What is WebRTC, how to disable and avoid data leakage in popular browsers

What is WebRTC and why is it dangerous

WebRTC is a feature in your browser that streams audio and video data over the network. It can be used to create video conferences without the help of Zoom or Skype.

But more often this technology does more harm than good. A minimal number of people use it for its intended purpose, and everyone else can become victims of hackers and data leaks via WebRTC. It saves your IP address and accesses your microphone and camera - all this data is in an open network, which scammers can use.

Therefore, we recommend disabling WebRTC on your devices. Let's see how to do this in known browsers.

Video: What is WebRTC and how to turn it off and disable it in different browsers

How to disable WebRTC in Firefox

1. Type “about:config” in the search bar, and press Enter on the keyboard.



2. Find the item "media.peerconnection.enabled" or type it in the line manually.



3. Next to this parameter, click on the button with arrows and set the mode to false.



4. In the same way, you can disable WebRTC on a mobile device.

How to disable WebRTC in Chrome

The browser itself does not have a function to disable WebRTC. Therefore, to disable the feature in the Chrome browser, you need to install a special extension.

1. Open the browser and go to the Menu (by clicking on the three dots at the top right).



2. Hover over "More Tools" and open the "Extensions" tab.



3. Click on the three bars on the left.



4. Click on the "Open Chrome Web Store" section.



5. Find "WebRTC Control" in the Chrome store, and install the extension.





6. A blue icon will appear next to the search bar. Click on it and WebRTC will turn off.

On a mobile device, all this is even easier, without additional services:

1. Type in “chrome://flags/#disable-webrtc” in the address bar.



2. Enter "WebRTC" in the search bar.



3. Switch all found values ​​to Disabled mode. Ready.

How to disable WebRTC in Opera

1. Open a browser and go to Menu, then to Settings.



2. Click on the "Advanced" section at the bottom.



3. Find WebRTC and click on "Disable non-proxied UDP".

How to disable WebRTC in Safari

1. Open a browser and go to "Advanced".



2. At the bottom, check the box next to "Show Develop menu in menu bar".



3. In the opened window, in the "Develop" tab, hover over "Experimental Features" and click on "Remove Legacy WebRTC API" in the list.

Disabling WebRTC in any browser does not take much time and effort, but it will significantly protect your data from leaks and hacks.