Yahoo denying ad blockers access to e-mail

Posted on Tuesday, November 24 2015 @ 16:34 CET by Thomas De Maesschalck
A lot of websites depend on advertising income for survival so it's no surprise that the increasing popularity of ad blockers is wreaking havoc. Yahoo is taking extreme measures though by running an A/B test that prevents people from accessing Yahoo Mail if they use ad blockers. Users were greeted by the following message:
Some people who logged into their Yahoo Mail accounts last week were greeted with an ultimatum: “Please disable Ad Blocker to continue using Yahoo Mail.” These users were unable to access their email accounts until they turned off their ad blockers or found a workaround for the problem.
A Yahoo spokesman claims this is not a new policy but part of a trial, but the move angered a lot of Yahoo users. As Fortune points out, the trial is part of a growing trend to lock out ad-blocking users:
The trial is part of a growing trend: Websites that rely on advertising revenue are increasingly locking out users if they choose to use an ad blocker. Yahoo joins The Washington Post and Hulu as part of the growing list of websites that block users with ad blockers. Others, including NFL team sites, The Guardian, and The Atlantic also detect ad blockers, but instead merely ask visitors to donate the site or turn their ad blockers off.


About the Author

Thomas De Maesschalck

Thomas has been messing with computer since early childhood and firmly believes the Internet is the best thing since sliced bread. Enjoys playing with new tech, is fascinated by science, and passionate about financial markets. When not behind a computer, he can be found with running shoes on or lifting heavy weights in the weight room.



Loading Comments