How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works • Hacker News Board

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#31

Post by mtgx » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:48 PM UTC

RyanShook wrote: post #24

I think Google is setting itself up for antitrust action. Isn’t this essentially what Microsoft did on the desktop by blocking competitors and priorritizing their own products?

Google may have pushed for this, but the standards were agreed upon by the ad industry:

https://marketingland.com/industry-groups-self-regulatory-pr...

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#32

Post by known » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:49 PM UTC

To sneak in Google ads?

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#33

Post by jacquesm » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:49 PM UTC

chaz6 wrote: post #20

I wouldn't trust a burglar to install my security system. I won't trust Google to block ads.

You can trust a burglar to install a security system that will keep other burglars out, but you can be 100% sure that you will not be able to keep the installer out, in fact you are just about giving them an incentive to rob you blind at the first opportunity. Google will do an amazing job at blocking competitor ads.

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#34

Post by jacquesm » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:50 PM UTC

Santosh83 wrote: post #17

It's a bit surreal that an advertising based company's browser will now block annoying ads by default while the privacy focused Mozilla corporation's browser is still not implementing any kind of built-in ad blocking.

You should not see this as a Google vs Mozilla thing but as a Google vs adblockers and Google vs its competing advertising networks issue. Then it makes much more sense.

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#35

Post by mtgx » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:50 PM UTC

Do these standards and this Chrome ad-blocker also solve the issue of advertisers putting crypto-mining scripts into their ads?

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#36

Post by jasode » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:51 PM UTC

d2wa wrote: post #8

ape4 wrote: post #2

if (domain != 'adsense') { blockAd(); }

Google uses EasyList and EasyPrivacy which includes AdSense, DoubleClick, Analytics, and other Google properties. Read the article.

I read the article but it doesn't clarify whether or not Google will hardcode a "whitelist" that will ignore EasyList entries for AdSense, DoubleClick, GoogleAnalytics, etc.

A comparable situation would be Windows 10 ignoring users' manually edited HOSTS file that attempts to block telemetry.[1] Microsoft has hardcoded hostname-to-ip resolution inside the networking stack (inside dnsapi.dll).

If Google decides that Chrome will ignore some entries in EasyList, it means EasyList is more of a "suggestions" filter rather than a "user's final authority" filter.

[1] https://www.petri.com/windows-10-ignoring-hosts-file-specifi...

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#37

Post by kyrra » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:51 PM UTC

If you want to go read the source yourself, I believe this is the implementation:

https://cs.chromium.org/chromium/src/extensions/browser/api/...

And the code reviews cover the feature are tagged with DNR: https://chromium-review.googlesource.com/?polygerrit=0#/q/Dn...

Edit: this may just be the net blocking code.

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#38

Post by Analemma_ » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:52 PM UTC

So, who wants to bet on the size of the inevitable EU fine for anticompetitive activity? Another €1.2 billion?

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#39

Post by jacquesm » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:52 PM UTC

mtgx wrote: post #31

RyanShook wrote: post #24

I think Google is setting itself up for antitrust action. Isn’t this essentially what Microsoft did on the desktop by blocking competitors and priorritizing their own products?

Google may have pushed for this, but the standards were agreed upon by the ad industry: https://marketingland.com/industry-groups-self-regulatory-pr...

The standards should be set by independent consumer watchdogs or the competent (one would hope) authorities, depending on the industry to self regulate has not worked in over 25 years, I see no reason why it would magically start to work now.

Re: How Google Chrome’s ad blocker works

#40

Post by quesera » Sat, Feb 03, 2018, 2:53 PM UTC

nothrabannosir wrote: post #27

MereInterest wrote: post #13

Google's incentives here are still antithetical to my own, so I'm going to stick with uBlock. For example, on Google search, ads masquerade as legitimate search results. These used to be highlighted in light yellow, clearly marking them as different from organic search results. Now, they only have the word "Ad" in light grey text. This notice is on the right, intentionally where it will be overlooked when reading thr…

> These used to be highlighted in light yellow, clearly marking them as different from organic search results. The specific shade of yellow was indiscernible from background white on a cheap laptop at almost any angle. I wish I'd taken a photo when I noticed. I knew people who had never even noticed the yellow, at all, let alone understood it was ads. I know, Never Attribute To Malice and all that, but hot damn, that…

Google is the company that user-tested 41 shades of blue¹.

Malice or not, that yellow was surely intentional, and working as intended.

[1] http://stopdesign.com/archive/2009/03/20/goodbye-google.html