Security of Palemoon

[galaxysurfer]

I went to sign into encrypted email account & it said that the browser doesn't support their product. This the message

Oh! We are sorry. Unfortunately, your browser is not supported. Please use one of the following browsers:

Firefox (Desktop)
Chrome (Desktop, Android)
Opera (Desktop, Android)
Safari (Desktop, iOS)
Internet Explorer 10/11 (Desktop)
Blackberry 10
What do those browser do differently so that the service deems them safe but not Palemoon? is it a matter of encrypting data stream? I really like Palemoon but these kind of issues are making me second guess my preference.

[Moonchild]

Your webmail provider discriminates against your choice of browser because it's not one of the ones listed. That is all there is to it.
It has nothing to do with objective safety or security of Pale Moon.

[Pelican]

Translated that means that their Webmail is only catering for popular browsers, and their Webmail script may even be very old.

Not being recognised as a popular browser (listed in the top 5) is not a problem though when you can use the user-agent tweaks provided by PM. That way you can be treated like a Firefox browser wand the user experience should be similar.

[extra_D_string]

Translated that means that their Webmail is only catering for popular browsers, and their Webmail script may even be very old.

Not being recognised as a popular browser (listed in the top 5) is not a problem though when you can use the user-agent tweaks provided by PM. That way you can be treated like a Firefox browser wand the user experience should be similar.

What should galaxysurfer do, exactly? What instructions can he follow?

[vannilla]

What should galaxysurfer do, exactly? What instructions can he follow?

In the preferences menu, under the "advanced" tab, there's a drop-down list labeled "compatibility".
Selecting "Firefox" will make Pale Moon look like Firefox.
If that doesn't work then a more complex route has to be taken, but first let's see if Firefox compatibility is enough.
Anyway, as WillamK said, their script are very likely to work with Pale Moon, but since they only look at the user agent string, Pale Moon doesn't even have a chance of trying to execute them.

[galaxysurfer]

I am a she. I had previously set my user agent as Firefox, but then I have issues with some sites I visit refusing to allow access to a non "popular" browser. I am guessing that is because the Firefox version is not the latest detected? I feel like I am in a catch 22. Is there an addon for current version of Palemoon available that I can switch user agents on the fly? This is frustrating since I prefer the privacy of Palemoon over Firefox.

[galaxysurfer]

The webmail in question is an encrypted one. That is the reason I asked about this problem originally. I was wondering if there is a breech in the chain to allow interception or the inability of Palemoon to connect to encrypted webmail providers?

[Moonchild]

Like I said in my original reply, this is simply discrimination against any browser that is not in their short list of accepted ones. It has 0 to do with Pale Moon's capabilities.
If you don't provide more information about the service in question, we can't say anything more about it or provide a user-agent workaround.

[doofy]

Is there an addon for current version of Palemoon available that I can switch user agents on the fly? This is frustrating since I prefer the privacy of Palemoon over Firefox.

http://addons.palemoon.org/addon/eclipsedmoon/

You'll need to set a static U/A, which means finding one. That might mean downloading a new portable firefox and extracting its U/A. (Or asking here)

Its preset list goes up to FF52 though, which ought to be enough. You'll have to edit the preset to enter it in the static box, but thats easy enough.

Then turn it off and enable when req.

If you try it, go through settings very carefully. It has history erasing functions you simply might not want.

[back2themoon]

Is there an addon for current version of Palemoon available that I can switch user agents on the fly?

You don't really need an addon, you can already set any user agent that will only apply to any website you like. All other websites will follow the setting in Preferences/Advanced/General/Compatibility (except for the in-built ones, see step 2 below).

1. Type about:config in the address bar
2. (optional) Type general.useragent.override (or just agent to quickly overview the in-built overrides.
3. Right-click on the page/New>String
4. New string value box: enter general.useragent.override.yourwantedsite.com (or org/co.uk etc.)
5. Enter string value box: enter the desired user agent override, for example: Mozilla/5.0 (Windows NT 10.0; Win64; x64; rv:52.9) Gecko/20100101 Goanna/3.4 Firefox/52.9 PaleMoon/27.9.2

Restart browser or refresh the page for which the override was made - done.

[doofy]

You don't really need an addon, you can already set any user agent that will only apply to any website you like.

Seems a lot of fuss.

My backup PM presents everywhere as FF60. My main build presents everywhere as PM and if a site doesn't like me, a toolbar click presents me as FF60.

Sure, if it's just a couple of sites, about:config might be the way to go. But for sheer ease and basic day to day convenience I'll go for a button click every time.