Missing in FAQ - Chromium and privacy

OK… I can’t find this in FAQ and i believe it belongs there!

Here’s the case: I don’t trust Google! Neither do i trust most of their projects (and that includes Chromium!)

Yet, Brave is based on Chromium (it could be based on Gecko, or in a independent browser, or maybe consider Servo - that is not yet ready, but… And yes, i do understand why some decisions had to be made in order to get Brave out the door soo fast )!!! So…

How can we be sure there is no google backdoor on brave? Some sneaky one-line-code that gives google the possibility to get an hand on brave?

I mean… most of brave’s code is google’s code…

(oh and… i’ve read this: Is Brave really Google-Free? - and the link is down! )

  1. Brave is fully open source, unlike other Chromium browsers that are managed by a company: Chrome, Edge, Vivaldi, Opera.
    So you can easily check the code yourself, report any bug, report any issue, help the team with that.

  2. Besides being open source, Brave has had audits done, I don’t think recently, but I mean, anyone could do it if they wanted to, since there is no need to ask permissions to see the whole source code.

  3. You can see here everything Brave has done to Chromium https://github.com/brave/brave-browser/wiki/Deviations-from-Chromium-(features-we-disable-or-remove)

And if something doesn’t work as you think it should work, then you should write an issue about it. Once something didn’t work as the wiki said, and it was an outdated documentation issue, but it could be something caused by a Chromium update.

It’s not like Brave will just merge things without knowing, just like you can read Brave’s commits and PRs you can do the same with Chromium.

Also, Brave started as a Gecko project until Brendan Eich realized Chromium was better, and it is still better, so he doesn’t regret that decisions, especially when Mozilla is pretty much alive thanks to Google’s money.

I mean…

You make it sound like Brave for being based on Chromium is at a disadvantage, yet, Firefox, which is not Chromium always has added Google implementations on their own (apparently).

Someone made this post in Reddit, which is much on point… the real question is, do you really think being non-chromium will benefit anyone anyway? let’s be honest.
Brave is fine being Chromium, and someday maybe Brave will have more money and a bigger team enough to distance themselves more from Chromium.

This “trusted” firefox?

https://www.kuketz-blog.de/mozilla-firefox-datensendeverhalten-desktop-version-browser-check-teil20/

Firefox is using google Web Extensions: https://archive.ph/odk9n

Firefox is using google Web RTC: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WebRTC

Firefox is using google Web Components: https://archive.ph/3zDI5

Firefox is using google GeoLocation Services API: https://archive.ph/pdS87

Firefox is using google Skia graphics engine: https://archive.ph/kqYWs

Firefox is using google Widewine: https://archive.ph/RtCSO

Firefox is using google Safe Browsing: https://archive.ph/nPaeN

Firefox is using google RegEx: https://archive.ph/lt9T7

Firefox is using google search default and paying firefox 90% of their income: https://archive.ph/QeIEt

Firefox has used google Analytics: https://archive.ph/r6Hj6

https://www.reveddit.com/v/firefox/comments/10m40qe/many_google_urls_hardwired_into_ff_ff_messes_with/

Sends your keystrokes home: https://archive.ph/VVDE3

Unique identifier (https://archive.ph/uKVUr)

Requires signed (google MV3) web extensions (https://archive.is/6z7B5).

Able to install exentions without your consent (https://archive.is/tswj9)

Able to disable your extensions without consent (https://archive.fo/kRXWP)

Pro-censorship: https://archive.is/nd1Ms

Pocket: https://archive.ph/nI7vr

Telemetry collected: https://www.ghacks.net/2020/01/28/browse-the-telemetry-that-firefox-collects/

and Firefox asks for donations to mozilla, giving the impression of developing the browser but funds political activism. Mozilla Corporation is not the same as Mozilla Foundation: https://archive.li/iTJI6

https://sizeof.cat/post/web-browser-telemetry/#mozilla-firefox