What are we doing differently in Firefox?
WebRequest
One of the most controversial changes of Chrome’s MV3 approach is the removal of blocking WebRequest, which provides a level of power and flexibility that is critical to enabling advanced privacy and content blocking features. Unfortunately, that power has also been used to harm users in a variety of ways. Chrome’s solution in MV3 was to define a more narrowly scoped API (declarativeNetRequest) as a replacement. However, this will limit the capabilities of certain types of privacy extensions without adequate replacement.
Mozilla will maintain support for blocking WebRequest in MV3. To maximize compatibility with other browsers, we will also ship support for declarativeNetRequest. We will continue to work with content blockers and other key consumers of this API to identify current and future alternatives where appropriate. Content blocking is one of the most important use cases for extensions, and we are committed to ensuring that Firefox users have access to the best privacy tools available.
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Mozilla is implementing Manifest V3. They plan to implement it slightly different than Chrome: https://blog.mozilla.org/addons/2022/05/18/manifest-v3-in-firefox-recap-next-steps/
They have published a guide for extension developers: https://extensionworkshop.com/documentation/develop/manifest-v3-migration-guide/
More background on Manifest V3:
https://www.eff.org/am/deeplinks/2019/07/googles-plans-chrome-extensions-wont-really-help-security
https://www.eff.org/am/deeplinks/2021/11/manifest-v3-open-web-politics-sheeps-clothing
https://www.eff.org/am/deeplinks/2021/12/chrome-users-beware-manifest-v3-deceitful-and-threatening
https://www.eff.org/am/deeplinks/2021/12/googles-manifest-v3-still-hurts-privacy-security-innovation
Relevant part from the blog post:
i wish mozilla would just drop webextensions and webmanifest. webextensions are terrible. :/