This effort is motivated by a desire to keep users safe and to give them more visibility and control over the data they’re sharing with extensions. One way we are doing this is by helping users be deliberate in granting access to sensitive data - such as emails, photos, and access to social media accounts. As we make these changes we want to continue to support extensions in empowering users and enhancing their browsing experience.
To help with this balance, we’re reimagining the way a number of powerful APIs work. Instead of a user granting each extension access to all of their sensitive data, we are creating ways for developers to request access to only the data they need to accomplish the same functionality. One example of this is the introduction of the Declarative Net Request API, which is replacing parts of the Web Request API.
At a high level, this change means that an extension does not need access to all a user’s sensitive data in order to block content. With the current Web Request API, users grant permission for Chrome to pass all information about a network request - which can include things like emails, photos, or other private information - to the extension. In contrast, the Declarative Net Request API allows extensions to block content without requiring the user to grant access to any sensitive information. Additionally, because we are able to cut substantial overhead in the browser, the Declarative Net Request API can have significant, system-level performance benefits over Web Request.
