Browser Privacy Ranking 2026: Tor Browser Leads at 9.5 While Chrome and Yandex Rank Lowest
SecurityLab.ru has released its 2026 browser privacy ranking that measures real behavior rather than marketing claims. The evaluation uses six criteria: network activity immediately after installation, cross-site state isolation, resistance to browser fingerprinting, funding model, depth of configurability, and code verifiability together with the fate of content blockers.
Tor Browser 15.0 tops the list with a score of 9.5. It unifies the fingerprint, letterboxes the window, and applies JavaScript protections at multiple security levels while routing traffic through the Tor network. The 15.0 release, based on Firefox ESR 140, removed AI features and added a non-AI DuckDuckGo option.
Mullvad Browser 15.0 follows at 9.0 with the same anti-fingerprinting engine but without the Tor network, offering constant private mode and zero telemetry. LibreWolf 153.0 scores 8.5 by stripping Mozilla telemetry, pre-installing uBlock Origin, and enabling fingerprint resistance by default.
Brave 1.93 receives 7.5 for its Shields system that blocks ads and trackers at the engine level, bypassing Manifest V3 restrictions. However, it ships with P3A telemetry enabled and includes cryptocurrency features that must be disabled manually. Ungoogled Chromium 150.0 scores 7.0 for sending zero requests to Google services yet ships without any built-in ad or tracker blocking.
DuckDuckGo Browser 1.202 earns 6.5 for immediate tracker protection but still allows requests to bat.bing.com under a Microsoft syndication agreement. Safari 26.5 and Firefox 153.0 both score 6.0 out of the box; Firefox can reach 8.5 after about an hour of about:config tuning and container extensions.
Lower scores go to Vivaldi 8.1 (4.5) for its daily unique profile identifier, Microsoft Edge 151.0 (3.0) for extensive Microsoft telemetry and Copilot integration, Google Chrome 151.0 (2.5) for sending every address-bar character to Google and abandoning third-party cookie changes, Opera 134.0 (2.0) for sending visited URLs to sitecheck.opera.com, and Yandex Browser (1.5) for hardware identifiers and deep ecosystem integration.
The report also covers the Local Mess technique disclosed in June 2025 that allowed Meta Pixel and Yandex Metrika scripts to exfiltrate cookies via localhost connections to mobile apps, bypassing all browser isolation mechanisms including incognito mode.
Related articles
pg_anon Open-Source Tool Receives Major Updates for PostgreSQL Data Masking and Partial Database Operations
Tantor Labs has released version 1.11.0 of pg_anon, an open-source utility designed to mask personal data in PostgreSQL databases while preserving structure and relationships. The update introduces packaging as a standard Python package, support for partial dumps and restores using whitelist and blacklist dictionaries, and improved handling of complex schema elements such as partitioned tables, generated columns, and custom types. Performance improvements include switching the dump engine to asyncio, single-query metadata collection, and on-the-fly gzip compression to reduce memory usage on large databases. New CLI options allow clean or drop operations on target databases, privilege ignoring, and passthrough of pg_dump and pg_restore flags. A REST API was added to enable integration into CI/CD pipelines and automated self-service systems for nightly masked database refreshes. The tool helps organizations comply with data protection requirements by creating pseudonymized copies suitable for development, testing, and contractor environments.
Pegasus Spyware Returns in Serbian Surveillance Campaign via Zero-Click iMessage Exploit
A Serbian student activist's iPhone was infected with the Pegasus spyware through a zero-click exploit in iMessage, allowing silent installation without any user interaction. The infection, confirmed by Citizen Lab in collaboration with the SHARE Foundation, showed indicators of compromise between December 2025 and January 2026. Apple later sent the target a notification warning of a mercenary spyware attack attempt. The exploit granted full access to photos, messages, files, and enabled covert microphone and camera activation. The vulnerability was addressed in the iOS 18.4.1 update released on April 16, 2025. The incident forms part of a wider surveillance wave in Serbia, with at least 14 individuals including students, activists, a parliament member, and a local political representative receiving similar Apple alerts. Additional targets were hit with Android spyware variants linked to NoviSpy.
Mozilla Adds Built-in Ad Blocker to Firefox for iOS Devices
Mozilla has integrated a native ad-blocking feature directly into its Firefox browser for iOS. The update allows iPhone and iPad users to block third-party advertisements and associated trackers before web pages load, eliminating the need for separate extensions. Apple’s App Store policies have long restricted the use of third-party content blockers on iOS compared to desktop and Android platforms. The new functionality targets intrusive elements such as pop-up windows, content-overlapping banners, and other advertising formats. By handling blocking at the browser level, Firefox for iOS improves user privacy and reduces exposure to tracking mechanisms without requiring additional software installation.
De-Clouding IoT Devices: Local Control for Midea Air Conditioners and Tuya-Based Cat Feeders
A security researcher detailed a methodical approach to eliminating vendor cloud dependency for Wi-Fi IoT devices in a smart home setup. After acquiring a cat, the author was forced to integrate several Tuya-based appliances that only worked through proprietary cloud apps. Using hardware analysis tools including UART adapters, multimeters, and soldering equipment, the devices were disassembled and their controllers identified. The Midea air conditioner controller based on TYWE3S ESP8266 was reflashed with ESPHome to enable direct Home Assistant integration. For the Tuya WBR3-powered cat feeder running on an RTL8720CF chip, OpenBeken firmware was installed after extracting the original firmware with ltchiptool. Detailed UART communication analysis between the Wi-Fi module and MCU allowed full recreation of scheduling and control functions locally via MQTT.