I was in my normal tech video catch-up this morning via Youtube and one of the channels I subscribe to Brett In Tech has a new video uploaded since last night all about 8 Free Programs we should NOT have on our computer.
Surprisingly I saw one of my trusted Chrome extensions on the list and I was like wow this cannot be true it seems that I was not dreaming and as Brett In Tech advises AdBlock & AdBlock Plus are not in the adblocking game but now in the ad creating game.
EyeO seems to be the company that has taken over the AdBlock & AdBlock Plus and when you go into their first line when you search for them on Google you see that they are in the Advertising game and not in the Adblocking game.
“Eyeo earns money from advertisers who are let through the adblocker.27 Oct 2022”
What is the risk of using AdBlock?
If you installed AdBlock (or an extension with a similar name to AdBlock) from anywhere else, it may contain adware or malware that can infect your computer. AdBlock is open-source software, which means that anyone can take our code and use it for their own, sometimes nefarious, purposes.25 Jan 2023
What is an alternative to AdBlock & AdBlock Plus?
Brett In Tech advises using a similar adblocker like AdBlock Plus called UBlock Origin This Chrome extension that can be used on any Chromium-based browser is easy to setup and install and does not leave you at risk of passing your data onto third-party partners.
Where can I find UBlock Origin?
Ublock Origin can be found in any of the Chromium browsers’ web stores links are provided below.
The setup and installation process is the same as any extension install please see the videos provided.
Finally, an efficient blocker. Easy on CPU and memory.
IMPORTANT: uBlock Origin is completely unrelated to the site “ublock.org”.
uBlock Origin is not an “ad blocker”, it’s a wide-spectrum content blocker with CPU and memory efficiency as a primary feature.
Out of the box, these lists of filters are loaded and enforced:
- uBlock Origin filter lists
- EasyList (ads)
- EasyPrivacy (tracking)
- Peter Lowe’s Ad server list (ads and tracking)
- Online Malicious URL Blocklist
More lists are available for you to select if you wish:
- Annoyances (cookie warnings, overlays, etc.)
- hosts-based lists
- And many others
Additionally, you can point-and-click to block JavaScript locally or globally, create your own global or local rules to override entries from filter lists, and many more advanced features.
Free.
Open source with public license (GPLv3)
For users by users.
If ever you really do want to contribute something, think about the people working hard to maintain the filter lists you are using, which were made available to use by all for free.
Documentation:
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock#ublock-origin
Project change log:
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/releases
Contributors @ Github:
https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/graphs/contributors
Contributors @ Crowdin:
https://crowdin.net/project/ublock
An efficient blocker: Fast, potent and lean, and yet can load and enforce thousands more filters than other popular blockers out there.
Illustrated overview of its efficiency: https://github.com/gorhill/uBlock/wiki/uBlock-vs.-ABP:-efficiency-compared
Usage: The big power button in the popup is to permanently disable/enable uBlock for the current web site. It applies to the current web site only, it is not a global power button.
Flexible, it’s more than an “ad blocker”: it can also read and create filters from hosts files.
Out of the box, these lists of filters are loaded and enforced:
- EasyList
- Peter Lowe’s Ad server list
- EasyPrivacy
- Malware domains
More lists are available for you to select if you wish:
- Fanboy’s Enhanced Tracking List
- Dan Pollock’s hosts file
- hpHosts’s Ad and tracking servers
- MVPS HOSTS
- Spam404
- And many others
Of course, the more filters enabled, the higher the memory footprint. Yet, even after adding Fanboy’s two extra lists, hpHosts’s Ad and tracking servers, uBlock Origin still has a lower memory footprint than other very popular blockers out there.
Also, be aware that selecting some of these extra lists may lead to a higher likelihood of website breakage — especially those lists that are normally used as host files.
Free.
Open source with public license (GPLv3)
For users by users.
If ever you really do want to contribute something, think about the people working hard to maintain the filter lists you are using, which were made available to all for free.
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