capacha missing Malwarebytes Browser Guard is the cause of problem, disable it.

I have seen this numerous times, and certainly it DOES happen when Browser Guard blocks EASYLIST.

Here is a typical one: https://www.grandstream.com/newsletter-sign-up

Although EASYLIST is actually an anti-tracking function in itself, many sites use it as an additional BOT auto software block, as part of the reCapcha test/challenge JS scripts(A type of Turing test to prove the user is a human).

From what I hear from MalwareBytes, the developers of Browser Guard, Mozilla ORG is preventing the extension from being updated to the later 3.x.x versions (from 2.6.27 last updated June 2024).

The later versions should fix this issue. In the meantime, just click on the Browser Guard icon, if you get a log in or sign-up issue on specific site, see if EASYLIST is being blocked, and if so, click on the 3 dots, and choose unblock. Then click anywhere outside the Browser Guard fly-out window, your selected site page should get refreshed automatically, then try again.

Thanks for pointing that out td47! I've been tracking this issue as well since last year & I couldn't understand why MalwareBytes hadn't fixed it yet. Are you getting that information about Mozilla blocking a newer update to the Browser Guard extension from the MalwareBytes forum or somewhere else? I'd appreciate a link to where you found that being discussed so I can raise it to the attention of some higher level folks who can get fixing that prioritized. Or they can at least explain why the addon is not being allowed to update. But I haven't heard that Mozilla is doing this on purpose. Thanks in advance.

I found that old 2.6.27 version you're talking about on: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/malwarebytes/

But doesn't MalwareBytes install the newer addon when you install or update the main MalwareBytes program? I would think it could bypass any old Browser Guard addon stored in Firefox.

@NoahSUMO thanks for quick reply (I also raised this as a separate issue on this forum). Yes, I DID first raise this with MalwareBytes, and got the statement about Mozilla blocking later updates from one of their key moderators Porthos. Here is the link (see latest response for this): https://forums.malwarebytes.com/topic/321370-bg-blocking-easylist-often-blocks-account-sign-ups-and-subscribe-adding/

By the way, I have read about Extensions being blocked before by Firefox code, as it has the power to do so, so it is not a stretch to imagine selective blocking for later versions. Unless of course Malwarebytes have made a mistake, and think that all versions >3 are still blocked, so code accordingly?

You're welcome! Thanks for replying back & linking us to your thread at the MB forum. I'll start reaching out to the addons staff to see if they can explain what is happening. I was also surprised to hear that you were seeing the no captcha bug on Edge as well.

Is that because Edge hasn't updated their Browser Guard addon either? Could you get me the version number for the Browser Guard addon in Edge for comparison? Thanks.

On the Edge addon store, it has the updated MalwareBytes Browser Guard addon, Version 3.0.10 Updated October 22, 2024. So I'm surprised it still blocks the captcha on the Grandstream website.

And you are totally right about Firefox having the power to block addons. But I don't remember MalwareBytes Browser Guard specifically getting blocked then unblocked. There's a page that lists a lot of the blocked Firefox addons. And when you visit the page for a addon that has been blocked, it shows a large warning about it being blocked. So I think this more about the newer Browser Guard addon versions not passing a review & getting stuck until it makes the changes asked for to pass the review.

Example Addon blocked message: https://blocked.cdn.mozilla.net/7b2ff754-e3fd-4c7d-8d6f-b4fd87c71473.html

List of older blocked addons (the page stopped updating after 2020 for some reason): https://blocked.cdn.mozilla.net/

I'll see if there's a new page listing any blocked addons from 2021 going forward.

@NoahSUMO yes I agree, it is odd that sometimes the EASYLIST is still blocked in version 3.0.10 on EDGE. I say sometimes, because if you have subscribed previously on that browser, the test site I am using (Grandstream) only shows ONE blocked item on the Browser Guard flyout menu, and the page is presented slightly differently, in that it shows the "protected by reCapcha" banner.

However, if you refresh that page, you will then get 11 blockages with BG, including EASYLIST, and then NO "Protected by Capcha" banner. So, no sign-up possible.

I know (from looking at page sources over the years) that sites often code for different browsers, to cope for the different feature-sets in each common one. I did see an inline utility used for this, but I forget the name, but it was obvious some sites use older versions, and get lazy with updating it, so can fall foul of wrong coding "assumptions" when new/changed features appear after browser updates.

Now SOME of these MIGHT be coding errors on the sites, but I am getting too many of them to be this.

The common fact (factor) in this, is that when EASYLIST is blocked by BG, odd errors occur, and it is USUALLY stopping the CAPCHA/reCAPCHA tests.

I have one site that can loop in this (The Goodguys Australia), but that might be stale cookies, as when I clear the site data and cookies, it stops, and works OK.

I will keep pushing MalwareBytes on this as well, because I am not sure their admin knows all the internals or code (he is NOT staff).

@NoahSUMO I have remembered the Browser Feature checking library name, that I had seen in the past, causing issues, that might have led to wrong coding branches when sites use feature testing for different browsers. The one I saw a few times was Modernizr, and I saw sites using an old 2.5.x version, and the version 3.5.x was out at the time (around 2023 I think), and THAT library has now been deprecated, and it NOT supported, and the site appears to have been abandoned.

Hopefully sites will be using Feature.JS or similar, as that seems very customizable, and developers can add specific or new feature tests as needed.

I am NOT a developer myself, so this is NOT my area of expertise, although I DID code the DIY information site http://letsfixit.co.uk with the NOF software, and sold it back in 2012.