Mozilla Firefox 13 is currently plagued with security and privacy issues due to its new feature. The new feature, called the "new Tab", can be a potential threat for users who are sharing the same computer device.

The "New Tab" thumbnail displays screenshots of recently-visited websites. A user shared his experience through The Register and told them that after opening a new tab, his online banking details and webmail sessions were captured together with his account number and other private banking information. Some users criticize Mozilla as other web browsers have already incorporated this feature in their system, but they do not capture sensitive data in the process of doing so.

Mozilla instantly responded to this incident and immediately released a statement addressing this issue. Here is the statement from Mozilla:

We are aware of the concern and have a fix that will be released in a future version of Firefox. Mozilla remains resolute in its commitment to privacy and user control. The new tab thumbnail feature within Firefox does not transmit nor store personal information outside the user's direct control.The new tab thumbnails are based on users' browsing history. All information is contained within the browser and can be deleted at any time. Users can also switch back to using blank new tab screens by clicking the square icon in the top right corner of the browser. That will change the default preference to show a blank page, rather than the most visited websites when a new tab is opened.

Users who share their computer or use Firefox on a public computer should follow best practices for protecting their privacy by utilizing the built-in privacy tools in in Firefox, such as Private Browsing Mode.

As mentioned in the statement, Mozilla promises a patch to fix the problem but the exact date for the said patch was not disclosed.

Firefox 13 was launched in the market last June 5, 2012 and incorporated new features such as updated new tab and home tab pages. The new update had mixed reviews and this latest security issue would certainly have a negative effect with Mozilla unless it is fixed as soon as possible.