Google restricts installing Chrome extensions from websites to ensure safe user experience

Google recently announced that it will no longer allow installation of Chrome extensions from websites. Extensions are small software programs that customize the browsing experience to suit one's preference. They are built on web technologies such as HTML, JavaScript, and CSS. Extension files are zipped into a single .crx package that the user downloads and installs. This means extensions do not depend on content from the web, unlike ordinary web apps.

Inline installation, available after Chrome 15, allowed users to install extensions without leaving the webpage unlike before, where the users were navigated to Chrome store to install the extensions. The inline installations did not provide proper information about the extensions usage and often tricked the users to install deceptive extensions. As a result, Google has finally restricted inline installation from websites.

"We continue to receive large volumes of complaints from users about unwanted extensions causing their Chrome experience to change unexpectedly - and the majority of these complaints are attributed to confusing or deceptive uses of inline installation on websites, " James Wagner, the extensions platform product manager, wrote in its Chromium blog.
Chrome is built on Chromium, open source browser project by Google.

Any extension published on or after June 12, 2018, and tries to call the chrome.webstore.install() function will automatically redirect the user to the Google Chrome Web store to complete the installation. Google Chrome Web store will be opened in a new tab.

After September 12, 2018, inline installation will be disabled for all the existing extensions and finally with the release of Chrome 71 in December 2018, Google will remove the inline install API method.
Before the release of Chrome 71, website developers need to update the install buttons on their website to link to the extensions in Chrome Web Store.

The latest version of the app is free to download at our marketplace and can also be installed from Google Play Store using the given-below link.

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