How to block YouTube ads
Founded in 2005, YouTube has quickly become a staple for online video content and boasts some impressive stats. The platform has around 5 billion videos viewed on it every day and over 2 billion active users every month, making YouTube the largest video site on the internet.
Anyone who uses YouTube regularly will also know that YouTube uses monetized ad placement on the platform to generate revenue from its viewer base. This includes a range of ads, from pre-roll ads that autoplay a promotional video as soon as you click on a video, to ads that appear during a video, and finally YouTube also posts display ads and recommendations to their popular content selections as curated by the platform owners.
All of these ads help generate income for content creators who monetize their videos and also for YouTube which receives billions of dollars in revenue from ads each year. These ads are often annoying, intrusive, and sometimes even dangerous to viewers.
What ways can you block YouTube ads?
You can block ads on YouTube in a number of ways. You can pay for a subscription with them to cancel out ads, use a browser extension, or use an ad blocker. The first two options only block ads on YouTube and not everywhere on the internet making them useful but not complete.
There is another way to avoid seeing ads altogether on YouTube (and other sites) and that's by using an ad blocker. Ad blockers are quick and easy to install and many offer additional features that will improve your viewing experience on YouTube and also provide a range of additional security measures, as well as options to cater to what (if any) ads you see on the platform and other web pages.
What's an ad blocker and why you need one
Ad blockers use filtering options to block or hide data that is sent from advertising domains. They also block embedded content and prevent targeted URLs that are often the source of ads.
Like we said before, some ad blockers also offer great advantages that enhance your online experience and improve your online security. That's because ads are sometimes used by hackers to insert malware onto your computer, stealing data, or spying on your user habits without you knowing. This practice is known as "malvertising". Worryingly, sometimes you don't even need to click on one of these fake ads for it to start downloading a virus.
Best YouTube ad blocker
CCleaner Browser, which comes with a built-in ad blocker (Adblock), is a great option. You can set it to block all ads or choose to let some through on your favorite sites. It's flexible too, so you can tailor its settings how you like.
It has some great additional security features including:
- Anti-Phishing - it automatically blocks any malicious websites, viruses, malware, spyware, ransomware, and unwanted downloads to your PC.
- Anti-Tracking - this feature prevents advertising services, websites, and data analytics companies from tracking your online activity, protecting your privacy every time you are online.
- Anti-Fingerprinting - as tracking device technology becomes more sophisticated, it is important to disguise your online fingerprint from malicious individuals or companies. This feature hides your browser version and preferences, language, timezone, and add-ons that you use online from other websites.
- CCleaner and Privacy Cleaner - a quick and easy way to regularly clean your browser history, cache, cookies, and other junk. These features help protect your privacy and free up space, allowing your computer to operate in optimum condition.
- Password Manager - this feature helps you store and save passwords for your favorite sites.
- Webcam Guard - this software prevents you from being watched without you knowing.
On top of this, it will give you faster browsing. You'll have a better online experience when using YouTube or browsing the internet by improving page load time. Best of all, CCleaner Browser is available to download for free, so why not give it a try today and enjoy the benefits of ad-free YouTube videos and an added layer of security while online?