Mozilla recently announced the release of the new version of its web browser, "Firefox 148," and in it, it has decided to swim against the current, since the release not only represents a robust technical evolution, but also a declaration of principles on the user's digital sovereignty.
Accompanied by the extended support updates 140.8.0 and the final version of the 115 series (115.33.0), this release lays the foundation for a browser that prioritizes human control and extreme security, while preparing the ground for version 149, already in beta.
Main new features of Firefox 148
The most significant new feature in Firefox 148 is the introduction of a dedicated "AI Controls" section within its settings. While other browsers mandate the integration of virtual assistants , Mozilla empowers users to manage, limit, or eliminate these functions. Firefox 148 allows users to selectively disable automated translation, text recognition in images or PDFs, tab grouping recommendations, link summary generation , and even the chatbot interface. For those demanding complete privacy, the "block" option goes beyond simple disabling, physically removing the installed AI models from the local disk and purging any trace of them from the user interface.
In addition, update management has also been decoupled . The remote application of critical patches and fixes between major releases now has its own dedicated switch, completely eliminating the obligation to share telemetry or participate in experimental studies, thus putting privacy back at the heart of the experience.
For Microsoft users, Firefox 148 introduces a long-awaited safety net: native Backup for Windows 10 and 11. This tool allows you to safeguard bookmarks, passwords, and system settings, facilitating migrations between computers or restorations after operating system formatting. With a smart, privacy-respecting design, the system automatically omits data that the user has configured to be deleted upon logging out.
Furthermore, in the visual and mobile realm, consistency has improved: the wallpapers of new tabs are now applied uniformly to the containing tabs , and the Android version debuts a redesigned toolbar that allows you to copy the text of a link without having to open the page, speeding up touch navigation.
A shield against XSS
Under the hood, this update is a triumph of proactive cybersecurity and massive vulnerability patching. Developers have fixed 60 security vulnerabilities (six times more than in the previous version), 48 of which threatened memory management through buffer overflows and freed memory access. To fortify the modern web against malicious code injections (DOM XSS), Mozilla has implemented the Trusted Types API and the Sanitizer API. This duo requires developers to abandon plain text strings in critical functions like `document.write()` or `element.innerHTML`, forcing the use of pre-validated TrustedHTML objects. Furthermore, native tools like `element.setHTML()` and `document.parseHTML()` allow developers to purge dangerous tags from incoming content before the browser renders it.
Evolution in JavaScript and CSS
The browser's internal engine also offers new tools for web architects:
- Service Workers are now compatible with the WebGPU API, unlocking the potential to run complex graphics operations in the background.
- In the field of logic programming, JavaScript is enriched with the Iterator.zip() and Iterator.zipKeyed() methods, facilitating the elegant merging of multiple arrays into complex iterable objects.
- Finally, visual design gains precision with new CSS properties: the shape() function allows for drawing advanced geometric shapes using standard syntax, while position-try-order gives designers the power to define the hierarchy of alternative positions when an anchored element, such as a popup menu, threatens to go off the screen margins.
How to install or update to Firefox 148
If you already have Firefox installed, the update should arrive automatically through your distribution's package manager in the next few days. However, if you want to get version 148 immediately without waiting for the official repositories , the best option is to use the official binary provided by Mozilla.
To install it from the binary on any Linux distribution (Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch, etc.), you can follow these steps in your terminal:
wget -O firefox.tar.bz2 "https://download.mozilla.org/?product=firefox-latest&os=linux64&lang=es-ES" sudo tar xjf firefox.tar.bz2 -C /opt/ sudo ln -sf /opt/firefox/firefox /usr/bin/firefox
If you prefer to use Snap packages (common in Ubuntu), you can force the update with:
Sudo Snap Refresh Firefox
For users who prefer Flatpak and Flathub, the update can be performed by running:
flatpak update org.mozilla.firefox
For users of Ubuntu, Linux Mint, and other Ubuntu derivatives, it's also possible to update Firefox via the official PPA . To do so, open a terminal and enter the following commands:
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntu-mozilla-security/ppa -y sudo apt-get update sudo apt install firefox
Finally, if you prefer to wait for it to arrive in your distribution's native repositories (DNF, Pacman), you just need to run your system's usual update command, although keep in mind that this can take anywhere from a few hours (on Arch) to several days (on Debian/Ubuntu).