Web browser

Operating Systems & Open Source Open Source & Web-Based
1

whats the thought on this web browser......still waiting for a windows version.

 

https://www.whitehatsec.com/aviator/

2

Highly skeptical - they are overly vague, which makes me think all they did was take a chromium build, slapped on an extension to block ads, and change the default search page to DuckDuckGo - My Waterfox browser already does this, as well as Iron. The claim that isn't all they did, but, again, vague on the details. This is the most information I could gather

  1. Default to Protected Mode (Incognito Mode) vs Not Protected Mode:
    Delete all Web history, cache, cookies, auto-complete, and local storage data after restart.
    Most people are unaware that there are more than 12 browser locations where websites can store cookies and cookie-like data. Cookies typically track your surfing habits from one website to the next, but they can also expose your online activity to nosy people with access to your computer. Protected Mode purges these storage areas automatically with each browser restart. While other browsers have this feature (or something similar), the feature typically is not enabled by default, which makes it difficult to use. Aviator launches directly into Protected Mode by default and clearly indicates the mode in the current window. Protected Mode helps protect against browser autocomplete hacking, login detection, and deanonymization via clickjacking, by reducing the amount of session states you have open—due to an intentional lack of persistence in the browser over different sessions.
  2. Create custom browsing rules using Connection Control:
    Control the connections made by Aviator. By default, Aviator blocks Intranet IP-addresses (RFC1918).
    When you visit a website, it can instruct your browser to make potentially dangerous connections to internal IP addresses on your network—IP addresses that could not otherwise be connected to from the outside (NAT). That vulnerability might lead to simple reconnaissance on your Intranet internal networks, or it could result in permanent compromises by enabling a criminal to overwrite your router firmware. Without special third-party software, it’s impossible to block any bit of Web code from carrying out browser-based Intranet hacking. If WhiteHat Aviator blocks something you want to access, you can use Connection Control to you create custom rules.
  3. Disconnect Bundled (Disconnect.me):
    Block ads and third-party trackers.
    Virtually every advertisement on every website your browser encounters is tracking you, storing bits of information about where you go, and recording what you do. These ads, along with invisible third-party trackers, also often carry malware to exploit your browser when you load a page. Sometimes they try to trick you into installing something if you on them. Don’t forget, anyone can author ads—including attackers—so these ads might also harness your browser to initiate tracking, login detection and de-anonymization, auto cross-site scripting, drive-by-downloads, and malicious cross-site request forgeries, among other nefarious activities. And, of course, the visuals in these ads are often distasteful, offensive, and inappropriate, especially for children and workplaces. While we recognize that publishers depend on advertising to fund their content, ads today have become inherently dangerous and insecure. That’s why WhiteHat Aviator uses the Disconnect extension, specifically designed to block ads and trackers. Already more than 400,000 people use Disconnect to protect their privacy. Whether you use Aviator or another browser, we strongly recommend that you also use Disconnect (available for both Chrome and Firefox). And, of course, if you want to enable ads on the website to support the content, Disconnect makes it easy to do with a couple of mouse-clicks.
  4. Block Third-Party Cookies:
    Default configuration update.
    It’s a good practice for your browser to deletes cookies (including third-party cookies) when closing. But’s it’s even better when your browser prevents those third-party cookies from even loading in the first place. Blocking third-party cookies helps protect against tracking, login detection, and de-anonymization during the browser session.
  5. Replace Google Search with DuckDuckGo:
    Use a privacy-enhanced default search engine.
    Google earns its revenue from advertising and user tracking/profiling, which is why Chrome only supports this search engine. WhiteHat Aviator takes advantage of DuckDuckGo, which provides a more private, secure search experience than Google. If you prefer to use another search engine (including Google), you can easily change that setting.
  6. Limit referrer leaks:
    By default, referrers no longer leak cross-domain—they are only sent same-domain.
    When you click from one link to the next, most browsers notify the destination website where the click came from (using the Referer header). But that can leak sensitive information such as the search keywords used, internal IPs/hostnames, session tokens, etc. These leaks are often in the referring URL and offer little, if any, benefit to the user. WhiteHat Aviator only sends these headers within the same domain.
  7. Enable plug-ins as click-to-play:
    Default configuration update automatically enabled.
    Your browser might be secure—but what about the plug-ins you’re constantly updating? Plug-ins (like Flash and Java) are a source for tracking, malware exploitation, and general annoyance. They often store their own cookie-like data, which isn’t easy to delete (especially from within the browser). Plug-ins are also a major vulnerability for malware infection. And plug-ins can present annoying sounds and visuals that are difficult to identify and block. WhiteHat Aviator blocks all plug-ins by default. For instance, if you want to run a plug-in on YouTube, you simply click on the puzzle piece. If you want a website to always load the plug-ins, you can configure Aviator to do that.
  8. Limit data leakage to Google:
    Default configuration update
    By default, WhiteHat Aviator disables “Use a Web service to help resolve navigation errors” and “Use a prediction service to help complete searches and URLs typed in the address bar.” We also removed all options to synch/login to Google and send tracking traffic to Google on Chromium installation. Aviator limits what the browser sends to Google to protect your privacy. You’re always free to choose Google services.
  9. Do Not Track:
    Default configuration update.
    This mode is enabled by default. While we prefer “Can-Not-Track” to “Do-Not-Track,” WhiteHat Aviator enables the “Do Not Track” signal by default.

All of those features, I have already done on Iron. I'd feel a lot better about the browser if they had source code available. I even feel a bit uneasy about Iron as well. While SRWare does have source code, it's blocked, and apparently they have some reserved rights. I'm looking into chromium binaries for Windows without having to compile the code myself.

3

thank you for your insight,  very much appreciated