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uBlock Origin developer recommends switching to Firefox as Chrome flags the extension (github.com)

submitted 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago) by TheImpressiveX@lemmy.ml to c/technology@lemmy.world

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~~https://www.neowin.net/news/ublock-origin-developer-recommends-switching-to-ublock-lite-as-chrome-flags-the-extension/~~

EDIT: Apologies. Updated with a link to what gorhill REALLY said:

Manifest v2 uBO will not be automatically replaced by Manifest v3 uBOL[ight]. uBOL is too different from uBO for it to silently replace uBO -- you will have to explicitly make a choice as to which extension should replace uBO according to your own prerogatives.

Ultimately whether uBOL is an acceptable alternative to uBO is up to you, it's not a choice that will be made for you.

Will development of uBO continue? Yes, there are other browsers which are not deprecating Manifest v2, e.g. Firefox.

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[-] Mars2k21@sh.itjust.works 112 points 4 months ago

This has been a long time in the making...hopefully Firefox will see a market share increase. Google is doing this right as they get slapped by an antitrust ruling ironically lol. If you haven't already just go ahead and switch, if you like Lemmy you'll probably like Firefox as well.

Side note: I try not to be negative here, but this would be a great time for Mozilla to get their act together as an organization. Love Firefox and the idea, but Mozilla has been pissing off the FOSS space for a while now with their decisions. If they've improved in recent years, disregard this.

[-] PM_Your_Nudes_Please@lemmy.world 47 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

The tricky part is that Google isn’t wrong about Manifest v3 increasing security for some people. Just allowing any extension to access the full URLs from a webpage is honestly pretty sketchy for most things that aren’t adblockers. Think about Beth in accounting who has 27 bloatware toolbar extensions installed on her home PC, which are happily collecting her full browser history and sending it off to gods know where. Manifest v3 is targeted at increasing security for those users, by making it more difficult for extensions to track you.

The issue is that it also makes ad blocking virtually impossible, because the blocker is forced to just trust that the browser is being truthful about what is and isn’t on the page. And when the browser (developed by one of the largest advertisers in the world) has a vested financial interest in displaying ads, there’s very little trust that the browser will actually be honest.

The issue is that there’s not some sort of “yes, I really want this extension to have full access” legacy workaround built in. Yes, it would inevitably be abused by those scummy extensions, which would just nag idiot users to allow them full access. And the idiot users, being idiots, would just do it without understanding the risks. Even if Chrome threw up all kinds of big red “hey make sure this extension actually needs full access and isn’t just tracking your shit” warning flags, there are still plenty of users who would happily give bloatware full access without reading any of the warnings. But it would also allow ad blockers to continue to function.

[-] Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works 16 points 4 months ago

The single biggest security improvement you could make for Beth in accounting would be to install UBO. Where do you think she gets all those shitty toolbar extensions? That's right, from ads.

This is targeted at destroying adblockers because Google is, first and foremost, an ad serving company. That's their business model. It incidentally improves security for certain users in certain edge cases, because they need some kind of figleaf of legitimacy.

[-] helpImTrappedOnline@lemmy.world 2 points 4 months ago

Ads and crappy installers, all though that seems less common than it used to be. I can't say if that's a general trend or tunnel vision due to me not installing crapware.

[-] x00z@lemmy.world 5 points 4 months ago

If it was about security then they should simply block Manifest v2 extensions from their store or at least start doing some actual verification of the extensions they host. Taking away freedom claiming it to be for security is almost always a lie.

[-] helpImTrappedOnline@lemmy.world 2 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

Verify! But what will all the "Cändy Crunch 7 Browser Edition with 12 Free Play Levels" players do?

[-] send_cortical_nodes@startrek.website 15 points 4 months ago

Can you share some examples of things that pisses off the FOSS space? Mostly just curious to understand more

[-] irreticent@lemmy.world 14 points 4 months ago

Here's the most recent example:

Firefox’s new data collection feature sparks user backlash: here’s how to disable it

The browser that promises “no shady privacy notices or advertiser backdoors” on its storefront has suddenly added an experimental feature to beam user interactions to advertisers and enables it by default. Many are not happy.

[-] ILikeBoobies@lemmy.ca 3 points 4 months ago

That’s a good thing

Getting trackers out of cookies is something users want

this post was submitted on 05 Aug 2024

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