Ad Observer

Name: Ad Observer
Rating: 3.9048 (21 reviews)
Author: Online Political Transparency Project at NYU

By: Online Political Transparency Project at NYU

Share the ads you see on Facebook and YouTube with researchers and journalists to increase transparency.

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Features & Capabilities

Ad Observer is a powerful Chrome extension designed to increase transparency in online political advertising. It enables users to share ads they encounter on Facebook and YouTube with researchers, journalists, and the public. By collecting data on targeted ads, the extension helps uncover how personal information is leveraged for advertising purposes.

Developed by New York University's Cybersecurity for Democracy project in partnership with the Algorithmic Transparency Institute, Ad Observer has exposed targeted and discriminatory ad campaigns, such as political ads tailored to niche interests and discriminatory job advertisements. This tool empowers users to contribute to research and public knowledge surrounding online ad targeting and its societal impacts.

User Growth & Download Statistics

Add-on Privacy & Security Social Media Communication

By:

Online Political Transparency Project at NYU

Daily users:

533 -5

Rating:

3.90

(21)

Version:

3.2.14 Last updated: 2022-11-14

Version code:

5485476

Creation date:

2020-07-21

Risk:

Permissions:

Content scripts matches:

*.facebook.com
www.youtube.com

Size:

531.88KB

Email:

de*****@adobserver.org

URLs:

Website ,Privacy policy

Full description:

Source:

Firefox Add-ons Store

Data ingested on:

2026-06-15

Compare stats and ranking:

Ranking

# 4,754 ▼ 43

Other rankings

#22 in ad keyword 82

#22 in server keyword 62

#25 in increase keyword 53

#54 in ads keyword 79 ▲ 1

#63 in algorithm keyword 3

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Other platforms

Ad Observer (v2.2.13 (ea4c344))

2,000 4.32

(28)

For Developers

Monetize with App Pass Boost with Extension Booster

Contact the developer

Chrome-Stats does not own this Firefox add-on. Please use these information below to contact the Firefox add-on developer.

Developed by:

Online Political Transparency Project at NYU

Firefox Add-ons Store

https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/ad-observer/

Email:

de*****@adobserver.org

Website:

https://adobserver.org

User Reviews

Pros

Good idea and will hopefully generate useful data.
Supports democracy and research initiatives.
Created by a team from reputable universities and supported by non-profits.

Cons

The project has been closed due to funding shortfalls.
Causes compatibility issues with other services like YouTube TV on Firefox Linux.

Recent reviews

by 远离*****, 2025-04-06

by 敬念*****, 2025-02-09

"Transition to Static "Based on a funding shortfall, NYU Cybersecurity for Democracy have come to the difficult decision to mothball the ongoing Ad Observatory project.." Appears this project has been closed, see https://adobservatory.org/transition-to-static

by ja*****, 2024-04-04

View all user reviews ›

Is Ad Observer Safe?

Risk impact

Risk impact measures the level of extra permissions an extension has access to. A low risk impact extension cannot do much harms, whereas a high risk impact extension can do a lot of damage like stealing your password, bypassing your security settings, and accessing your personal data. High risk impact extensions are not necessarily malicious. However, if they do turn malicious, they can be very harmful.

Ad Observer requires some sensitive permissions that could impact your browser and data security. Exercise caution before installing.

Risk impact analysis details

Critical Request access to the following domains: facebook.com, youtube.com
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Risk likelihood

Risk likelihood measures the probability that a Firefox add-on may turn malicious. This is determined by the publisher and the Firefox add-on reputation on Firefox Add-ons Store, the amount of time the Firefox add-on has been around, and other signals about the Firefox add-on. Our algorithms are not perfect, and are subject to change as we discover new ways to detect malicious extensions. We recommend that you always exercise caution when installing a Firefox add-on.

Ad Observer has earned a fairly good reputation and likely can be trusted.

Risk likelihood analysis details

High This extension has low user count. Unpopular extensions may not be stable or safe.
Low **** ********* *** ******* **** **** * ****** **** ***** ******** *** **** ****** ** ** ****** *** *****
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