Firefox 14 Beta Arrives with an Extra Shot of Security

12.06.2012
Mozilla's new browser may have just barely landed on users' PCs, but already forward-looking fans can check out the beta version of Firefox 14--and the Aurora version of Firefox 15, too.

Most notable in Firefox 14 are new security features that “make it easier for users to control their Web experience,” according to the official late last week on the Mozilla blog.

Several new features in the upcoming version of this popular free and open source browser are designed to make life better for users, in fact. The final version isn't expected until July, but here's a rundown of some key improvements you can expect.

In the new Firefox 14 beta, HTTPS is enabled by default for to help protect users “from network infrastructure that may gather data, modify or censor search results,” Mozilla explained. This feature also stops third-party sites from gathering search data when you click on items on a search results page. “We look forward to supporting additional search engines as they enable SSL searches,” Mozilla wrote.