Milestone 7: Browsers and Search Engines
For this milestone, you will understand how browsers and search engines can be detrimental to your privacy. You will also begin to take back some of your privacy by installing and configuring the LibreWolf browser.
Milestone Worksheet
Please download the following worksheet for Milestone 7. To be sure your browser downloads the file instead of trying to open it, right-click the following link and choose “Save As,” “Save Link As,” or similar language from the menu. (Each browser is a little different in what wording it uses.)
Reading Material
To complete this worksheet, you will read through the following Open Educational Resource (OER) materials I’ve created. The answers to all the questions in the worksheet may be found in the reading material, though you may need to think about some of them for a few minutes. For this Milestone, please read the following:
- Browsers and Search Engines - Read all sections
Also watch the following YouTube video:
Install and Configure LibreWolf
To complete the final portion of the worksheet, you will need to install and configure the LibreWolf browser. Instructions are provided in the last section of the above OER reading. Note that you need access to a Linux, macOS, or Windows computer on which you can install software in order to complete this milestone. A Chromebook, phone, or tablet device will not work.
Panopticlick, Revisited
Once you have completed the top part of the worksheet and configured LibreWolf, open the LibreWolf browser and go back to the Cover Your Tracks site to run the Panopticlick application again. Leave the “Test with a real tracking company” box checked, and click the Test Your Browser button. The test will take a few moments to complete, and you will see the browser page refresh a few times.
Once you reach the results page, you should find that you have strong protection against online tracking. Take a screenshot of the top part of this result page. Replace the placeholder screenshot in the worksheet with your screenshot. Refer to Taking a Screenshot if you need assistance.
IMPORTANT: Be sure that your screenshot clearly shows that you are running the LibreWolf browser. If you use the Windows Snipping Tool to create the screenshot, be sure to get enough of the browser window to show that LibreWolf is in use.
Hints and Tips
The questions in the worksheet are in the same order as the sections of the OER linked above. For efficient use of time, I suggest downloading and opening the worksheet first. As you read through the material, fill in the answers to the worksheet. You can increase your efficiency even further if you have access to a second monitor or TV to which you can connect your computer, allowing your browser window and word processor window to be displayed side-by-side.
Do not try to rush through the worksheet! If you rush, you’re likely going to need to go back and make revisions. Please note that the reflection process at the end of the course will require you to document your revisions. Leaving incorrect answers in unrevised worksheets at the end of the Discovery Phase may prove detrimental at the end of the course. Take your time and work steadily and diligently.
As a reminder, here are the instructions for editing the worksheet in either LibreOffice or Word Online:
Submitting the Milestone
After you’ve finished editing the Milestone Worksheet, save your work, and then export the completed worksheet to a PDF file. Instructions for exporting to PDF are provided under Hints and Tips above. Upload the PDF file as the submission to the Moodle assignment activity for Milestone 7.
To stay on track in this course, be sure that you submit your work before the published due date for Milestone 7. Use the extra time available before the end of the Discovery Phase to make any revisions you need to make after I give you feedback.
ABET Assessment
This activity supports the following ABET performance indicator:
- 2.2 - Implement a solution to meet requirements.