This article was published on June 19, 2015

This Chrome extension wipes brands from the Web


This Chrome extension wipes brands from the Web

We’ve been talking about ad-blockers a lot recently but if you really want to wipe commercial messages from the face of the Web, here’s another solution.

Brandacted is a Chrome extension, built by Joe Veix, which redacts mentions of 200 different brands on any page you’re viewing, replacing them with a thick black strikethrough.

The extension mimics the heavy-handed censorship method favored by government agencies. It’s actually aesthetically pleasing, though the execution is a little buggy and somewhat limited.

Veix says he’ll add more brand names as he goes along. His rationale for creating Brandacted is pretty simple:

The <3 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

Screenshot 2015-06-19 11.11.21

I can’t see myself using Brandacted, but the idea of creating Chrome extensions as acts of social satire is appealing. Veix’s Name Swamp extension which replaces references to US presidential candidates with juvenile nicknames is also pretty great.

Oh, and here’s what The Next Web homepage looks like if you’re running Brandacted:

Screenshot 2015-06-19 11.23.32
Brandacted [Chrome Web Store via Death And Taxes]

Read next: Bleep for iOS lets you censor all the ****ing swearing in your videos

Get the TNW newsletter

Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.

Also tagged with