Aran Shield Help Center

Everything you need to install, configure, and get the most out of your privacy protection.

📥

Installation

🌐

Google Chrome

Full support. Install from Chrome Web Store with one click. All features work perfectly.

✓ Full Support
🔷

Microsoft Edge

Full support. Same extension works on Edge. Install from Edge Add-ons or Chrome Web Store.

✓ Full Support
🎭

Opera / Vivaldi

Full support. Enable "Allow extensions from other stores" in settings, then install from Chrome Web Store.

✓ Full Support
🦁

Brave

Compatible. Brave has built-in blocking, but Aran Shield adds fingerprint protection, hardware lock, and privacy scoring.

✓ Compatible
🦊

Firefox

Not supported yet. Firefox uses a different extension format. Firefox version is planned for a future release.

Coming Soon
🧭

Safari

Not supported. Safari uses a completely different extension system. Consider using Brave or Chrome instead.

Not Available

📋 Step-by-Step Installation

Open the Chrome Web Store

Go to the Aran Shield listing on the Chrome Web Store (or search "Aran Shield" in the store).

Click "Add to Chrome"

Click the blue "Add to Chrome" button. A popup will ask you to confirm the permissions.

Confirm permissions

Click "Add extension". Aran Shield needs access to websites to block ads and trackers. We never read or store your data.

You're protected!

The welcome page opens automatically. The 🛡️ shield icon appears in your browser toolbar. You're now protected on every website.

Pin the extension (recommended)

Click the puzzle icon 🧩 in your toolbar → find Aran Shield → click the 📌 pin icon. This keeps the shield visible at all times.

🔷 Installing on Microsoft Edge

Allow Chrome extensions

Open Edge → go to edge://extensions → enable "Allow extensions from other stores" at the bottom left.

Install from Chrome Web Store

Visit the Aran Shield listing on the Chrome Web Store and click "Add to Chrome". Edge will install it automatically.

🎭 Installing on Opera / Vivaldi

Enable Chrome extensions

Opera: Go to opera://extensions → "Get extensions" → search for "Install Chrome Extensions" add-on → install it.
Vivaldi: Chrome Web Store works natively — no extra steps needed.

Install from Chrome Web Store

Visit the Aran Shield Chrome Web Store listing and install normally.

✨

All Features

34 FEATURES
🚫

Ad Blocking

Blocks ads from 130,000+ domains including Google Ads, DoubleClick, Amazon, Facebook, Taboola, Outbrain, and 100+ ad networks. Uses EasyList and custom curated rules.

👁

Tracker Blocking

Stops Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, Hotjar, Mixpanel, Amplitude, HubSpot, Marketo, Segment, and 200+ analytics & marketing trackers.

🖐

Canvas Fingerprint Protection

Randomizes canvas output so websites can't create a unique fingerprint of your browser. Each read produces different data.

🎮

WebGL Spoofing

Hides your real GPU information. Websites see "Generic GPU" instead of your actual graphics card model.

🎵

Audio Fingerprint Protection

Adds subtle noise to AudioContext data, preventing audio-based fingerprinting techniques.

💻

Hardware Info Spoofing

Reports generic values for CPU cores (4), RAM (8GB), and platform (Win32) so websites can't identify your specific device.

📷

Camera/Mic Protection

Blocks websites from listing your cameras and microphones. Device enumeration returns empty — sites can't even detect if you have a webcam.

🔋

Battery API Block

Prevents websites from reading your battery level and charging status — a known tracking vector.

📶

Bluetooth / USB / Serial Block

Blocks access to Bluetooth, USB, Serial, and HID device APIs. Websites can't scan for or connect to your devices.

🔒

HTTPS Everywhere

Automatically upgrades every insecure HTTP connection to encrypted HTTPS. Always on, zero configuration.

🌐

WebRTC Leak Prevention

Prevents your real IP address from leaking through WebRTC STUN server requests — even when using a VPN.

⛏️

Crypto Miner Blocking

Blocks 700+ known cryptocurrency mining domains (CoinHive, CryptoLoot, JSECoin) so websites can't use your CPU to mine crypto.

🛡️

Malware Protection

Blocks known malware, phishing, and scam domains before they load. Protects against tech support scams and fake security alerts.

🎯

Element Picker

Right-click any annoying element on a page → "Block this element". It's hidden permanently. Works on ads, popups, banners — anything you don't want to see.

Will this slow down my browsing?▶
No — it actually makes browsing faster. By blocking ads and trackers, pages load quicker because there's less content to download. The extension uses Chrome's efficient declarativeNetRequest API which runs natively in the browser engine.
A website isn't working properly. What should I do?▶
Click the shield icon and toggle OFF the per-site switch. The page reloads without protections. You can also try adding the site's CDN domain to your allowlist in Settings. If the issue persists, toggle shields back ON and report the site to us.
Does it block YouTube ads?▶
Aran Shield includes YouTube-specific protections that block banner ads, sidebar ads, and homepage promoted content. Pre-roll video ads are partially blocked — YouTube's ad delivery changes daily, making complete video ad blocking an ongoing challenge on Chrome/MV3. For full YouTube ad blocking, we recommend using Firefox with uBlock Origin or Brave browser.
How often are the filter lists updated?▶
Automatically every 24 hours. The extension fetches the latest rules from EasyList, EasyPrivacy, Peter Lowe's Ad Servers, and the NoCoin crypto miner list. You can also trigger a manual update from the shield popup → "Update now" button.
Is Aran Shield free?▶
Yes, Aran Shield is currently free with all features included. We plan to introduce an optional Pro tier in the future for advanced features, but the core privacy protection will always be free.
How many rules does it have?▶
Over 130,000 blocking rules: 115,000+ static rules bundled with the extension (from EasyList + EasyPrivacy + custom curated lists) plus 15,000+ dynamic rules that are fetched automatically from multiple sources.
Does it work in Incognito mode?▶
Not by default. Go to chrome://extensions → Aran Shield → Details → enable "Allow in Incognito". We recommend this for full protection.
Can websites detect that I'm using Aran Shield?▶
Some websites use anti-adblock scripts that can detect content blockers. When detected, you may see a message asking you to disable your blocker. You can either disable shields for that site (per-site toggle) or the site may work anyway since many anti-adblock scripts are themselves blocked by our filter lists.
What makes Aran Shield different from uBlock Origin?▶
Aran Shield combines ad blocking with anti-fingerprinting (canvas, WebGL, audio spoofing), hardware lockdown (camera, battery, Bluetooth, USB), HTTPS upgrade, privacy scoring, and annoyance blocking — all in one extension. uBlock Origin is excellent at ad blocking but doesn't include fingerprint protection or hardware blocking. You'd need 3-4 separate extensions to match what Aran Shield does.
🔧

Troubleshooting

❌ Extension not blocking ads

  • Make sure the master toggle is ON (green) in the popup
  • Check that the per-site toggle is ON for the current site
  • Try clicking "Update now" in the shield popup to refresh filter lists
  • Disable other ad blockers — two blockers can conflict and break each other
  • Hard refresh the page: Ctrl+Shift+R

❌ A website is broken

  • Click the shield icon → toggle OFF the per-site switch
  • If a specific resource is being incorrectly blocked, add it to the Allowlist in Settings
  • Check if other extensions are also causing the issue by testing in a clean Chrome profile

❌ Gmail / Google Docs / Outlook not working

  • These web apps are automatically whitelisted and should work fine
  • If you experience issues, disable shields for that specific site using the per-site toggle
  • You can add the app's domain to your Allowlist: mail.google.com

❌ Element picker not appearing

  • The element picker can't run on browser internal pages (chrome://, edge://, new tab)
  • Navigate to a real website first, then right-click → "Block this element"
  • If the context menu item is missing, try reloading the extension at chrome://extensions

❌ High memory usage

  • With 130K+ rules, the extension uses ~20-40MB of memory — this is normal
  • If you notice higher usage, try disabling one of the filter lists in the Shields tab
  • Clear the activity log regularly on heavy websites
🔑

Permissions Explained

Aran Shield requests several permissions to protect your privacy. Here's exactly what each one does and why it's needed:

PermissionWhy It's Needed
Read and change all your data on all websitesRequired to block ads, trackers, and inject fingerprint protection on every page. We never read or store your actual data.
Block network requestsCore functionality — blocks requests to ad servers and tracker domains using Chrome's declarativeNetRequest API.
StorageSaves your settings, custom rules, and disabled sites list locally on your device only.
TabsReads the current tab URL to show the correct per-site toggle state and activity log.
Context menusAdds "Block this element" and "Check privacy score" to your right-click menu.
AlarmsSchedules automatic filter list updates every 24 hours.