How do you hide the Extended Validation text in Firefox?

Certain sites have Extended Validation certificates. On top of the normal lock symbol, Firefox also shows the Organization name next to the lock symbol in green text. This gives users a nice, warm, fuzzy feeling knowing that nothing can happen to them *cough* heartbleed *cough*.

However, this text can take up a fair amount of space, eating into the URL. I don't always run Firefox maximized, and it looks very crowded when the extended validation text cuts off half of the previously available URL space or more.

Is there a setting in about:config that can be set to disable the text from showing? That is, make firefox treat Level 3 SSL certificates as the same as Level 1.

Note: this screenshot is from Nightly, so it may just be a bug that the EV text overlaps all of the URL and part of the search bar. But even still, I want to be able to hide the text, not fix a bug.

Hide the site identity labels

The Site Identity Button is a Firefox security feature that gives you more information about the sites you visit. You can quickly find out if the website you are viewing is encrypted, if it is verified, who owns the website, and who verified it.

_{Source: How do I tell if my connection to a website is secure?}

Credit goes to Gingerbread Man for the original technique. Tested with Firefox 29.0.

1. Close Firefox.

2. Add the following code to your userChrome.css file:

   #identity-icon-labels
   {
       display: none !important;
   }
   

   It is located in the chrome subfolder inside your Firefox profile folder. Create one in case it doesn't exists already. Here's an example: userChrome-example.css.

   Note Apparently !important doesn't seem to be needed and could be omitted.

3. Start Firefox again.

Screenshots

Before

After

References

• How to Remove Security/Site Identity Info from Location Bar?

Disable the OCPS validation

The Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) is an Internet protocol used for obtaining the revocation status of an X.509 digital certificate.

All versions of Mozilla Firefox support OCSP checking. Firefox 3 enables OCSP checking by default.

_{Source: Online Certificate Status Protocol}

To answer this question:

Is there a setting in about:config that can be set to disable the text from showing? That is, make [F]irefox treat Level 3 SSL certificates as the same as Level 1.

Yes, there is. The following has been tested with Firefox 29.0.

1. Type about:config in the Firefox location bar.
2. Change the value of the security.OCSP.enabled preference to 0.

As an alternative, follow these steps:

1. Open the Firefox Options dialog.
2. Select the Advanced tab, and click the Validation button.
3. Uncheck the Use the Online Certificate Status Protocol (OCSP) to confirm the current validity of certificates option, and click OK.

Screenshots

Before

After

Additional information

A green padlock plus the name of the company or organization in green means that website is using an Extended Validation (EV) certificate. An EV certificate is a special type of site certificate that requires a significantly more rigorous identity verification process than other types of certificates. While the gray padlock indicates that a site uses a secure connection, the green padlock indicates that the connection is secure and that the owners of the domain are who you would expect them to be.

With the EV certificate, the Site Identity Button assures you that paypal.com is owned by Paypal Inc., for example. Not only does the padlock turn green on the Paypal site, it also expands and displays the name of the owner in the button itself.

_{Source: How do I tell if my connection to a website is secure?}