Ever experienced the sudden disappearance of an extension in Chrome? Google aims to make this less perplexing by alerting you when it takes down an extension from the Chrome Web Store. Note that these notifications pertain only to extensions you’ve installed and not every change within the store.
Following the new update, users will be notified under three circumstances: if a developer decides to retract an extension you’ve installed, if the extension gets flagged as malware, or if it’s expelled from the Chrome Web Store due to violations like endorsing hate speech or acting as spyware. However, Google won’t alert you if they’ve granted the developer a grace period to address or challenge a potential infraction. Although Google has always had measures to shield users from malicious extensions — deactivating them automatically once they’re identified as malware — these notifications bolster that layer of protection.
You can find these alerts under the “privacy and security” segment in Chrome’s settings, specifically within the “safety check” section. Here, you’ll be informed about the number of extensions Google has purged and can delve deeper into the specifics. This enhancement will be integrated into Chrome 117, scheduled for release in early September. Alongside this, users can anticipate other tweaks, like the substitution of the current lock icon with a tune icon adjacent to the search bar.
