Mozilla is widely associated with privacy. That’s why its bug-reporting platform deserves special attention. Unfortunately, Mozilla’s Bugzilla instance creates a contradictory impression: anyone who wants to report a bug or take part in a discussion must expect their email address to be visible to other registered users.
No simple privacy setting
Bugzilla requires an email address for a user account. However, there appears to be no option to hide this address while still using the account fully. Depending on the page and the respective user permissions, other Bugzilla users can find out the email address of a reporter or commenter.
Once logged in as a regular user, you can hover over any existing bug ticket and have the email addresses of all people involved there displayed in plain text.
This is problematic from a privacy perspective. Bug reports often remain online for many years. Email addresses published in long-term accessible technical archives can be collected by spam bots, data brokers, or anyone searching for them.
Workarounds are limited
A frequently recommended solution is to use a separate mailbox or an email address such as “Firefox Relay.” While this is safer than using a private or work address, it does not constitute a real privacy solution.
The alias address is also visible to other Bugzilla users. It simply replaces the original address with another publicly visible address. If the same alias is used elsewhere, it may also become possible to link activities across different services.
Another option is to deactivate the Bugzilla account. That’s more of a joke! It’s hardly practical for people who still want to report bugs, answer questions, or follow discussions. A privacy feature should not require users to give up access to the platform.
What Bugzilla should offer
A modern bug tracker should separate communication and identity. Bugzilla could solve this problem in several ways:
- Hide email addresses from regular users by default.
- Display a contact form or a privacy-friendly link for contact instead.
- Allow users to specify who may see their address.
- Make the actual address accessible only to Bugzilla administrators and the notification system.
- Offer a clear account setting that explains exactly who can see the address.
- Provide an easy way to remove or anonymize identifying account data in old bug reports.
A contact link would be particularly helpful. It would allow maintainers to reach a reporter without making their email address visible to everyone who can read the bug report.
Doesn’t fit Mozilla’s privacy image
Mozilla presents privacy as an important part of its identity. It’s all the more disappointing that there seems to be no obvious option in Mozilla’s Bugzilla instance to protect the email address.
Bug reports must be open and searchable. However, that does not mean the reporter’s personal contact details have to be publicly accessible. Technical transparency and privacy protection are not mutually exclusive.
As long as Bugzilla does not offer an appropriate privacy feature, users should use a separate mailbox or an alias not linked to their main identity. This reduces the risk, but it really shouldn’t be necessary.
A public bug database should make the bug visible – not the private contact details of the person who reported it.