In the past, Mozilla Firefox always displayed http or https in the URL when visiting web pages, but few users report that this is no longer the case. This is because URLs are sometimes trimmed, and the users can no longer see the exact protocol. Consequently, it becomes difficult to confirm if they are on a secure connection by reading the protocol while browsing.
If you are wondering whether you are on HTTP or HTTPS in Firefox, here is a quick fix for getting the protocol back on your browser’s address bar. By following this guide, you can see the full address in Mozilla every single time.
Importance of knowing full address in Web Browsers
HTTP is the protocol for passing data between a web browser, like Chrome or Firefox, and a website. The ‘S’ in HTTPS stands for “Secure” as this website has a secure connection.
When any user visits a webpage in his/her browser and visits an HTTPS site they request its SSL certificate. This SSL certificate holds a key that the browser unlocks to create a safe and secure session while visiting that website. The certificate is for one-time use only and creates a uniquely secure connection to the website. On the other hand, when the user visits a site via HTTP all communications take place over plain text. This means this text can be read easily by any hacker that breaks into the connection between your browser and the website. The bottom line, HTTPS is valuable because it protects all communication and customer information; also, it works to legitimize any website that uses it because businesses that use HTTPS can be easily verified.
Hence, knowing if you are on http or https in Firefox is extremely crucial for security reasons.
Always display full address in Firefox
When the Mozilla Firefox browser does not display the full address, it looks like the below image:
Follow these steps to get the full address in Mozilla Firefox browser:
1] Open the Firefox browser or launch a new tab if already opened.
2] Now type ‘about:config’
3] Press ‘Enter’
4] Click on ‘Accept the Risk and Continue’
Please note: You can disable this page by unchecking the box next to ‘Warn me when I attempt to access these preferences.’
5] In the ‘Search Preference Name’ bar search for ‘browser.urlbar.trimURLs’. It will show the value to be set to true.
6] Double-click on the line to change the value from ‘True’ to ‘False’ appearing on the right-hand side.
7] Now visit your favorite Web site and view the full URL protocol.
Having a full address in Mozilla Firefox can be very useful for those who need to do online monetary transactions or send sensitive information via e-mail from a computer away from home. We hope this guide helps you secure your browsing sessions.
Please note that you can reset the Firefox settings to default if you ever need to do so.
Related read: How to always show full URLs in Chrome browser.
