One Of The Most Popular Google Chrome Ad Blockers Will Soon Stop Working: Here Are Your Options

One of the most popular Google Chrome ad blockers, uBlock Origin, will soon stop working, with Google announcing that it is going ahead with implementing a new change in the Chrome browser.

What Happened: Google has announced that it is resuming plans to overhaul how extensions function on Chrome, threatening how several extensions, including the popular uBlock Origin ad blocker, work.

The Alphabet Inc. GOOG GOOGL company aims to implement these changes by July 2024.

Manifest V2 extensions will be disabled in Chrome Dev, Canary, and Beta builds as early as June 2024. Upon Google’s switch to Manifest V3, these extensions will be automatically disabled, and users can no longer install them from the Chrome Web Store.

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Manifest V3, in development since late 2018, includes broad changes to how Chrome extensions work. This includes the modification of an API, which will effectively end the functionality of ad-blockers like uBlock Origin that use it to block ads.

Here Are Your Options

Switch To Firefox

Users who wish to continue using uBlock Origin may need to switch to Firefox.

However, the developer released a Manifest V3-compliant version, uBlock Origin Lite, utilizing the new API. It likely won't be as effective as the original ad blocker.

Don't Update Google Chrome

Since the Google Chrome update with the new manifest is scheduled to be rolled out in July 2024, one option available is to simply not update the browser.

However, since browser updates often include security updates, we don't recommend blocking Google Chrome updates.

Why It Matters: The transition to Manifest V3 has been contentious since it was first announced in 2018.

If the uBlock Origin developer does not manage to work around the restrictions imposed by the new update, not only will the original adblocker stop working, but the proposed "Lite" version might also prove to be less effective.

Image Credits – Shutterstock

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of Benzinga Neuro and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.