Google has been forced to shutter all paid-for extensions for its hugely-popular Chrome web browser after a sudden surge in fraudulent transactions. The precautionary measure was taken after a spike in fraud in the official Chrome web store. Commercial extensions – sometimes known as add-ons – have also been prevented from updating.
If you’re currently running a paid-for extension on your Google Chrome browser and haven’t noticed any suspicious activity on the payment card associated with the add-on, these precautions should stop any fraud on your account. The wide-ranging suspension from Google includes all Chrome extensions that need an upfront payment, monthly recurring payments or offer in-app purchases.
The ban has impacted a number of popular developers, like Dashlane – a popular password manager that auto-fills your login information and generates secure, unique pass-phrases for each of your online accounts, and Comeet – a small add-on that helps track applicants to new roles at your firm.
According to Simeon Vincent, Developer Advocate for Chrome Extensions at Google, “Earlier this month the Chrome Web Store team detected a significant increase in the number of fraudulent transactions involving paid Chrome extensions that aim to exploit users.
“Due to the scale of this abuse, we have temporarily disabled publishing paid items. This is a temporary measure meant to stem this influx as we look for long-term solutions to address the broader pattern of abuse.”
Google has stayed tight-lipped on when it could lift the suspension on paid-for extensions.
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Although the ban was only recently announced, app developers have been reporting some strange activity around the Chrome web store in recent weeks. A number of popular developers claim the Mountain View-based company has been silently blocking updates to all paid extensions for some time.
According to TechRadar, developers have been receiving error messages for “Spam and Placement in the Store” before the total ban was announced by Google.
It’s unclear whether paid-for extensions will continue to work during this period – even though the developers are unable to take payment for the service. Users who use free extensions for the Google Chrome browser will be unaffected by the latest ban.
The news comes as Mozilla purged 200 add-ons for its rival Firefox browser that were found to be involved in malicious activities – like stealing user data.
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