Google is currently testing an ad-blocker baked right into Chrome. And assuming you're willing to download and install an unstable, experimental version of Google's popular web browser you can test it out for yourself right now. We just hope MakeUseOf doesn't get caught in the crossfire.

We're not fans of ad-blockers here at MakeUseOf. Like almost every other site on the web we rely on advertising to pay the bills associated with producing the content you read every day. And everyone who installs an ad-blocker eats into our ability to pay those bills and stay in business.

However, Google is considering building an ad-blocker into Chrome. And this particular ad-blocker may be a force for good rather than evil...

Google Tests Chrome's New Ad-Blocker

In April 2017 we reported how Google was considering adding an ad-blocker to Chrome. At the time The Wall Street Journal suggested that rather than block everything it would likely “filter out certain online ad types deemed to provide bad experiences for users as they move around the web”.

Fast-forward three months and Google is now testing its new ad-blocker. And lo and behold rather than blocking all ads from every website it's a much more nuanced effort to clean up online advertising. The idea being to improve the quality of ads and the sites running them.

Google's new ad-blocker is being tested in Chrome Canary. This is Google's experimental version of Chrome, and it's listed on Google Play as being "Unstable". Google also suggests Chrome Canary is "for developers and advanced users only," so be aware of that before you install it.

The built-in ad-blocker was first spotted by Carsten Knobloch but it has since been confirmed by TechCrunch. Canary users given access are seeing a new setting for "Ads... Blocked from some sites" with the option to toggle "Block ads from sites that tend to show intrusive ads" on or off.

Weeding Out Bad Ads

Google is clearly testing an ad-blocker which will weed out bad ads and punish websites displaying them. However, this doesn't guarantee Google will roll this out to the stable Chrome releases. And if it does show up at some point it may have changed somewhat in the interim.

Do you currently use an ad-blocker? If so, why? Have you whitelisted MakeUseOf? If not, why not? We would really appreciate it if you did. What do you think of Google baking an ad-blocker right into Chrome? Would you use it? Please let us know in the comments below!

Image Credit: Stephen Shankland via Flickr