Mozilla recently released Firefox 102 with a somewhat modest changelog containing a couple of new features, one of which is the option to remove parts of URLs that various services and websites use to track you across the Internet. Mozilla started working on this capability about a year ago, and now it is ready for public use.
Firefox 102 has brought a new feature called "Query Parameter Stripping," which automatically deletes a tracking URL parameter when you click a link. For example, Facebook uses the "fbclid=" query to know that someone has hit a specific URL. Firefox now removes that query, plus other trackers from Olytics, Vero, HubSpot, Marketo, and Drip.
The new feature is a part of the Strict tracking protection rule, which is disabled by default. To enable it, navigate to Firefox Settings > Privacy & Security and turn on Strict in the Enhanced Tracking Protection settings.
Query Parameter Stripping is currently unavailable in Private Mode, but as spotted by Bleeping Computer, you can force-enable the feature using the privacy.query_stripping.enabled.pbmode config on the about:config page.
It is also worth noting that enabling Strict tracking prevention in Firefox can break some websites or specific parts. In case a website misbehaves, change tracking prevention to Standard or Custom.
The ability to remove trackers from URLs will play nicely with the recently introduced option for total cookie protection. Although Firefox might not be the fastest browser with the best compatibility, it is certainly the top option for those who value their data and privacy.
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