Ad-blocking with uMatrix

By Jean Hertel, 11/7/16

paranoia , http , performance

Hello readers,

Today I will talk about a very useful tool for anyone browsing the internet (is there anyone who doesn’t browse?) uMatrix.

The uMatrix is a browser extension that checks the request origin and destination and block then based on preset rules. It can be used to block ads, malwares sites and more.

Within the sea of options that exist for this purpose, what makes uMatrix different is that you can use it to block any request between sites by removing the Facebook liking button from all pages, for example.

Some people ask me why I use an ad blocker like uMatrix (or uBlock for Firefox Mobile). My main motivation is to save data, because I understand there is no need to download content that has little or no purpose for me. This becomes more visible when I use the cell phone because the franchise is much more restrictive and expensive. In addition, blocking requests between domains makes navigation much safer and faster, as they will hardly “pop up” popups on your screen prompting you to confirm something.

Extension for Firefox

Extension for Firefox Mobile

Extension for Chromium/Google Chrome

Project source code: https://github.com/gorhill/uMatrix