Apple has quietly made official an iCloud Passwords extension for Mozilla’s Firefox browser — but only for macOS users.
As initially spotted by MacRumors, Apple is now distributing an extension on the official Mozilla add-ons site. The store page reads that it allows users to securely access and fill in their passwords stored in iCloud to webpages accessed in Firefox. It also allows users to create and save new passwords as well as generate verification codes.
This builds on top of existing extensions Apple already maintains for accessing passwords in third-party browsers Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge on top of Safari. The Chrome and Edge extensions work on Windows by connecting with the iCloud for Windows app. The Firefox extension, however, only works with macOS Sonoma and later — Apple brought support for using the iCloud Keychain in third-party browsers with that update.
Apple appears to have taken over the project from an independent developer. As spotted by Tech-Issues Today last month, Reddit user au2001 claimed in replies to a post that Apple reached out to him through Mozilla to make the extension official. The developer agreed to transfer the project over to them, but said the source code remains available. au2001 said they plan to republish it should it not live up to expectations.
In a reply to new post after the extension’s release, au2001 called the extension “poorly optimized” and claimed it sends every URL a user visits to macOS, arguing it runs counter to Apple’s privacy and security promises. The developer has not reconfirmed plans to republish the extension since the release of Apple’s version.
This release continues Apple’s streak of bolstering its password management and login services. Apple moved stored passwords to an all-new dedicated Passwords app in iOS 18, iPadOS 18, macOS Sequoia, and visionOS 2. They were previously housed in the Settings app on iOS, iPadOS and visionOS or inside Safari’s settings window on macOS. The new app includes integrated support for managing Sign in with Apple logins and Wi-Fi passwords, among other new features.
