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DuckDuckGo browser now blocks YouTube video ads
BleepingComputer • • technology
Key Points:
- DuckDuckGo's browser now blocks most YouTube video ads by default on iOS, Mac, and Windows, with Android users able to enable it manually through settings.
- The ad-blocking system uses community-maintained filter lists from uBlock Origin combined with DuckDuckGo's own rules, separate from its privacy-focused Duck Player feature.
- This update allows users to watch YouTube without ads while retaining features like viewing history and playlist progress, though it may cause slightly longer buffering times.
- Due to frequent changes in YouTube's ad delivery, the ad-blocker may occasionally stop working until filter rules are updated, and DuckDuckGo encourages user feedback for improvements.
- DuckDuckGo joins browsers like Brave and Opera in offering built-in ad and tracker blocking for YouTube without needing third-party extensions.
