I’m sure many of you are already aware that YouTube has been rolling out anti-adblock detection for Chrome users for a few weeks now.
Today, as a long time Firefox user with the fantastic uBlock Origin extension installed, I got my first anti-adblock popup on the platform. Note that this may not happen to you personally for a while, but it is inevitably coming for everyone.
Thankfully, the fine folks at uBlock Origin have already advised a simple workaround (on Reddit, yuck!) which I will duplicate in a simplified form below for your convenience. I have tested it on Firefox and it is working fine for me (so far).
PLEASE READ AND FOLLOW ALL OF THE INSTRUCTIONS IN THIS POST.
Update uBO to the latest version (1.52.0+) . <== The extension itself, for technical improvements. You do this in your browser.
Remove your custom config / reset to defaults. <== This means removing your custom filters (or disabling My filters) and disabling ALL additional lists you’ve enabled. It might be quicker to make a backup of your config and restore to defaults instead.
Force an update of your Filter Lists. <== This is within the extension. Lists are what determine what’s blocked or not. How to update Filter lists: Click 🛡️ uBO’s icon > the ⚙ Dashboard button > the Filter lists pane > the 🕘 Purge all caches button > the 🔃 Update now button.
Disable all other extensions AND your browser’s built-in blockers. <== No need to uninstall, just disable them. They might interfere with our solutions.
Make sure you follow all 4 points above. If you’re seeing the message, it’s likely due to your custom config (either additional lists or separate filters in My filters).
Restarting your browser afterwards may help too.
Once you’ve gotten rid of the issue on default settings, you can slowly start restoring your config (if you really need it). Do it gradually, to easier find out what was causing the issue in the first place. Once you find the culprit, simply skip it in your config.
If you want to use Enhancer for YouTube*, you have to* disable its adblocking*.*
May the force uBlock Origin be with you!
Update
Just wanted to mention a few things that have been pointed out in the comments:
- There are quite a few projects that provide an alternative ad-free front end to YouTube. These include Invidious, FreeTube, LibreTube, Newpipe, Revanced, and I’m sure there are several more options I’ve missed. I don’t have any particular preference really but I routinely use NewPipe on my cellphone just because I tried it once and couldn’t be bothered trying all the others.
- In step 4 listed above, to clarify, afaik you only need to remove adblocker extensions (if you have more than one installed) that might conflict with the uBlock Origin rules and trigger the anti-adblock, not all extensions.
- If you hate non-stop ads but want to support your favorite content creators then be sure to give them some love on Patreon or whatever alternative options they provide. Creators typically make only a tiny, tiny fraction of what YouTube makes in ad revenue, assuming YouTube doesn’t just outright steal the lot, and it’s a shitty business model that’s ruining the internet. Even if you watch the ads, you’re only supporting YouTube most of the time, not the creators.
Thank you for the comprehensible instructions!
Unfortunately, it doesn’t work with Edge (yet?).
Me, sadly, as it is the only browser installed on my work pc. We can’t install any other programs (working with highly sensitive data).
EDIT: It works now :D
If you can run EXE filles on your work PC and you just don’t have administrator rights to install software, you should be able to download a portable version of your favorite browser.
I used portable Firefox, Chrome, Notepad++, Eclipse, Sysinternals stuff and many more without problems that way.
Disclaimer: Althought this probably works technically, it might still violate some company policy.
Can confirm. I did that at college. Yes, it technically violated the policy, but even though my lecturers and everyone else knew, nobody batted an eye. When OP is working with sensitive data, however, things coupd be different.
If it’s a significantly controlled environment then executable whitelisting is likely in place. With my employer not only are applications whitelisted but even limiting it to specific versions of them. Makes for a bureaucratic nightmare if you want to do something outside the approved channels, but good luck ever pulling a drive-by on one of their machines.
that sounds like it’s going to blow up at some point
I work in government and spend all day remoting into judges’, prison officers’, and social workers’ PCs. The most sensitive material you can imagine and all of it on windows.
Now look up how old your hospital’s systems are which store all your health records lol
F for our brother
Ask your admin if he can allow other browsers.
Why would a sysadmin do extra work so someone can watch YouTube lol
Quit your iob
Uh, if it’s work:
A. Shouldn’t you be working?
Or
B. Ads while I get paid, doesn’t seem too bad.
C. Principle of the matter dammit!
YouTube has a lot of great instructional and educational content. I use it at work fairly regularly for that.
Yeah, I was just joking around, surprised people took it that seriously. I mean if there are ads, I am getting paid either way…
I noticed that the best of the educational and instructional videos, particularly from the companies using it for training and demonstration have turned off ads anyways. Youtube is not quite yet forcing ads on everyone are they?