Mozilla continues to offer synchronized updates for Firefox 3.0 and Firefox 2.0, as it is working on the development of Firefox 3.1 Beta 2, which is expected by the end of this month. The release strategy was adapted following the release of version 3.0 of the open source browser this year. With incremental updates now joined at the hip, as of November 12, 2008, Firefox 3.0.4 and Firefox 2.0.0.17 are available for download. Both 3.0.4 and 2.0.0.18 releases are labeled as security and stability updates by Mozilla.

“As part of Mozilla Corporation’s ongoing stability and security update process, Firefox 3.0.4 and Firefox 2.0.0.18 are now available for Windows, Mac, and Linux as free downloads,” revealed Samuel Sidler, Quality Assurance engineer at Mozilla. Firefox 3.0.4 and Firefox 2.0.0.18 are designed to resolve no less than 11 security issues between them, nine of which are shared by both versions of the open source browser.

Firefox 3.0.4 plugs no less then four vulnerabilities rated as Critical, two Important, another two Moderate, and one Low, while Firefox 2.0.0.18 fixes six Critical vulnerabilities in version 2.0.0.17, three Important, one Moderate and one Low.

In addition, Mozilla has taken care of several stability issues within Firefox 3.0, and now promises that Firefox 3.0.4 has completely resolved problems related to password saves in version 3.0.2, which would not work properly. At the same time, issues with the way Firefox would improperly save proxy settings for protocols other than HTTP are also a thing of the past.

“We strongly recommend that all Firefox users upgrade to this latest release. If you already have Firefox 3 or Firefox 2, you will receive an automated update notification within 24 to 48 hours. This update can also be applied manually by selecting 'Check for Updates…' from the Help menu. All Firefox 2.0.0.x users are encouraged to upgrade to Firefox 3.0.4,” Sidler added.

Firefox 3.0.4 and Firefox 2.0.0.18 for Windows are available for download here.

Firefox 3.0.4 and Firefox 2.0.0.18 for Mac are available for download here.

Firefox 3.0.4 for Linux is available for download here.

Firefox 2.0.0.18 for Linux is available for download here.