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screenshotWebAPI Blocker  |  Download Easily block (nullify) undesired WebAPI(s) and protect your privacy.

Some of the important features of the WebAPI Blocker addon are listed below. This is followed by an overview of this addon. This summary contains few words about the addon, its function, and its features. Next is FAQ, this section is useful to get information about how this addon works in your browser. If you couldn't find a specific answer, please fill the bug report form on this page or the contact form on the homepage to let us know about your question. Following the FAQ, is the bug report form. It is designed to collect user feedbacks and bugs about this addon. Users can suggest improvements or feature requests through this form too. The next section is for submitting comments about this addon which uses the Facebook comments plugin. The last section is dedicated to reports submitted through the GitHub website. We hope the information provided on this page, could help you get all the basics you need about this addon and enable you to have a better experience with WebAPI Blocker.

In short, WebAPI Blocker let you easily block and nullify a desired web API via toolbar popup UI. Please check the YouTube tutorial below to get an idea of how this addon works in your browser. If you want to contribute to the developement of this addon, please fork it on GitHub, and push your changes to a named branch. Moreover, you can review all the comments made on GitHub commits.

4 Reasons to Use WebAPI Blocker

  • Block any unwanted web API and protect your privacy.

  • Has an ON|OFF switch button to easily activate or deactivate the addon.

  • Has a dropdown menu with a list of all HTML5 APIs to choose from.

  • Available for all browsers and platforms (Window, Linux and Mac).

YouTube Tutorial

This video gives you an idea of how the extension works in your browser.

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Overview

  • Data privacy and security has become a major concern for online users. Different websites we visit tend to store certain information from our browsers and can be shared by third-party companies. Modern browsers nowadays have a variety of JavaScript APIs due to which they offer enhanced functionalities. These APIs for example can detect the location of the user along with extracting other details about them. It is recommended for users to take some precautionary measures from their end to protect their privacy and security. These measures include adding plugins on their browsers that help to block certain web APIs. Among these extensions, WebAPI Blocker aims to make your internet browsing more secure and better protect your data. Wondering whether you should install it or not? Continue reading this in-depth review of WebAPI Blocker to know more!

    WebAPI Blocker, as the name suggests, is designed to block desired JavaScript APIs. This can help to protect your privacy and prevent chances of data breach, hacking or fraud. The extension is easy to use as it has an ON|OFF button. Once you have switched the button ON, it will start to block unwanted APIs and vice versa. Adding APIs is also not a tough task; all you have to do is to type the name of the API you want to block in the designated space and then click the add button next to it. For the convenience of users, there are some commonly used APIs pre-listed in the extension. You can check the ones you want to block from the list or remove them as you feel are harmless when it comes to your data security. Its prominent feature is that it can work on any browser. Whether you use Chrome, Firefox or Opera, you can use its exceptional features to protect your privacy by downloading it. Moreover, it is also available for other operating systems apart from Windows. Smartphone and tablet users can also use this extension on their browsers. It is important to note that this extension features no separate settings page. The popup UI, which can be accessed by clicking on the icon in toolbar popup, has few adjustment settings. Moreover, if the user requires to block an API while browsing a tab, they will have to refresh the tab before the changes could take place. Without refreshing, the addon cannot take any action. Lastly, the user requires to have some knowledge related to the functions of the API. If they have mistakenly blocked an API that is important to load a website, the performance of that particular website may be impacted. It may not load completely or become unresponsive. If such an issue occurs, check the APIs you have blocked, try unblocking them, refresh the tab, and check whether the website loads correctly or not. All in all, installing WebAPI Blocker extension could be a viable way to protect your privacy; however, it is important to be aware of the functions of important APIs.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • 1. What is WebAPI Blocker?

    WebAPI Blocker is a multi-browser addon that let you easily block and nullify a desired web API. Simply open toolbar popup UI and choose an API from the dropdown list. Then, click on the (+) button to add the item to the API list. Once you add an item, you can remove it from the list by clicking on the delete button next to each item. Moreover, you can deactivate an item by removing the check mark from the list. There is also a reload button at the top banner to reload the active tab.

  • 2. What is WebAPI?

    Web API is an Application Programming Interface (API) for a web browser. It is used for web development and limited to programming on the client side. All websites use these APIs to perform a task on client side. For example, a website can use a web API to play and audio or video file on your machine. As the web browsers get more sophisticated each day, these APIs will become more and more powerful which may raise some privacy concerns (i.e. detecting location, IP, fingerprint, timezone and etc.). This addon is very useful if you want to block an API and protect your privacy by limiting the functionality of selected APIs.

  • 3. How can I download the source code for WebAPI Blocker?

    To download the source code for this extension from Chrome Web Store, it is recommended to use Extension Source Downloader. With this addon, you can download the source code as a ZIP or CRX format to your machine. If you want to download the source code from the Firefox addons store, please open the firefox download link (if available) in the Firefox browser and then right-click on the - Add to Firefox - button and select - Save Link As... - item. Choose the destination folder on your machine and then save the file in XPI format. You can then rename the XPI format to a RAR or ZIP file. Some extensions may have a GitHub repo address, which you can use to download the source code as well. But, it may not be the latest version of the addon. Therefore, downloading the source code from the official web stores is the best option as it always gives you the latest version of the addon.

  • 4. How can I work with this addon?

    Working with this addon is very easy. Once the addon is added to your browser, choose an API which you want to block from the list. Then reload all open tabs for changes to take effect. If you want to disable the addon, please click on the ON|OFF button once. Alternatively, you can uncheck all items within the popup to deactivate the addon. Please note that, blocking some web APIs may break webpage from loading or may cause them to become unresponsive. So, please proceed with caution when deciding to block a web API. There is a - reload - button at the top banner which you can use to reload the active tab and test whether the addon is working or not when blocking an API.

  • 5. How does WebAPI Blocker addon work?

    When you choose an API to block with web API blocker, this addon will nullify that API. In other words, all the methods within the chosen API will return null as opposed to the actual functionality. Please note that, because of this behavior, some websites may become unresponsive or even having problem loading. Therefore, as mentioned above, please be careful when trying to block an API with this addon.

  • 6. How can I disable this addon?

    In order to disable this addon, please visit extensions page in your browser and click on the disable button. Alternatively, you can open toolbar popup UI and click on the ON|OFF button at the top left corner.

  • 7. Can I reload the active tab with this addon?

    Yes, once you made changes in toolbar popup UI, please press on the reload button at the top banner to reload the active tab. Please note that only the active tab will be reloaded and all the other open tabs will remain intact.

  • 8. Does this addon has any options or settings to adjust?

    No, as mentioned above this addon not have a separate options or setting page. All the available adjustments are placed in toolbar popup UI.

  • 9. Is this addon available for mobile browsers?

    Yes, this addon is available for both desktop and mobile machines in all operating systems (Windows, Linux and Mac).

  • 10. Where can I find the privacy policy for WebAPI Blocker?

    Please read the privacy policy for this extension here.

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Reporting Bugs

Your feedback goes a long way towards making this addon even better. With this feedback and bug report form, you can report bugs or suggest features/enhancements for the functionality or performance of this addon. Please note that this form will be sent to the developer(s) of this addon. You will not get an immediate or personal response at the moment. However, the developer(s) may contact you through the email address provided in this form for further clarifications or to request additional information regarding the reported bug(s).

If you want to rate or write a review for this addon in the official webstore, please press the - Rate this addon - button below.

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Reviews | Discussions

Please note: keep these reviews/discussions clean, and avoid the usage of derogatory or inappropriate language or terminology in references to individuals or groups based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, age, gender, etc. Do not submit bugs in your reviews, use the above bug-report section instead. Also, never post any personal information in these reviews.