Why Was My Base64 Encoder/Decoder Chrome Extension Turned Off?

Learn why your Base64 Encoder/Decoder Chrome extension was disabled by Chrome, what it means for you, and how to find an alternative.

If you’re here, you’ve probably noticed that your uBlock Origin extension was disabled or seen a banner in the Chrome Web Store saying it was turned off, with Chrome recommending its removal:

This decision came after multiple warnings over the past few months. Chrome gave extensions plenty of time to switch to the new V3 Manifest standard, designed to improve security and privacy.

Now, Google took action for the first time. This includes disabling the Base64 Encoder/Decoder extension as it is outdated for months now. Next to the Base64 Encoder/Decoder extension, many other extensions have been disabled-you can find a list of all affected extensions here.

This isn’t the final step yet—users can still enable the Base64 Encoder/Decoder extension manually. But it’s only a matter of time before Chrome removes them from the Web Store for good.

Why is this happening?

Google is updating their browser extension store to improve security and performance. They're moving from Manifest V2 to Manifest V3, which is like upgrading from an old operating system to a new one for extensions.

"To better protect your privacy and security, Chrome and the Chrome Web Store require extensions to be up-to-date with new requirements. With this, Chrome may disable extensions that don't meet these requirements." - Chrome Web Store Help

Google started informing extension developers and companies years ago that they should update their extensions to Manifest V3. This deadline is now coming to an end and extensions using the old V2 manifest will be removed.

The Base64 Encoder/Decoder extension is still using the older Manifest V2, which is deprecated for years and will soon be phased out. This change affects many popular extensions, not just Base64 Encoder/Decoder.

Why Was My Chrome Extension Turned Off?

Find out why Chrome turned off your extension, what it means for you, and how to choose the best alternative.

What does this mean for you?

• Your Base64 Encoder/Decoder extension was disabled by Chrome.
• You can still enable the extension.
• The Base64 Encoder/Decoder extension will be removed from the Chrome Web Store soon.
• You need to find an alternative extension for Base64 Encoder/Decoder that has been updated to Manifest V3.
• You can reach out to the extension developer and ask whether an update to Manifest V3 is planned.
• If the developers update Base64 Encoder/Decoder to Manifest V3, you'll need to update your extension when it becomes available.

Where to find alternatives?

Base64 Encoder/Decoder has more than 3000 installs and a rating of 3.8 stars. It was last updated at 17-Dec-20 and is listed in the category Productivity and Developer Tools. We have manually tested and reviewed many extensions in different categories, including the Productivity category.

Check out our full list of detailed reviews and rankings to find the perfect Base64 Encoder/Decoder alternative.