Google Chrome will soon crack down on ad blockers

  • Google Chrome version 150, releasing on June 30, will remove the last way to keep older ad blockers in the browser
  • This will mark the end of the popular uBlock Origin, which tens of millions of people rely on in Chrome
  • Alternatives exist, but none of them will offer exactly what uBlock Origin was capable of until now

Sdílejte:
Adam Kurfürst
Adam Kurfürst
24. 6. 2026 04:30
Advertisement

After years of delays, the final blow is coming. Google is gradually phasing out older extension types, and with them, the most effective ad blockers are falling. The decisive step will be taken as early as June 30, when Chrome 150 arrives on computers.

What will happen in the browser on June 30

The transition has been running in the background for years, but now it’s reaching its finale. Chrome version 149, stable since June 2, was the last where an ad blocker could be revived manually via a launch switch. As reported by 9to5Google, Chrome 150 will simply delete this switch. Thus, from June 30, uBlock Origin and other extensions built on the so-called Manifest V2 will cease to function. The subsequent Chrome 151 version, expected in July, will also remove the remaining safeguards.

Google leaves no one in doubt. “Manifest V2 extensions are no longer allowed in any supported version of Chrome, and we are deprecating support for them and related features,” said Google engineer Devlin Cronin. Yet, uBlock Origin alone is used by an estimated 40 million people in Chrome.

Manifest V3: blocking only by list

Why will this change affect ad blockers so much? It’s about how they work. The old Manifest V2 allowed extensions to monitor and filter network traffic in real-time – enabling the blocker to adapt flexibly and catch even ads that loaded later. The new Manifest V3 prohibits this. Extensions must declare their rules in advance as a ready-made list, and their number is limited from above.

Google Chrome will soon crack down on ad blockers Adam Kurfürst News

In practice, this means that the successor, named uBlock Origin Lite, does work in Chrome, but with far weaker capabilities: it cannot perform so-called cosmetic filtering (hiding empty spaces left by ads), it cannot handle large custom filter lists, nor on-the-fly modifications. Google defends the entire move with increased security and privacy protection – extensions will no longer see all your traffic.

If you do nothing, Chrome will automatically disable the extension after the update and simply display a notification that it is no longer supported. While saved settings will not disappear, the ad blocker will stop doing its job.

What will you do – stick with Chrome, or switch elsewhere due to ad blocking?

Sources: 9to5Google, Android Police, Cybernews

About the author

Adam Kurfürst

Adam studuje na gymnáziu a technologické žurnalistice se věnuje od svých 14 let. Pakliže pomineme jeho vášeň pro chytré telefony, tablety a příslušenství, rád se… More about the author

Adam Kurfürst
Sdílejte: