[tor-bugs] #28259 [Applications/Tor Browser]: Is not saving history hurting Tor Browser retention rates?

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#28259: Is not saving history hurting Tor Browser retention rates?
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     Reporter:  arthuredelstein      |      Owner:  tbb-team
         Type:  defect               |     Status:  new
     Priority:  Medium               |  Milestone:
    Component:  Applications/Tor     |    Version:
  Browser                            |   Keywords:  gallagher2018, ux-team,
     Severity:  Normal               |  tbb-usability
Actual Points:                       |  Parent ID:
       Points:                       |   Reviewer:
      Sponsor:                       |
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 The main unique value that Tor Browser provides is network privacy. But we
 also enable private browsing mode by default, which means history and
 passwords are not saved.

 That's actually pretty inconvenient for a modern web browser. Every time
 the user starts Tor Browser, they don't get the convenience of Restore
 Session, auto-login, recent pages, history-based completion, importing
 user data from other browsers, and Sync. This issue was raised in
 [https://lists.torproject.org/pipermail/ux/attachments/20180921/c901ae9f/attachment-0001.pdf
 Gallagher et al 2018]

 So, we could consider allowing users to open a "normal browsing" window,
 that retains history and passwords and even uses "Firefox Sync". They
 would still get the benefit of network privacy. Saved state could be
 locked behind a master password, or we could remind users to use whole-
 disk encryption.

 My hypothesis is that this approach could help retain users and enable
 more users to use Tor Browser as their "main browser". But it would
 require an analysis of the pros and cons and a careful redesign. We also
 would need to fix all unpatched network privacy in normal browsing.

 So in this ticket I'm proposing we analyze this idea: figure out the best
 possible design, and determine if the benefits outweigh the costs.

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Ticket URL: <https://trac.torproject.org/projects/tor/ticket/28259>
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