Windscribe calls out Google as ‘evil’ after extension update denied, citing too many features

How many privacy features are too many? For Google, apparently more than one. Windscribe, a popular VPN provider, learned this the hard way when their latest Chrome extension update got shot down. The rejection came straight from the Chrome Web Store Developer Support team in an email dated June 28, 2025. The reason? The extension packed too much into one package, violating Google’s “Single Use” policy.

Windscribe’s “MV3 Experimental” extension was flagged for offering “multiple unrelated functionalities.” It masks your physical location, gets around censorship, and blocks ads and trackers. To most users, that sounds like a privacy dream team. To Google, it’s a policy no-no. They told Windscribe to slim it down to one clear purpose and try again.

Windscribe wasn’t about to let this slide quietly. They took to X, dropping a post with clear frustration. “It appears Google is going full evil,” they wrote. “We cannot update our browser extension…. because it has too many privacy features.” That’s a bold callout, and they didn’t stop there. They asked followers to repost it, hoping to light a fire under Google’s radar.

This whole mess traces back to a rule Google set up in 2013. They wanted Chrome extensions to stick to one job, keeping things clean and fast for users. Back then, it was about avoiding cluttered browsers bogged down by multi-purpose add-ons. Fair enough. But for privacy tools like Windscribe’s, that’s a tough ask. Masking locations and blocking trackers aren’t exactly unrelated when you’re trying to stay safe online.

Plus, forcing these features into separate extensions could make life harder for users. Imagine juggling three add-ons just to get the same protection. It’s less convenient, and some worry it might even weaken security. Google says it’s about simplicity, but Windscribe and its fans see it differently.

The comments under the post by Windscribe lit up. Some users pushed for switching to browsers like Brave or Firefox. Windscribe shot that down quick. Brave uses the Chrome Web Store too, so no dice there. Firefox? Its review process has “its own demons,” they said. Developers are stuck between a rock and a hard place, balancing platform rules with user needs.

This clash shines a light on who really calls the shots in the browser world. Google’s got the keys to the Chrome Web Store, and that’s a lot of power. We’ll just have to wait and see if Google lets it slide or if Windscribe will be strongarmed removing the useful privacy features from its extension.