Disaster Google pulls the plug on uBlock Origin, leaving over 30 million Chrome users susceptible to intrusive ads - Chromebros on suicide watch, Firefox pooner chads keep winning

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Google pulls the plug on uBlock Origin, leaving over 30 million Chrome users susceptible to intrusive ads ​

Google ramps up its campaign against ad blockers on Chrome.
By Kevin Okemwa, published yesterday

What you need to know​

• Google is transitioning Chrome's extension support from the Manifest V2 framework to the V3.
• This means users won't be able to use uBlock Origin to block ads on Google Chrome.
• However, there's a new iteration of the app — uBlock Origin Lite, which is Manifest V3 compliant but doesn't boast the original version's comprehensive ad-blocking features.

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Google's campaign against ad blockers across its services just got more aggressive. According to a report by PC World, the company has made some alterations to its extension support on Google Chrome.

Google Chrome recently changed its extension support from the Manifest V2 framework to the new Manifest V3 framework. The browser policy changes will impact one of the most popular adblockers (arguably), uBlock Origin.

The transition to the Manifest V3 framework means extensions like uBlock Origin can't use remotely hosted code. According to Google, it "presents security risks by allowing unreviewed code to be executed in extensions." The new policy changes will only allow an extension to execute JavaScript as part of its package.

Over 30 million Google Chrome users use uBlock Origin, but the tool will be automatically disabled soon via an update. Google will let users enable the feature via the settings for a limited period before it's completely scrapped. From this point, users will be forced to switch to another browser or choose another ad blocker.

A new version of uBlock Origin​

uBlock Origin fans can rest at ease since a new and improved version is already available — uBlock Origin Lite. It's worth noting that while the new app ships with similar features to the original version, including core ad-blocking features, it doesn't support dynamic filters for blocking scriptlet injection. The Lite version's capabilities are relatively limited due to its compliance with the Manifest V3 framework threshold.

According to uBlock Origin's developer Raymond Hill

"I consider uBO Lite to be too different from uBO to be an automatic replacement. You will have to explicitly find a replacement to uBO according to what you expect from a content blocker. uBO Lite may or may not fulfill your expectations."

uBlock Origin will continue to work as usual across other browsers, including Microsoft Edge, Opera, and more.

 

[Death of an Ego]

Well that's just ducky. Guess I have to go Librewolf or Opera, but I'll see how well Vivaldi works till it doesn't.

 

[CarlKingofDucks]

Been using brave for a few years now, glad I dont have to switch.

Still need a youtube replacement to come out tho as I listen primarily on my phone and background play thru brave with the screen off is buggy at best lol.

 

[Super Hans v2]

or Opera

Is it actually a decent browser? Nearly 100% of the people I see that promote it are Nintendo fanboys since it was the browser for the Wii and DS.

 

[spiritofamermaid]

Been using brave for a few years now, glad I dont have to switch.

Still need a youtube replacement to come out tho as I listen primarily on my phone and background play thru brave with the screen off is buggy at best lol.

I use NewPipe, it's very good. There is a fork that also has a sponsor block

 

[Death of an Ego]

Is it actually a decent browser? Nearly 100% of the people I see that promote it are Nintendo fanboys since it was the browser for the Wii and DS.

It was a few years ago before I migrated to Vivaldi, which is way better. I'll go back to it if this retarded ad forcing can't be worked around or sidestepped.

 

[Retink Retunk]

Brave brutalism for the win.

 

[skunt]

how do people have bare surface level knowledge of the browser they're using?

> haha i'm using brave i'm unaffected
> i'm considering moving to opera
> i use vivaldi
> edge

like, all these browsers use chromium and these browsers will all NEED to fork chromium or adopt these same changes in the coming weeks or months. at this point, if you're not using firefox (or a fork such as librewolf) or safari, then it's almost a certainty that you're using chromium and this does affect you.

if you are using firefox (like me) then good luck because mozilla probably lost 80% of their revenue starting next year. not only that, but mozilla does plan on implementing some form of manifest v3 also (link). if you use safari, you're already a consoomer so reading this doesn't concern you.

basically, your only choice is librewolf who i had incorrectly assumed was downstream rather than a fork of firefox meaning it shouldn't receive manifest v3 upstream from mozilla....unless they implement it themselves. and no, brave is not a fork
you'd need to go back to the 90s to see such a barren browser ecosystem

 

[Markass the Worst]

you'd need to go back to the 90s to see such a barren browser ecosystem

Hopefully there is an antitrust suit brought against Google's browser monopoly too. Any day now.

 

[Claude Sigma]

Like many of us, I am the default "tech guy" in the family (for some retarded friends too), and for a number of years now I have just been installing Brave by default everywhere, on computers and phones.
It just works, is stable, not spyware, had integrated adblocker (Brave themselves finance uBlock Origin), and I know the browser will not actively try to break the addon which would lead to me getting calls for tech support.

If you're turboautismo there might be some better options, but for 5% of the work you can get 95% of the benefit.
Just install Brave.

how do people have bare surface level knowledge of the browser they're using?

> haha i'm using brave i'm unaffected
> i'm considering moving to opera
> i use vivaldi
> edge

like, all these browsers use chromium and these browsers will all NEED to fork chromium or adopt these same changes in the coming weeks or months. at this point, if you're not using firefox (or a fork such as librewolf) or safari, then it's almost a certainty that you're using chromium and this does affect you.

if you are using firefox (like me) then good luck because mozilla probably lost 80% of their revenue starting next year. not only that, but mozilla does plan on implementing some form of manifest v3 also (link). if you use safari, you're already a consoomer so reading this doesn't concern you.

basically, your only choice is librewolf who i had incorrectly assumed was downstream rather than a fork of firefox meaning it shouldn't receive manifest v3 upstream from mozilla....unless they implement it themselves. and no, brave is not a fork
you'd need to go back to the 90s to see such a barren browser ecosystem

https://x.com/brave/status/1821672514072010983

 

[skunt]

View attachment 6309508

https://x.com/brave/status/1821672514072010983

https://brave.com/blog/brave-shields-manifest-v3/

> For as long as we’re able (and assuming the cooperation of the extension authors), Brave will continue to support some privacy-relevant MV2 extensions—specifically AdGuard, NoScript, uBlock Origin, and uMatrix

I bolded the important part. In fact, if you look at the replies to that tweet you'll see this interaction:


You can make up your own mind why they suddenly stopped responding at that choice question.

 

[Monolith]

In case you can't switch away from Chrome for whatever reason, here's a viable alternative adblocker.

https://adnauseam.io/

 

[Bioniclelover]

Great moment to continue this retarded war by Google right after US has declared it to be a monopoly

 

[Crypto Six Gorillionaire]

Given that Google funds Firefox, do you not think they'll lean on them to stop blocking ads too?

 

[Grog]

Still need a youtube replacement to come out tho as I listen primarily on my phone and background play thru brave with the screen off is buggy at best lol.

ReVanced takes a little work to set up but works perfectly.

 

[Day of the Cope]

Given that Google funds Firefox, do you not think they'll lean on them to stop blocking ads too?

Reminder that most of the money given to Mozzarella from Google ends up going to NGOs or ends up lining the pockets of the CEO.

 

[Scarlett Johansson]

That's shitty. But now its just Firefox...though the AI search engine on google is kind of evil.

 

[Here to Gawk]

uBlock Origin is still working fine on Waterfox. I made the switch a few months ago from Brave to Waterfox after numerous issues with Brave and am quite pleased with Waterfox's performance. Highly recommended.

 

[Seymour Duncan]

Last I saw, Firefox also intended to shift to a state similar to Manifest V3 so both major browser engines were going to get fucked.

Firefox is indeed moving to support MV3, but unlike Google they aren't going to drop MV2 and continuing to support those extensions is one of their selling points.

 

[clipartfan92]

uBlock Origin is still working fine on Waterfox.

Waterfox was sold to an advertising company in 2020. He says they are independent again, but my trust in the project was gone with the initial sale.

 

[Kyuruma]

I have not looked into why Google was declared a monopoly (something regarding default search engines?), but if they should be broken up via antitrust it should be because of shit like this.

How is it not a blatant violation that they run the most popular web browser (chrome), directly influence W3 due to their status and market share, while simultaneously operating one of the largest ad providers? This is just the most obvious move yet, they've been slowly and quietly warping the internet to better shove ads down your throat for decades.

Ask yourself this, why is v3 not the default with V2(legacy) support being opt-in with security caveats? That's because this isn't about security, you're not allowed to have the tools you were armed with prior because after this they're bringing out the big guns. By removing dynamic filtering they're basically bombing the supply lines, adblockers as they currently exist won't be able to keep up with whatever changes they decide to roll out.