Firefox for iOS ships a built-in ad blocker because iOS has no extension path

Sources: primary, discussion
Summary: Mozilla published the post on 2026-09-01 and states that on iOS extensions are not available in the same way as on desktop and Android, so bringing ad blocking to Firefox on iOS meant building it into the browser, implemented with Apple's WebKit Content Blocker technology and the EasyList filter list, with no separate extension to install, toggled at Settings then Browsing then Ad Blocker, and off by default. Mozilla states the blocker does not block ads served directly by the site being visited, ads shown in search results, or Firefox's own sponsored shortcuts and sponsored new-tab content. Mozilla states it will keep supporting the extension ecosystem on desktop and Android.
Why it matters: A content-blocking capability that ships as an installable extension on one platform has to ship as browser code on iOS, which fixes who updates the filter behaviour and on what release schedule.