Tell HN: Adblocker doesn't block YouTube ads anymore | Hacker News Reader

Tell HN: Adblocker doesn't block YouTube ads anymore

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Are you having the same experience? I'm on firefox

Yes and no. I was suspecting something was up with YouTube ads because I'm getting this error "An error occurred. Please try again later. (Playback ID: ...)" with the extension Improve YouTube!.

When I disable it the error disappears. Also when I reload the page while it's on, I can then watch the videos. But that's really annoying. Usually the video page with the error will refresh automatically after a while, so I suspect the error refers to the actual ad and not the main video. And after the YouTube has determined that the ad has played (or thinks I have watched it) for long enough the main video gets loaded automatically which of course does not cause an error since it's not blocked.

Interestingly when I disable the Improve YouTube! extension ads are being blocked normally. I use uBlock Origin and Gostery as well.

I used to get that error, but starting today I simply get the ads.

I have to stand corrected, even after disabling that extension I get the error. But no ads so far.

I'm sure the ad-blockers will be able to bypass it soon.

Oh that's why I've been getting that error, extremely frustrating

YouTube is increasingly loading its ads from its contents server. I’m using a PiHole and it’s quite of a challenge to block the ads. There is quite of a discussion on PiHole discourse about this, and people are adding some obscure domain names to the block list. It’s not always working but sometimes they do, and curiosity, sometimes YouTube only fails to load the sound of the ad!

I do not have any issume using Firefox and unlock origin

Only running ublock origin and i got the same error as @emsign posted up above. refreshing the page made the video start playing

I am using Opera GX with built-in privacy protection and no additional extensions (well, I do use Youtube Subscription Manager but that does nothing for Ad blocking). So far its effectively working for YouTube ads.

Youtube just doesn't work for me 90% of the time. Guessing its my addons but when it does work I never see ads.

What ad blocker?

YouTube premium is cheap and content created get paid. From an ethical standpoint we shouldn’t be using blockers.

If sites don't track me, I disable my ad blocker. YouTube does, so it stays on the block list. I watch YouTube without being logged in, but I'd be willing to pay if they can prove they don't track me.

That's not the only concern. Ads have been known to contain malware. They all contain trackers.

I block ads not just for convenience but also for privacy reasons. It would be foolish to give validated billing details to an entity I don’t trust to begin with.

If you want to support creators consider Patreon. It’s not perfect (it’s got ReCaptcha and Facebook crap embedded in the page but they can be blocked) but still better than handing over your personal details to Google on a silver platter.

We should. Ads are an invasion of privacy, a security risk, and an attempt at manipulating you. The very purpose of ads is to convince you to do something you wouldn’t do on your own. I don’t need ads to badger me into thinking my life sucks and I’m a loser and the inky way to fix this is to buy whatever the ad is selling. This is the fundamental purpose of an ad. I reject this and I’ll keep blocking ads, thank you.

I don't know about where you are, but here in Canadastan we get loads of PSAs besides the ads. I like PSAs, they're pro-social. Ads can all die. Except for the brilliant ones like that 8 minute Prada ad from Wes Anderson.

From an ethical standpoint, ad companies should make better ads.

There is nothing about a simple text or image ad that is annoying enough to block. Yet they went way further than that, and here we are.

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