[liberationtech] Ghostery, NoScript.. add-ons frequently phone home

[Rich Kulawiec]

I think there's a more fundamental problem here.  We're all talking
about add-ons that perform various security/privacy functions.

Why are these add-ons?  Why are they not designed-in and built-in
to the browser?

Those are only quasi-rhetorical questions, because I'm pretty sure
we all know at least some of the answers to them.  But my point is
that I think we're well past the time when all of this functionality
should be baked-in to web browsers, not added on in a crazyquilt of
sometimes-overlapping sometimes-conflicting extensions all of which
have their own UI and most of which are confusing even to people who
know what they're doing.

As much as I really, really hate suggesting this, because one of the
last things we need is more software: we need a browser built from
the whiteboard up with the contemporary threat environment in mind.
And I strongly suspect that the only way to get one will be to start over.

Anybody got a few million dollars just laying around? ;)

---rsk