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I have been getting a box which asks for my administrator password to install an update. Is this really Mozilla asking so I can safely give that password?

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  • 1 has this problem
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  • Last reply by cor-el

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Each time I click on Mozilla Firefox to access the browser I get a box stating I should update and to do so it asks for my administrator password. I need to know whether Mozilla is asking so I can safely type my administrator password, or if it could be a hacker so I should not allow access to my administrator password. Also, in trying to ask this question I see that some others have had problems w/the new version of Mozilla Firefox. Is that the same as the update which the pop-up box is telling me to do? What is the effect of refusing to update or download the newer version of Mozilla Firefox?

I use Windows 7 on an ASUS laptop with modem and router.

Each time I click on Mozilla Firefox to access the browser I get a box stating I should update and to do so it asks for my administrator password. I need to know whether Mozilla is asking so I can safely type my administrator password, or if it could be a hacker so I should not allow access to my administrator password. Also, in trying to ask this question I see that some others have had problems w/the new version of Mozilla Firefox. Is that the same as the update which the pop-up box is telling me to do? What is the effect of refusing to update or download the newer version of Mozilla Firefox? I use Windows 7 on an ASUS laptop with modem and router.

All Replies (8)

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If in dought, toss it.

Is your Firefox running with administrator privileges? (Not recommended) How did you get the update? Pop-up, it just showed up . . . .

The current Firefox, v59, just came out.

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It looks as if the v59 Firefox creates problems for other users by losing their data and passwords.

So the secondary issue for me is whether the Firefox Updater on my computer hard drive (which is what the pop-up box refers to) is the same as the v59.

The primary issue is whether it is safe to give access to my hard drive by giving my administrator password.

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Would it be possible for you to provide a screenshot of that pop-up  ?

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Once you've done this, attach the saved screenshot file to your forum post by clicking Browse... button below the Post your reply box.

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I use an add-on that makes backups of my user profile, Just In Case. Unfortunately, it is not compatible with the current Firefox.

Every now and then, open the profile folder and create a copy of the current profile as is to another location on your hard drive. This way you will have a backup.

If you do this each day, you will not lose much data. This should be done with Firefox Closed.

Note: In case you need to restore from these backups, you may need to overwrite old or corrupted files.

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What Firefox version is shown in "Help -> About Firefox" and can you update to the curent release (59.0.1) if you aren't already running it?

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I am using Firefox 58.0.2 64 bit Funnelcake April 2014 Mozilla 30-1.0

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A post was flagged as Solved Problem. If the problem is not solved, please remove that flag. If you don’t, others that can help may not read this post.

Go to that message, and use the Undo link to its right.

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If you have a Funnelcake version then you are on a special update channel. You were once part of a Mozilla study to investigate the user experience of new Firefox users (Funnelcake April 2014). You can do a clean install the full version of the current Firefox release to switch to the official Firefox release.

You can find the full version of the current Firefox release (59.0.1) in all languages and all operating systems here and save the Firefox installer to the desktop.

You can uninstall your current Firefox version and delete the Firefox program folder to do a clean install and remove all traces of that older version.

  • (64-bit Firefox) "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\"
  • (32-bit Firefox) "C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox\"

You can start the installation with a double-click on the desktop icon.

Your personal data is in the Firefox profile folder and is not affected, but make sure not to remove personal data when you uninstall Firefox.