For those who came in late, last year an investigation by KrebsOnSecurity uncovered that Onerep’s founder, Dimitri Shelest, had also created and retained ownership in multiple data broker services, including Nuwber.
The discovery contradicted Onerep’s stated mission of protecting users’ online privacy. The report also suggested Onerep may have connections to Radaris, a people-search service known for disregarding opt-out requests, further questioning the efficacy of Onerep’s data removal services.
In response, a spokes Red Panda announced it would discontinue its partnership with Onerep and remove its integration from the Firefox browser. However, in October 2024, Mozilla admitted that replacing Onerep was proving difficult. In a public statement, the organisation explained that finding a provider with technical excellence and alignment with Mozilla’s values took longer than anticipated.
"While we continue this search, Onerep will remain the backend provider, ensuring that we can maintain uninterrupted services while evaluating new potential partners that align more closely with Mozilla’s values and user expectations. We are conducting thorough diligence to find the right vendor," Mozilla said.
Almost a year later, it still can’t find a replacement. When pressed for an update, a Spokes Red Panda reaffirmed its commitment to finding an alternative but acknowledged that the process remained ongoing.
"The work's ongoing, but we haven't found the right alternative yet," Mozilla said in an email. "Our customers' data remains safe, and since the product provides a lot of value to our subscribers, we'll continue to offer it during this process."
While Mozilla has received praise for its initial response to the Onerep revelations, its continued reliance on the service calls into question the viability of the personal data removal industry. If a company as privacy-conscious as Mozilla is struggling to find a suitable alternative, it raises doubts about the trustworthiness and effectiveness of such services in safeguarding user data.
