You might have heard of the infamous browser extension called uBlock Origin if you’re active in discussion forums to community threads like reddit but what to do when you’re in the Apple Ecosystem or use Safari (iOS to iPadOS enforce WebKit, the underlying browser engine of Safari no matter which third-party browser you install from the AppStore) where you are engulfed by ads whether popups or banners on sites like Miruro for example?
The simple answer is AdGuard where the free version is enough on iOS or macOS and rest of the Apple Ecosystem with Safari. However, the default settings in itself aren’t sufficient where people’s ignorance and tech illiteracy fail them to realise this fact. So, if you’re here – let’s start setting it up:
AdGuard
If you’re on iOS, tap on the text part of ‘Safari Protection’ to find ‘Filters’ inside the AdGuard app.
- AdBlocking: AdGuard Base & Mobile Filter
- Privacy: AdGuard Tracking Protection Filter, EasyPrivacy, Block Outsider Intrusion into LAN, Peter Lowe’s Blocklist
- Social Widgets: AdGuard Social Media Filter
- Annoyances: AdGuard Cookie Notices Filter, AdGuard Popups Filter, AdGuard Mobile App Banners Filter, AdGuard Other Annoyances Filter, AdGuard Widgets Filter, AdGuard Warning Removal List, Fanboy’s Annoyances, Web Annoyances Ultralist
- Security: Online Malicious URL Blocklist, Phishing URL Blocklist, Scam Blocklist by DurableNapkin, uBlock Origin – Badware Risks
- Language: AdGuard [Your Country] Filter
These are my (minimum) toggles for the free version of AdGuard (which is enough) but make sure to enable both mobile and base filters regardless of your device type, which I try to mirror on both macOS and iOS. You may have the luxury of more filters if you’re on the newer version but it’s not necessary to enable every single filter like for Language List outside of the languages that are part of your multilingual life.
Despite these, if you still end up with any form of ads leftover then head to Support → Report Incorrect Blocking after confirming your filters are updated or the extensions are active and the people at AdGuard would take a max of three days (they’re very active) but rarely over 7 days to address them.
Note:
- Don’t forget to check Safari Settings as well and give it a restart when your filters are updated.
- If you have been unable to load the video player due to backend changes then reinstall AdGuard and restart Safari, after updating the filters you’re good to go.
- If you’re having difficulty accessing the site (or facing video buffers) then use CloudFlare Warp with ‘Block Malware’ enabled under DNS Settings that would also shield one from telemetry servers.
- If you have just enabled the rules then update the filters first and wait for it to finish.
Test if you’ve managed to activate the filters:
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