Starting June 3, Google will begin implementing its plan to disable Manifest V2 Chrome extensions, which could impact ad blockers. Preview users of the browser will be the first to notice the changes.
Initial Rollout and Impact on Beta Users
Disabling Chrome extensions created using the Manifest V2 framework will begin on June 3 and will initially affect users of beta versions of the browser, including those in the Dev and Canary channels. Users with Manifest V2 extensions installed will start seeing a warning banner when visiting the extension management page – chrome://extensions – informing them that some of these extensions will soon no longer be supported. This change was announced by Google on the Chromium blog.
Gradual Transition for Stable Chrome Users
For users of the stable version of Chrome, the disabling of legacy extensions will happen “gradually over the coming months” with the goal to “complete the transition by early next year.” Google is pushing all users towards alternative and more relevant extensions created on the Manifest V3 framework, which, according to the company, is more secure and confidential. Over the past several years, Google has encouraged the community to move away from Manifest V2. While Manifest V3 is designed to protect users from aggressive data collection, the new framework has been criticized for its requirements that could potentially disrupt the functionality of ad blockers.
Google disputes this characterization, stating that “more than 85% of actively supported extensions in the Chrome Web Store use Manifest V3, and all of the most popular content filtering extensions have versions of Manifest V3 available – users can choose between AdBlock, Adblock Plus, uBlock Origin, and AdGuard,” according to the company’s blog. Indeed, the uBlock Origin Lite extension based on Manifest V3 has already been released, though 37 million users still use the Manifest V2 version of the extension.
Challenges and Solutions for Ad Blockers
The new version of the framework, however, does pose challenges for ad blockers. “Currently, our filter lists are updated automatically, often several times a day. So if you see an ad that has managed to bypass the blocking filter, it will usually be removed immediately thanks to these updates. Manifest V3 has made it so that we will no longer be able to produce these types of updates in the same way,” warns Adblock. Nevertheless, the developer has found a workaround through “differential filter list updates” and hopes that users will not notice the difference.
To further encourage the transition to Manifest V3, Google plans to remove the “Recommended” label from Manifest V2-based extensions in the Chrome Store, adds NIXSolutions. Developers will be able to support legacy extensions until June 2025.
We’ll keep you updated as this transition progresses, ensuring that you have the latest information on how these changes may impact your browsing experience.