CRX aminer
Extension icon

PocketTube: Youtube PlayList Manager

Version 3.2.0 View in Chrome Web Store

Last scanned: 20 days ago | force re-scan

Extension Details

Developer: https://pockettube.io/
Rating: 4.0 ★ (487 ratings)
Users: 40,000

Context-Aware Verdict

HIGH
Overall Risk
Trust Factors:

The extension has a reasonable user base of 40,000 users and maintains a solid 4.0-star rating from 487 reviews, indicating general user satisfaction. The developer provides a dedicated website (pockettube.io) which adds some legitimacy. However, the extension's purpose as a YouTube playlist manager should be considered when evaluating its permission requests.

Concerns:

The most significant concern is the identity permission, which allows access to user identity information - this seems excessive for a playlist management tool. The webRequest permission enables interception and modification of web traffic, which could be misused for data collection or injection of malicious content. While the host permissions are limited to YouTube domains (appropriate for the extension's function), the combination of identity access and web request interception creates potential privacy and security vulnerabilities. The unlimited storage permission, while potentially justified for managing large playlist collections, could be used to store excessive user data.

Recommendations:

Given the high-risk permissions that seem disproportionate to the extension's stated functionality, consider running this extension in a separate Chrome profile to isolate potential risks. Monitor your YouTube account for any unusual activity after installation. Review the extension's privacy policy carefully to understand what data is collected and how it's used. Consider alternative playlist management tools that require fewer sensitive permissions if this functionality is available elsewhere.

Findings

HIGH
Broad Host Permissions
This extension has broad host permissions allowing it to access many or all websites. This could potentially be used to steal sensitive data or track browsing activity.
HIGH
High-Risk Permission: identity
This extension has the identity permission. Can access your identity information. This could potentially be used maliciously to compromise security or privacy.
HIGH
High-Risk Permission: webRequest
This extension has the webRequest permission. Can intercept and modify web requests. This could potentially be used maliciously to compromise security or privacy.
MEDIUM
Medium-Risk Permission: contextMenus
This extension has the contextMenus permission. Can add items to the context menu.
MEDIUM
Medium-Risk Permission: storage
This extension has the storage permission. Can store data locally.
MEDIUM
Medium-Risk Permission: unlimitedStorage
This extension has the unlimitedStorage permission. Can store unlimited data locally.