Google has removed uBlock Origin from the Chrome Web Store as Chrome finishes its move away from Manifest V2. Google says Manifest V3 is meant to improve security and privacy, but it also limits how content-blocking extensions can work. The original uBlock Origin is not dead, It still works on browsers that support Manifest V2, including Firefox, there is also uBlock Origin Lite for Manifest V3, but it has fewer features.

Firefox is calling out Microsoft Edge over its plans to limit ad blockers. Microsoft is moving away from the older Manifest V2 system for browser extensions. This will eventually affect the full version of uBlock Origin on Edge. Firefox says it will continue supporting it. “Our support for uBlock Origin isn’t going anywhere.” “Reminder that you can still just… use ad blockers on Firefox. Wild concept, we know.”

DuckDuckGo has added built-in YouTube ad blocking to its browser “Tired of ads interrupting your videos? Us, too,” The new feature blocks most ads that play before and during YouTube videos while keeping the normal YouTube experience, including watch history and playlists. It works on the YouTube website, not the YouTube app. The feature is already enabled by default on iPhone, Windows, and Mac. Android users can turn it on manually for now, with automatic rollout coming soon. The company also explained that it uses “community-driven filter lists sourced from uBlock Origin” alongside its own compatibility rules.

Google Chrome is about to eliminate the last loopholes that allowed older ad blockers to keep working. According to The Verge, Chrome versions 150 and 151, expected in late June and July, will remove the final pieces of code related to Manifest V2 extensions. This means legacy ad blockers such as the original uBlock Origin will no longer function in Chrome, with only Manifest V3-compatible extensions supported. Google says the change is necessary due to technical debt and security risks from the old system. Critics argue that Manifest V3 limits the effectiveness of advanced ad blockers and privacy tools. Most Chrome users have already switched to Manifest V3 alternatives like uBlock Origin Lite, while others have moved to browsers that still support Manifest V2 extensions.

YouTube’s website is currently affected by a major bug that causes individual video tabs to consume over 7 GB of RAM. Users are experiencing severe lag, frozen tabs, and in some cases the entire browser becomes unresponsive. The issue stems from an endless loop in how the interface handles the action buttons below the video player (Like, Share, Save, etc.). The layout code repeatedly shows and hides buttons as it tries to fit them into the available space, triggering constant browser recalculations. This bug impacts Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave, and other browsers. A reliable temporary fix is to block the problematic menu using an ad blocker such as uBlock Origin. Add this filter: www(.)youtube(.)com###menu# This removes the buttons under the player but immediately stops the memory leak and freezing.