Ad blockers are one of the most-used browser plug-ins. It is hardly surprising, after all, they guarantee blissful peace while browsing the internet. But are you sure? The AdGuard team warns against two of them that, while realizing the main goal, but add a surprise from the creators.
The case concerns AdBlock plugins by AdBlock Inc. and a uBlock programmer named Charlie Lee. Both are for the Chrome browser and are located in the Chrome Web Store.
In addition to decent action, which is to block broadly defined ads, as established by AdGuard specialists, plugins collect tracking cookies from various websites. This is the main element of the scam called cookie filling . The chain includes the most known domains such as microsoft.com, linkedin.com, aliexpress.com and booking.com.
The presence of this type of cookie means that all activity on the above-mentioned pages is received as coming from the referral link, of course belonging to the dishonest creators of the said blockers. They earn money in this way by collecting commissions.
According to experts, the scale of the scam is really huge. The plugins have a total of 1.6 million active users per day who constantly stuff cheat wallets.
Affiliate linking is not a threat in itself. However, you also have to remember that similarly you can drop someone more invasive spies , directly collecting sensitive data. It is therefore worth a closer look at the installed extensions.
NOTE : The harmfulness has been confirmed ONLY in the context of the two plugins listed in the article. Other blockers can be considered safe.
Don’t forget to check out :
- What is Hacking? – Definition from Trenovision
- What is Vulnerability Management? – Definition from Trenovision
- How to Secure Your Mobile Device Data ?
- 10 Types of Hackers You Should Know
