Google is finally killing uBlock Origin in Chrome for good

The conflict of interest couldn't be more obvious

If you’ve been using workarounds to keep uBlock Origin alive in Chrome, they’re about to stop working.

Google has started removing the internal flags that allowed Manifest V2 extensions to keep running. Chrome 150 already dropped one. Chrome 151 will drop the rest, including the Windows Registry workaround that many people were using as a last resort.

The developer of uBlock Origin, Raymond Hill, has indicated that Opera also plans to abandon MV2-based extensions, so the problem will extend beyond Chrome.

What’s actually going on

Browsers run extensions using a framework called a Manifest. The old version (MV2) let extensions like uBlock Origin inspect web traffic directly and make filtering decisions in real time. The new version (MV3) changes this: instead of inspecting traffic itself, an extension now submits a static list of rules to the browser and the browser decides what to block.

The result is weaker blocking. uBlock Origin, which the MV3 ruleset limitations make functionally impossible to replicate, cannot exist under the new system. The “Lite” version that does exist is, by most accounts, noticeably worse.

The conflict of interest nobody at Google seems embarrassed about

Google makes the vast majority of its money from advertising. The company that profits from every ad you see also controls the browser used by most people on earth, and has now decided that extensions which block ads can no longer run the way they need to in order to work.

Google’s stated reasons are technical: MV3 is supposedly more secure, more performant, reduces complexity. These arguments are not completely without merit. But they also happen to produce exactly the outcome that benefits Google’s core business.

Where you can still get real ad blocking

• Brave: Chromium-based but has committed to continued MV2 support and ships its own ad blocker by default

• Firefox: supports both MV2 and MV3, uBlock Origin works fully, Mozilla has committed to keeping it that way, and other Gecko-based browsers provide this too if you’d prefer not to use Firefox

• Vivaldi: also appears to be holding MV2 support for now

If you want to stay on Chrome, uBlock Origin Lite is your only option, and it will let more through. One user’s summary: “The web is literally unusable without uBlock Origin.” That’s not hyperbole for millions of people, it’s the difference between a functional web and a wall of ads, trackers, and autoplaying video.

The bottom line?

This isn’t a technical migration story. It’s a company that sells ads removing the most effective tool users have to block them, dressed up as a browser security improvement. The fact that Edge is following and Opera is likely to follow just shows how much of the browser market Google’s decisions effectively control.

If you care about this, the answer is the same it’s always been: don’t let a company that profits from your attention control the software you use to access the internet. Use another dang browser!