Mozilla, the developer of Web browser Firefox, is releasing a paid version of its Mozilla Monitor service, called Monitor Plus. Subscribers are not only alerted if their data has hit the streets: Mozilla also automatically submits deletion requests. For now, Monitor Plus is available only in the US.
Mozilla announces Monitor Plus in a weblog (1).
Mozilla Monitor is a service that has been around since 2018, at the time under the name Firefox Monitor. This tool helps Internet users find out if their personal information is part of a data breach. If their name, email address, phone number, residential address, criminal record or other privacy-sensitive information has been released on sites that sell this data for profit, they are notified. Mozilla Monitor is available worldwide and now has more than 10 million users.
Today, Mozilla is expanding the service with a new feature. Monitor Plus not only tells subscribers if their information has ended up in the hands of data merchants, the service also automatically sends data removal requests to these companies. To run a scan, Mozilla requires your first and last name, hometown, date of birth and e-mail address. "This is the minimum amount of information we need to get the most accurate search results," Mozilla writes.
The company says it also lists "high-risk data breaches." These include BSN numbers, credit card information, bank account numbers or PIN numbers, for example. Finally, Monitor Plus users get tips and advice on how to deal with data breaches to protect themselves from phishing, identity fraud and other scams.
Mozilla says it can submit removal requests to more than 190 data merchant Web sites. That, it says, is with twice as many parties as its competitors. This comes with an $8.99 monthly price tag. For that amount, Monitor Plus scans monthly to see if your data is being listed and sold on data merchant websites.
Mozilla Monitor Plus is only available in the US for now. If and when the service will come to our country, the Web browser maker is not saying. The Dutch will have to make do with the free version of Mozilla Monitor for the time being.
In addition to Monitor Plus, Mozilla has another service to enhance your online privacy: Mozilla VPN. In partnership with Swedish VPN provider Mullvad, it gives you access to 650 servers in 71 cities in 40 countries. Mozilla says it does not impose bandwidth limits or keep logs of network activity. "We never log, track or share your network data," Mozilla assures.
