Nowadays, many have started to become more and more concerned about online privacy. There are many methods and ways to so this and to be able to protect your internet connection. One way is through installing uMatrix extension into your Firefox or Chrome browser.
uMatrix is a privacy tool which comes with advances features. It is easy to use and is impressive when it comes to privacy. However, just like with any tool or program, if you tweak too much, this could cause problems on your favorite website.
How Does uMatrix Work?
uMatrix is easy to use. It is a type of tool that is point and click. Through this tool you could easily select the items you would like to block. It could also stop malware, bloatware, trackers, cookies and many more.
By using uMatrix, your browser becomes safer and surfing becomes smoother and faster. Also if your internet is metered or your data usage comes with high cost, by using uMatrix, you will be able to reduce your consumed data since it blocks everything you do not need.
Why does blocking too much can cause problems?
uMatrix is a powerful tool which could block 3rd party actions by default. Though this might seem a very good idea, this could also cause some problems to some websites. It could cause some websites not to work properly as well and this could be very frustrating. If you encounter any problems of webpage loading, you could either disable blockages or the entire site.
User Interface
Though using uMatrix could give you different opinion in terms of high level security blocking features and accessing websites, to make it easier for you to learn more about the said privacy tool, we shall go into specifics such as its UI (User Interface).
uMatrix comes with green and red colors. Each color represents the items that are naturally blocked. Right of the address bar, you will notice a gray star, by clicking it, it will block everything but it will also allow apply all changes you make to everything as well.
If you wish to block a specific website across all your browsing activities, you will need to enter the specific website. It also allows you to change things and if you are happy with all the changes you have applied on the specific site, the next step is to select the lock icon. However, if you wish to make more changes or would like to delete the change, just click on the eraser beside the lock icon. Take note that whenever you make changes, ensure to click on the refresh button, for you to see the changes that you have applied.
Blocking Abilities
Once you have learned how to use uMatrix to block specific types of items you would wish to block, you could now include and block domain name, css, cookies, media, images, XHR, scripts, iframes and many more. uMatrix also offers two settings which you could allow. The first setting that you will have to change is the one for YouTube. This setting could unblock YouTube. In doing this, be sure you allow s.ytimg.com. Once you allow it, it will enable you to be able to watch YouTube again without having to compromise you other settings. The second setting is if you would like to use Google Video, you would need to allow googlevideo.com.
Tips for Using uMatrix
There are a few tips we could offer you in using uMatrix. The first tip is regarding privacy settings. As mentioned earlier, you could access this through clicking the thin gray bar across the top of the screen which says uMatrix and the one that provides the version of the extension. Click Privacy. Once done, you will now be able to enable your privacy settings. If you wish to block malware, however, all you have to do is click on the Assets tab and look for the settings tab. Then, check the box that says auto update assets.
Conclusion
uMatrix is a very powerful privacy tool that works efficiently and help you in a lot of different ways. We hope this article has helped you enjoy using uMatrix.
