Over 40 million users of uBlock Origin, an ad blocker, are confronted with troubling news as Google Chrome prepares to roll out its Manifest V3 update. Many have received alerts indicating that the extension may soon be unsupported, sparking concerns about its future compatibility.
This change is part of a larger shift that introduces new regulations for browser extensions, particularly regarding the APIs developers can access and the permissions they can request. Such modifications raise important questions about user privacy and security, which are central to the ongoing discussion surrounding the update.
Manifest V2 has long served as the standard for Chrome extensions, but Google is set to eliminate it by June 2025. Already, some users with newer Chromebook models report being unable to download extensions still utilizing the older manifest version, according to PCWorld. With these impending changes, the landscape for popular extensions like uBlock Origin is becoming increasingly precarious.