Google is purging ad-blocking extension uBlock Origin from the Chrome Web Store

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Alfonso Maruccia

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Bottom line: After years of delaying the adoption of Manifest V3, Google is now moving forward and accelerating the process. Soon, users will have to choose between accepting Chrome's inferior ad-blocking technology or switching to a different browser.

According to recent user reports, uBlock Origin is quickly disappearing from the Chrome Web Store. The official page for the ad-blocking extension now states that it is unavailable because it doesn't comply with Chrome's "best practices" for add-ons. However, we can confirm that the page is still accessible from our EU Windows client.

For those who already have uBlock Origin installed, Chrome now displays a warning that the extension is becoming obsolete. Google introduced Manifest V3 in 2018, claiming it would replace Manifest V2 in the Chromium project due to its supposedly enhanced security features.

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Manifest V3 extensions have restricted access to browser and web data, a particularly troublesome limitation for ad blockers and other security-related add-ons. This shift will essentially force the developers of popular extensions like uBlock Origin to retire their creations from Chrome, leaving users with more limited alternatives based on Manifest V3, such as uBlock Origin Lite.

While Google acknowledged that the transition from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3 would be significant for the Chrome extension ecosystem, the company has decided to move forward regardless. In June, Chrome began displaying warning banners about uBlock Origin and other Manifest V2 extensions, and now the anticipated "extension apocalypse" seems to be entering its final phase.

Chrome power users can continue using uBlock Origin to block ads effectively until June 2025, as Google offers an enterprise policy (ExtensionManifestV2Availability) to ease the transition. After that, uBlock Origin will likely stop functioning, and users will need to switch to a Manifest V3-based ad blocker like uBlock Origin Lite, AdGuard, or similar alternatives.

Some third-party Chromium-based browsers, such as Opera and Vivaldi, have stated that they have no plans to drop support for Manifest V2, although maintaining the older technology may become difficult or impossible over time.

Meanwhile, Mozilla Firefox – according to uBlock devs – continues to offer the best ad-blocking experience and will support Manifest V2 for the foreseeable future.

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Google is purging ad-blocking extension uBlock Origin from the Chrome Web Store

 
This is an absolutely amazing opportunity for a non-Chrome browser to gain a lot of market share. I hope one or more make the most of it. uBlock Origin should not be shy telling its users where its flagship experience is still available.
 
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brucek said:
This is an absolutely amazing opportunity for a non-Chrome browser to gain a lot of market share. I hope one or more make the most of it. uBlock Origin should not be shy telling its users where its flagship experience is still available.
Click to expand...

uBlock Origin has always recommended Firefox as the best adblocking browser experience currently available, so they're not shy at all :-D
 
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Switched all my devices to Firefox about 4 years ago. Ads have gotten out of control. Something I find really annoying is when something opens up in chrome on android. I hit the back button to leave the site but instead it just takes me the "related articles" part of a website and doesn't, actually, take me off the page. Or when I hit the back button and it opens a popup asking me to enter my email for a newsletter on a website. And I do have FF set as my default browser on Android. However, Android still opens some links in chrome. I have a VPN adblocker on my phone but the ads still someone get through on chrome.

Mobile internet is insufferable and unusable without an adblocker.
 
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I use Edge. I don't even have Chrome installed on my PC. Edge Canary can use ublock on mobile as well.
 
dangh said:
I use brave and ff, so I'm not really affected.. yet. I do get the ads helps some sites, but I dont want to scrolling a dozen of them trying to read an article in between.
Click to expand...

I decided to try Vivaldi with Adguard filter lists... Not the extension. I went into the settings and manually added the AdGuard Filter Lists and disable all of Vivaldi's built in lists. I didn't think it would be this effective or quick but here it is.
 
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I imported all my saved sites and such to FF about 6 months ago. I kind of bounce between chrome and ff still.

To be fair, I've disabled chrome from updating a year and a half ago - so many changes that were coming through were gawd awful to use and look at so I just disabled updates for it. If uBlock Origin stops working on Chrome I'll just delete it and never look back, no sweat off my sack.
 
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Have never used Chrome other than to Chromcast Plex to my TV and even then I use Edge for that task only. I actually think it's a sh!te browser and I will never use it for my normal browsing. I will continue to use FF as I have since it first came out, and if I must use a Chromium based browser I will use Brave or Vivaldi.

Google can go screw themselves.
 
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And yet, I don't see any issues. Oh yeah, that's because I don't use uBlock; I use something else that's way more powerful than any extension of the browser.
 
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I feel obliged to mention that every browser that isn't Firefox is using Chromium*. So for those that flee from Chrome please use Firefox.
Anything Chromium based Google will find a way to make it more difficult for a decent adblocker sooner or later.

Funnily enough the more users Firefox has the more Google end ups paying for it's development because of their default search engine deal.

* Yes there's some other browsers based on Gecko that aren't Firefox, a few Webkit ones and there's Safari on Apple devices and 'ladybird' is a work in progress. But realistically the only browser that's usable on whatever platform and isn't Chromium based is Firefox.
 
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Swapped to FireFox as well - did as soon as I saw Chrome was mixing its add revenue into the quality of the browser. I do understand Google..as adds is their primary revenue - but when you almost cant see a page for all the adds and autoplay videos - there’s a limit to what anyone should endure
 
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Time to leave Chrome if they ban ad blockers. Plenty of other options these days.

Google shot themself in the foot I think. Even less tech friends of mine rely on adblockers and they will change browser if they are forced.

Ads = Ruined overview on web pages, massive cpu and gpu load at times = battery drain and/or higher power usage.

I hate ads.
 
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