By David Court | PC Advisor | 20 January 14
How to stop autoplaying ads, videos and media in Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer
Recently there has been a big increase in websites that host autoplaying video adverts, this can be incredibly annoying if you're listening to music on your computer while browsing the web. Here we show you how to stop videos and media from autoplaying when you open a web page in Chrome, Firefox and Internet Explorer. See all internet tutorials.
Before we start, we really need to say that you should consider your actions before you disable autoplaying video, or media adverts from websites that you regularly visit, as there is a good chance that this is main source of income, and is what ultimately funds the production of the content you wish to read. So, if you disable autoplaying videos/media make sure you support your favourite website – including PC Advisor – some other way. See also How to change Wi-Fi channel.
How to stop autoplaying ads, videos and media in Chrome
Disabling autoplay videos and media in Chrome is simple. First of all you need to type "chrome://chrome/settings/content" into the URL bar. Then all you need to do is scroll down to the plug-in section, and select 'click to play'.
How to stop autoplaying ads, videos and media in Firefox
Disabling ads/videos in Firefox is a little different from the process in Chrome. The first suggested way to stop Flash content from playing is to enter Firefox's configuration settings by typing "about:config" into the URL bar, accepting the warning, then entering "plugins.click_to_play" into the search box and toggling the settings. However, we experienced limited success with this method.
If this technique doesn't work for you, we suggest downloading the add-on Flash Block. To install this all you need to do is Google search "Flash Block Firefox" and install/enable the add-on, and then restart Firefox. Make sure you download from a reputable source. All Flash content will now be click to play, until you disable or remove the add-on.
How to stop autoplaying ads, videos and media in Internet Explorer
Stopping videos, Flash media and autoplaying adverts in Internet Explorer is the easiest the three. Simply go to Tools, Safety and then click on the ActiveX Filtering option. This will then put a tick next to the option, indicating that filtering is enabled.
