10 Ways to Hack UBlock Origin That Everyone Should Know.
uBlock Origin is a lightweight, effective framework free of questionable business practices. Unfortunately, Google’s transition to Manifest V3 for browser extensions has somewhat hampered the work of ad blockers . In response, uBlock split into two products— uBlock Origin and uBlock Origin Lite . The Lite version works with most Chromium-based browsers and Safari for iPhone, iPad, and Mac . The full version of uBlock Origin primarily works in Firefox for desktops, laptops, and Android. Given these differences, here are 10 ways to hack uBlock Origin (and uBlock Origin Lite) you should know.
Use uBlock Origin Lite’s basic filters to block ads without allowing access to tabs.
When using uBlock Origin Lite in Chrome or Safari, you can choose from three filtering levels: Basic, Optimal, and Complete. Basic filters block fewer ads than others, but don’t require access to your tabs or data. Most extensions these days require access to all your tabs, so uBlock Origin Lite’s Basic filters are an exception, as they use a minimal amount of your data.
Enable these filters to get rid of banners indicating the use of cookies.
Both uBlock Origin and its Lite version have built-in filters that allow you to block annoying cookie notifications on most websites . To access these features in uBlock Origin in any browser, click the extension icon on your browser’s toolbar and select the gear icon. This will open the uBlock Origin settings page. Under “Filter Lists,” enable EasyList/uBO – Cookie Notifications . This should automatically hide most cookie notification banners online.
Use the Remove Elements tool to remove distracting elements.
If you see a distracting element on a webpage, you can use the “Block Element” tool in uBlock Origin to quickly hide it. To do this, click the extension icon in any browser and select the lightning bolt icon. Now you can click the distracting element, and the extension will immediately hide it from the webpage. In the Firefox version of uBlock Origin, you can also use the element selection tool to select an element and choose from a list of elements to block. For example, if you want to block a sponsored results widget, the selection tool allows you to click the element and select various tags associated with the widget. This allows for more precise blocking without having to click exactly where the entire widget is on the page.
To use it in Firefox, click the uBlock Origin icon on the toolbar and select the Eyedropper tool. You can select an element and use the drop-down menu in the blocker pop-up window to choose from a list of classes to hide on the page.
Use this button to disable JavaScript and improve your privacy in Firefox.
uBlock Origin for Firefox offers a way to disable JavaScript on any webpage with a single click. This can be used to block trackers, annoying features that interfere with scrolling, and generally improve privacy. The risk is that blocking JavaScript can also break webpages, so it’s best to test this on individual pages rather than disabling it at the browser level. To try this in uBlock Origin for Firefox, open a webpage and click the extension icon in the toolbar. You can then click the > icon to disable JavaScript on the webpage. Reload the page, and Firefox will load it without JavaScript.
Use these keyboard shortcuts to disable uBlock Origin on an individual page in Firefox.
In Firefox, you can disable uBlock Origin for an individual webpage. This is useful when an ad blocker is disrupting a webpage or causing certain elements to load incorrectly. To do this, click the extension icon in the toolbar and, while holding down the Ctrl key on your keyboard, click the power button icon. Reload the page, and uBlock Origin will be disabled for that specific webpage.
Blocking large media elements can reduce Firefox’s data usage.
uBlock Origin for Firefox allows you to block large media elements on all websites (or on individual pages). This helps reduce data consumption on a limited internet connection. You can use it to block media elements larger than a specified threshold, such as 10 KB, 20 KB, and so on. To try this on a single webpage, click the uBlock Origin icon in the toolbar, then the filmstrip icon. Reload the page, and you’ll notice that some elements don’t load. To set a custom size threshold for these elements, go to uBlock Origin’s settings in Firefox. Click the “Settings” tab and scroll down to “Default Behavior.” Enable the “Block media elements larger than ” option and use the text field next to it to set the threshold size (in kilobytes).
Try this blacklist to hide search results summaries generated by Google’s AI.
uBlock Origin and its Lite version have a built-in AI blocker that includes search result summaries generated by Google’s AI . To enable this feature, click the uBlock Origin toolbar icon, select the gear icon, and go to the “Filters” section . You can also enable EasyList—AI widgets . Now, if you search for anything on Google, you’ll notice that the AI-generated summaries no longer appear at the top.
Use the backup feature to sync uBlock Origin settings across browsers and devices.
uBlock Origin for Firefox has a built-in sync feature that uses your Firefox account to sync settings across devices, but this feature is not available in uBlock Origin Lite. In Firefox, you can go to uBlock Origin settings and enable cloud storage support . After doing so, your uBlock Origin settings will sync across all devices where you’re logged in with the same Firefox account.
There’s also a manual sync feature that works in both versions of uBlock Origin. Go to the extension’s settings, open the “Settings” tab, and select the “Backup” button. This will back up your uBlock Origin settings to a file and save it on your device. You can use the “Restore” button on the same settings page to load the saved settings in any browser running uBlock Origin. The only limitation is that you can sync uBlock Origin Lite settings with other browsers running the Lite version, while the Firefox version of uBlock Origin can only sync with other Firefox instances.
Use uBlock Origin tracking link blocker to prevent websites from tracking your clicks.
Many websites add trackers to links you copy. Sites like Instagram, Facebook, and Threads use links to track which profile shared them with you . Fortunately, uBlock Origin can block most of these trackers. In uBlock Origin’s settings, go to the “Filters” section and enable AdGuard/uBO – URL Tracking Protection . However, I recommend checking URLs before sharing them with others. Sometimes you may need to manually remove tracking data, as no tracking protection feature is completely foolproof.
Reduce tracking on international websites with regional block lists.
uBlock Origin also comes with regional blocklists that block trackers from different countries around the world. If you frequently access websites from abroad, you should enable these blocklists in the uBlock Origin settings. In the Filters tab, click Regions & Languages to expand the list. This will display all blocklists for specific countries or regions. Enable the ones you need, and you’re all set.