlying platform from 128.0 to 140.0 and delivers first‑party vertical tabs, private tabs in the same window, tab grouping, new‑tab wallpapers...

github.com

6.6.0

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.1​

Removed code that prevented WebGPU from running on release channel builds

Release 6.6.1 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

:::tip[Just Updated?] If you just got automatically updated to this version of Waterfox, you will have missed the full list of changes introduced in Waterfox 6.6.0 → Read them here ::: :::note Unfo...

github.com

6.6.1 - WebGPU enablement and private tab improvements - Waterfox Release

Patch release that enables WebGPU on stable builds, fixes several Linux and Windows UI issues, and adds new privacy and control options for Private Tabs.

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.2

Release 6.6.2 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

The official Waterfox 💧 source code repository. Contribute to BrowserWorks/waterfox development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

6.6.2

www.waterfox.net

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.3

This update focuses on polish and fixes, with special attention to a long‑standing theming issue and several quality‑of‑life improvements for tab grouping.

Fixes and improvements​

Theming​

• Resolved a long‑standing issue where Waterfox's styles could “leak” into the web page area. Customisations now apply only to the browser interface, not to website content.
• Improved handling of theme colouring to prevent contrast issues.
• Active tab context line has been enabled by default, after many requests.

Tab groups​

• Smoother startup: automatic grouping now waits until your previous session has fully restored. It only applies to tabs you open after everything is loaded.
• Your existing tab order and groups are preserved at startup; nothing gets rearranged automatically.
• If you collapse your only tab group, you’ll still have a single ungrouped tab available. That tab won’t be pulled back into a group unless you choose to do so.

Compatibility​

• Updated emoji support to Emoji 16.0.1 on platforms that don’t provide these characters natively, improving how newer emojis appear.

6.6.3

www.waterfox.net

Release 6.6.3 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

This update focuses on polish and fixes, with special attention to a long‑standing theming issue and several quality‑of‑life improvements for tab grouping. Fixes and improvements Theming Resolved ...

github.com

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.4

This update restores correct app identification on Linux, fixes search provider issues, adjusts tab grouping defaults, and makes Ecosia the default search engine again while also including Waterfox Private Search.

6.6.4

www.waterfox.net

Release 6.6.4 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

The official Waterfox 💧 source code repository. Contribute to BrowserWorks/waterfox development by creating an account on GitHub.

github.com

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.5

This update adds Ukrainian as a UI language, a new quality-of-life feature and the latest security fixes.

New​

• Added Ukrainian locale
• Added the ability to copy current tab url to your clipboard with: Thanks @evilurge
  • macOS: Command + Shift + U
  • Windows/Linux: Ctrl + Shift + U

Fixed​

• All security advisories part of MFSA2025-89.

6.6.5

www.waterfox.net

Release 6.6.5 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

This update adds Ukrainian as a UI language, a new quality-of-life feature and the latest security fixes. New Added Ukrainian locale (Thanks @evilUrge) Added the ability to copy current tab url to...

github.com

 

[simmerskool]

fwiw I tried claude AI sonnet 4.5 the other day and it said that using firefox was more secure than using waterfox. I have been using both depending on what I was doing...

 

[silversurfer]

Waterfox 6.6.5.1

Change​

• Due to popular demand, Startpage is now the default search again. Sorry for the flip-flopping! You can still use Ecosia and support both Waterfox and tree planting.

Fixed​

• Tree Vertical Tabs would continue running in the background even when disabled in Settings. This is now fixed, so turning off Tree Vertical Tabs actually unloads the extension and can reduce memory usage.
• Tree Vertical Tabs options were incorrectly shown at the bottom of Preferences/Settings → General on first load. They now only appear under the dedicated “Tree Vertical Tabs” category.

6.6.5.1 - Startpage default search and Tree Vertical Tabs fix - Waterfox Release

Small 6.6.5.1 patch that switches the default search back to Startpage and fixes Tree Vertical Tabs behaviour and options visibility.

www.waterfox.net

Release 6.6.5.1 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

A quick change to default search and an important bug fix. Changes ℹ️ Note If you’ve already modified your default search, this change will not affect you. Due to popular demand, Startpage is no...

github.com

 

[simmerskool]

Waterfox 6.6.5.1

6.6.5.1 - Startpage default search and Tree Vertical Tabs fix - Waterfox Release

Small 6.6.5.1 patch that switches the default search back to Startpage and fixes Tree Vertical Tabs behaviour and options visibility.

www.waterfox.net

Release 6.6.5.1 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

A quick change to default search and an important bug fix. Changes ℹ️ Note If you’ve already modified your default search, this change will not affect you. Due to popular demand, Startpage is no...

github.com

fwiw I opened waterfox 6.6.5 at 2010z 25nov and did not report the update 6.6.5.1 was available?

 

[lokamoka820]

Waterfox 6.6.6
Dec 9, 2025

Various fixes​

• Private Tab will now use your default selected private search.
  • The context menu search while in private tab will also open a new private tab instead of normal tab.
• Fixed an issue where the Bookmarks widget in the status bar would not open submenus, so now all bookmark folders now work correctly when the button is pinned to the status bar.
• Fixed a minor issue where the “Status Bar” entry in the Toolbars menu would output internal errors to the browser console.
• Cookie banner handling no longer logs spurious errors when browsing localhost, IP addresses, or other internal hosts; in those cases Waterfox now silently falls back to the global setting.
• Security fixes in MFSA-2025-94

Region & Geo Detection​

What was happening​

Firefox’s Region subsystem could still make a one‑time request to Mozilla’s privacy‑preserving geo‑IP service to infer your country on first run. That inferred “home region” is used by multiple subsystems (search, DoH rollout, feature gating, telemetry). The backend is designed to be privacy‑sensitive and only runs once, but it was still an unnecessary external connection we’d rather avoid.

What we’ve changed​

• Disabled network‑based region lookup
  • The URL used for region detection (browser.region.network.url) is now empty and locked.
  • Wi‑Fi–based region hints (browser.region.network.scan) was already disabled but is now locked as well.
• Fixed, non‑dynamic “home region”
  • browser.search.region is now set to a fixed value (US) and locked.
  • This prevents any background attempts to “correct” or update your region based on IP.

Why this matters​

No calls are made to Mozilla’s region/geo‑IP services for normal browsing and features that still look at region see a stable, non‑changing value instead of one inferred from your network.

AI & Machine Learning​

What was happening​

None of the Firefox AI features or settings (AI link previews, chat integrations, etc.) were enabled in Waterfox, and no AI processing was happening in the background. However, some of the underlying onboarding and Labs migration code for AI link previews would still run and surface onboarding pop‑ups or UI.

The underlying local ML runtime (used for various experimental features in upstream Firefox) was still present and technically enabled at the pref level, even though nothing was using it. Built‑in chatbot integration points were already off in Waterfox, but we’ve clarified and hardened the settings.

What we’ve changed​

• Core ML engine explicitly disabled
  • The main ML engine toggle browser.ml.enable now defaults to false.
  • Any feature that tries to create a local ML engine will now cleanly fail up front instead of starting an inference process.
• AI link previews fully shut off
  • browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled is now false by default (and locked).
  • Legacy Firefox Labs state for link previews (browser.ml.linkPreview.labs) is forced to “not enrolled” and locked.
  • The opt‑in flag for AI key points (browser.ml.linkPreview.optin) is locked to false.
  • This prevents:
    • The feature from ever turning itself back on due to leftover Labs state.
    • Onboarding cards or AI link preview pop‑ups from appearing unexpectedly.
• Chat sidebar integrations remain disabled
  • browser.ml.chat.enabled stays false, keeping built‑in chatbot UI off by default.

Why this matters​

Local ML/AI code paths are no longer reachable unless you deliberately override multiple locked prefs. Users migrating profiles from Firefox (including Labs experiments) won’t see old experimental AI features unexpectedly re‑appear in Waterfox.

Experiments, Studies & “Labs”​

What was happening​

Waterfox already disabled Mozilla’s remote experimentation system (Normandy/Nimbus), but some features ran separately from this system (link previews).

What we’ve changed​

• For link previews specifically, we now:
  • Lock Labs and opt‑in prefs as described above.

Why this matters​

Tours/onboarding for disabled features makes no sense and appears confusing.

6.6.6

www.waterfox.net

Release 6.6.6 · BrowserWorks/waterfox

A (not so) devilish release 👹 📝 Note A few privacy‑sensitive behaviours from upstream Firefox code were not fully disabled in earlier Waterfox builds as we intended. In particular: Region detecti...

github.com