Download and install Firefox add-onsFirefox online safety and security

Read Which? guides to staying safe online and protecting your online identity and personal details, plus top tips for stopping ID theft.

WOT (Web of Trust)

Web of Trust (WOT) is an add-on for Firefox that categorises websites in a database according to their safety level, giving you a visual warning when browsing the web. 

Colour-coded icons highlight links to websites that may increase the risk of your computer being infected with malware or you becoming the victim of a phishing scam. 

According to its developers, Web of Trust has ratings for 21 million websites – indicating green to go, yellow for caution and red to stop.

Adblock Plus

If advertisements are proving distracting and slowing down your computer when you're browsing the web, then the Adblock Plus Firefox add-on offers a solution.

When it is installed, you’ll be prompted to choose a subscription filter list from various country options – this is just a database of filters that have already been set up to block known advertising servers. The USA filter list is a good place to start. 

If you find that Adblock Plus isn’t automatically blocking all the image and Flash animated ads on sites you visit, you can manually add adverts you want it to block. To do this, right-click on an advert and choose Adblock from the context menu that appears, then the advert won’t be displayed again.