Rejection ID lookup

Your rejection email has a two-word ID. Here is what each one means.

The Chrome Web Store labels every violation with a colour and an element — Purple Potassium, Blue Argon, Yellow Magnesium. The email rarely explains it. Below are all the IDs published in Google’s own troubleshooting document, the policy each one maps to, and the reasons Google lists for it.

Blue Argon Additional requirements for Manifest V3

The intent of this policy is to ensure that Manifest V3 extensions are not including remotely hosted code.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Including a <script> tag that points to a resource that is not within the extension's package.
  • Using JavaScript's eval()` method or other mechanisms to execute a string fetched from a remote source.
  • Building an interpreter to run complex commands fetched from a remote source, even if those commands are fetched as data.
Our read: Everything that executes must ship inside the package. A remote <script>, a string fetched then eval'd, or a bundled interpreter that runs downloaded logic all count. Remote data is fine; remote logic is not.

What counts as remote code →

Blue Copper Prohibited products

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to provide access to content protected by paywalls, login restrictions or intellectual property rights.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is providing access to content behind a paywall.
  • The extension is providing access to content behind login restrictions.
  • The extension is facilitating download of YouTube videos.
  • The extension is facilitating download of content that is in violation of the content owner's intellectual property rights.
Our read: The category itself is not allowed on the store.

Blue Lithium Prohibited products

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to provide access to content protected by paywalls, login restrictions or intellectual property rights.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is providing access to content behind a paywall.
  • The extension is providing access to content behind login restrictions.
  • The extension is facilitating download of YouTube videos.
  • The extension is facilitating download of content that is in violation of the content owner's intellectual property rights.
Our read: The category itself is not allowed on the store.

Blue Magnesium Prohibited products

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to provide access to content protected by paywalls, login restrictions or intellectual property rights.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is providing access to content behind a paywall.
  • The extension is providing access to content behind login restrictions.
  • The extension is facilitating download of YouTube videos.
  • The extension is facilitating download of content that is in violation of the content owner's intellectual property rights.
Our read: The category itself is not allowed on the store.

Blue Nickel Circumvents the overrides API

The intent of this policy is to ensure quality of the products on the Chrome Web Store.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is modifying the Chrome New Tab Page but not using the Overrides API.
  • The extension is modifying the Omnibox Search but not using the Overrides API.
Our read: Changing the New Tab page or the omnibox search has to go through the Overrides API rather than around it.

Blue Potassium Circumvents the overrides API

The intent of this policy is to ensure quality of the products on the Chrome Web Store.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is modifying the Chrome New Tab Page but not using the Overrides API.
  • The extension is modifying the Omnibox Search but not using the Overrides API.
Our read: Changing the New Tab page or the omnibox search has to go through the Overrides API rather than around it.

Blue Titanium Enforcement circumvention

The intent of this policy is to prevent extension developers from circumventing review or enforcement processes.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Manipulating the store state or listing of extensions in an attempt to evade reviews or enforcement actions
  • Leveraging techniques in an attempt to manipulate the distribution of updates to users and keep them on versions with previous violations
Our read: Anything read as working around review or a prior enforcement, including republishing removed code under a new listing.

Blue Zinc Prohibited products

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to provide access to content protected by paywalls, login restrictions or intellectual property rights.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is providing access to content behind a paywall.
  • The extension is providing access to content behind login restrictions.
  • The extension is facilitating download of YouTube videos.
  • The extension is facilitating download of content that is in violation of the content owner's intellectual property rights.
Our read: The category itself is not allowed on the store.

Grey Copper Online gambling

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Providing online gambling or prediction markets within an extension.
  • Facilitating online gambling or prediction markets on other sites through the extension.
  • For example, providing functionality to calculate the odds of a bet on a gambling site. While this extension does not directly allow the user to gamble, it does facilitate online gambling.
Our read: Extensions that facilitate or direct users to online gambling or prediction markets are not allowed on the store.

Grey Lithium Pornographic content

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform for pornography.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension itself contains sexually explicit material.
  • The extension is displaying or providing sexually explicit material.
  • The extension is directing users to pornographic sites.
  • The extension is primarily meant to enhance sites that provide sexually explicit material.
Our read: This category is not allowed on the store.

Grey Magnesium Hate content

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to spread hateful content.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Providing content or directing users to content that is considered hate speech. See the policy text for additional details.
Our read: This category is not allowed on the store.

Grey Nickel Not family safe

The intent of this policy is to prevent non-family-safe content from reaching an inappropriate audience.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension has content that is not suitable for audiences of all ages and the extension has not been marked 'Mature'.
Our read: Mature content has to be marked as such in the dashboard.

Grey Potassium Violent content

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to spread the content mentioned in the relevant policy text.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension contains content or is directing users to content mentioned in the policy text,
Our read: This category is not allowed on the store.

Grey Silicon Cryptocurrency mining

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store as a platform to mine cryptocurrencies.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is mining cryptocurrencies on user machines.
  • The extension is providing the functionality to mine cryptocurrencies
Our read: Mining is not allowed on the store.

Grey Titanium Affiliate Ads

The intent of this policy is to ensure users are aware of extensions using affiliate links or codes for monetization, and to give them some amount of control by requiring user action before inclusion.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Your extension uses affiliate marketing links, codes, or cookies without properly disclosing their use in the item's description and user interface.
  • No related user action is required before inclusion of affiliate codes, links, or cookies.
Our read: Affiliate links, codes, or cookies need clear disclosure and a related user action.

Grey Zinc Illegal activities

The intent of this policy is to prevent the use of extensions and the Chrome Web Store to promote or participate in illegal activities.

Our read: The category itself is not allowed on the store.

Purple Copper User data policy - secure transmission

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is not transmitting user data securely.
  • The data is being transmitted to an unsecure domain
Our read: User data has to be transmitted securely. Check every endpoint the extension talks to, including analytics and error reporting, not just your main API.

Purple Lithium User data policy - disclosure policy

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is collecting user data but has not provided a privacy policy.
  • The privacy policy is not provided in the designated field—a common mistake here is providing the privacy policy in the description.
  • The privacy policy URL is not working.
  • The privacy policy is not accessible.
Our read: The policy has to be reachable, specific, and actually match what the extension does. A generic template that does not name your data types is the usual failure.

Privacy policy requirements →

Purple Magnesium User data policy - other requirements

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is collecting Web Browsing Activity when it is not needed for a user facing feature.
  • User data collected using the extension is being disclosed publicly.
Our read: Collect only what the stated purpose needs, and do not expose protected data. Check the Data Use declarations in the dashboard against what the code sends.

Privacy policy requirements →

Purple Nickel User data policy - prominent disclosure

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is not prominently disclosing how the user data is being used.
  • User consent is not obtained before data collection
Our read: The disclosure has to be prominent and the user has to consent. Google accepts disclosure in the Store listing itself; what fails is data use that a user would not expect from the description and is only mentioned deep in a policy page.

Privacy policy requirements →

Purple Potassium Excessive permissions

The intent of this policy is to prevent excessive and unnecessary access to user data by extensions.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is requesting a permission but not using it.
  • The extension is requesting a permission that is not required to implement the functionality the extension provides.
Our read: Two separate things trigger this: a permission you declare but never call, and a permission you do use where a narrower one would implement the same feature. A broad host permission where specific origins would do falls into the second.

Permission justification lines →

Red Argon Single purpose

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension provides two or more purposes in the same extension (for example an extension providing image format conversion and bibliography generation).
  • The extension provides one or more unrelated additional functionalities using the extension's action icon.
  • The extension provides a modified search experience on a new tab page which does not respect the user’s choice of search provider or fails to utilize official Chrome search APIs (e.g., chrome.search).
  • The following are considered distinct purposes. Extensions that provide any of the features listed below may not provide any other functionality.
Our read: The listing has to describe one narrow purpose, and every feature has to serve it. Bundling a second unrelated feature into a working extension is a common trigger.

Red Copper Single purpose

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension provides two or more purposes in the same extension (for example an extension providing image format conversion and bibliography generation).
  • The extension provides one or more unrelated additional functionalities using the extension's action icon.
  • The extension provides a modified search experience on a new tab page which does not respect the user’s choice of search provider or fails to utilize official Chrome search APIs (e.g., chrome.search).
  • The following are considered distinct purposes. Extensions that provide any of the features listed below may not provide any other functionality.
Our read: The listing has to describe one narrow purpose, and every feature has to serve it. Bundling a second unrelated feature into a working extension is a common trigger.

Red Lithium Single purpose

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension provides two or more purposes in the same extension (for example an extension providing image format conversion and bibliography generation).
  • The extension provides one or more unrelated additional functionalities using the extension's action icon.
  • The extension provides a modified search experience on a new tab page which does not respect the user’s choice of search provider or fails to utilize official Chrome search APIs (e.g., chrome.search).
  • The following are considered distinct purposes. Extensions that provide any of the features listed below may not provide any other functionality.
Our read: The listing has to describe one narrow purpose, and every feature has to serve it. Bundling a second unrelated feature into a working extension is a common trigger.

Red Magnesium Single purpose

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension provides two or more purposes in the same extension (for example an extension providing image format conversion and bibliography generation).
  • The extension provides one or more unrelated additional functionalities using the extension's action icon.
  • The extension provides a modified search experience on a new tab page which does not respect the user’s choice of search provider or fails to utilize official Chrome search APIs (e.g., chrome.search).
  • The following are considered distinct purposes. Extensions that provide any of the features listed below may not provide any other functionality.
Our read: The listing has to describe one narrow purpose, and every feature has to serve it. Bundling a second unrelated feature into a working extension is a common trigger.

Red Nickel Deceptive behavior

The intent of this policy is to prevent extensions from deceiving or misleading the users.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension does not provide the functionality described in the metadata1.
  • The extension provides different functionality than what is described in the metadata1.
  • The extension performs actions not mentioned in the metadata1.
  • The extension impersonates another entity2.
Our read: Claims that do not match behavior, or a listing that borrows another product's name or branding.

Red Potassium Deceptive behavior

The intent of this policy is to prevent extensions from deceiving or misleading the users.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension does not provide the functionality described in the metadata1.
  • The extension provides different functionality than what is described in the metadata1.
  • The extension performs actions not mentioned in the metadata1.
  • The extension impersonates another entity2.
Our read: Claims that do not match behavior, or a listing that borrows another product's name or branding.

Red Silicon Deceptive behavior

The intent of this policy is to prevent extensions from deceiving or misleading the users.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension does not provide the functionality described in the metadata1.
  • The extension provides different functionality than what is described in the metadata1.
  • The extension performs actions not mentioned in the metadata1.
  • The extension impersonates another entity2.
Our read: Claims that do not match behavior, or a listing that borrows another product's name or branding.

Red Titanium Obfuscation

The intent of this policy is to ensure the quality of the extensions and code submitted to the Chrome Web Store.

Our read: Minification is allowed; concealment is not. Shortened names and collapsed files are fine, but code whose behaviour a reviewer cannot follow is not. Note that a source map does not make concealed functionality acceptable — the logic itself has to be discernible.

Red Zinc Deceptive installation

The intent of this policy is to ensure users are not deceived into installing extensions.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Unclear or inconspicuous disclosures on marketing collateral preceding the Chrome Web Store Product listing.
  • Misleading interactive elements as part of your distribution flow. This includes misleading call-to-action buttons or forms that imply an outcome other than the installation of an extension.
  • Adjusting the Chrome Web Store Product listing window with the effect of withholding or hiding extension metadata from the user.
Our read: The install flow has to be plain. Bundled installs and misleading install prompts land here.

Yellow Argon Keyword stuffing

The intent of this policy is to ensure quality of items published to the Chrome Web Store and prevent developers from manipulating their placement in the Store.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is having excessive, irrelevant or inappropriate keywords in the metadata, more commonly, the description.
Our read: Repeated or irrelevant terms in the title or description. Write the listing for a reader, not for search.

Yellow Lithium Redirection

The intent of this policy is to ensure quality of the products on the Chrome Web Store and prevent products from manipulating their placement in the Store Common reasons for removal/rejection The only functionality of the extension is to launch another app, theme, webpage, or extension.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The only functionality of the extension is to launch another app, theme, webpage, or extension.
  • Examples of violations include
  • Extensions that display a website in a new tab or in a popup when the extension's action is clicked.
  • Extensions that display a promotional page for another product immediately upon installation.
Our read: This is aimed at extensions whose only function is launching another app, webpage, theme, or extension.

Yellow Magnesium Functionality not working

The intent of this policy is to ensure a minimum quality level for all items published in the Chrome Web Store.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Your item has packaging errors. Examples:
  • There are files mentioned in your manifest that are not present in your package. This is most commonly seen with image files.
  • The path or name of the files mentioned in your package are incorrect
Our read: The reviewer could not get it to work. Packaging errors, files referenced in the manifest that are not in the package, a broken sign-in, or a backend that was down during review all land here.

Yellow Nickel Spam

The intent of this policy is to ensure quality of the products on the Chrome Web Store.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • You or your affiliates are submitting multiple extensions that provide duplicate experiences or functionality.
  • You are manipulating the extension's reviews, ratings or installs data.
  • The extension is showing notifications to the user in a way that is disruptive or harmful to the user's browsing experience.
  • The extension is sending messages on behalf of the user without the user's consent.
Our read: Near-duplicate listings, ranking manipulation, notification abuse, or sending messages on the user’s behalf without their consent. Publishing several near-identical extensions off one code base falls under this.

Yellow Potassium Minimum Functionality

The intent of this policy is to ensure all extensions in the Chrome Web Store are providing a basic degree of functionality and utility for users.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • Your submitted extension contained no files other than a manifest.
  • The extension did not provide discernable value or utility to its users.
  • A feature listed in the item's description was not provided directly by the item and instead simply linked to an external service.
  • The extension metadata contained click-baity content designed to attract the attention of users and entice them to install.
Our read: The extension has to provide enough of its own function to be worth installing. Google’s examples include extensions that do too little to be useful on their own.

Yellow Zinc Missing or insufficient metadata

The intent of this policy is to ensure a basic quality level of all items in the Chrome Web Store.

Google lists these as common reasons
  • The extension is missing an icon, title, screenshot, or description.
  • The extension's title is not meaningful or is misleading.
  • The extension's screenshots or description is not meaningful or doesn't adequately explain the functionality it provides.
Our read: Listing text, screenshots, and the description have to match what the extension actually does. Placeholder screenshots and one-line descriptions trigger this.

No match. Try just the element word (Potassium, Argon, Magnesium) or a phrase from the email.

Not sure which one you got?

Paste the rejection email and your manifest.json on the main guide and we will tell you which policy we think the reviewer is citing and what we would change. Free, no signup, and it is our reading rather than a ruling from Google.

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