I recently noticed a new user interface feature on YouTube: a floating button labeled "Smart Scan" that I can't seem to figure out. It comes with a draggable handle for repositioning. But here's the thing—I haven't installed any new extensions, and I definitely didn't click on it, just hovered over it and took a look. I'm curious if anyone else has seen this and if it's something I should be worried about? Any insights would be greatly appreciated!
2 Answers
Have you tried checking if this happens in incognito mode? This way, you can be sure that all extensions are disabled. It might help narrow down the cause of that button appearing.
It sounds like one of your extensions might have been compromised. Head over to brave://extensions and start disabling them one by one to see if the 'Smart Scan' button disappears. It’s a good precaution just in case.
I’ll do that! I typically stick with well-known open-source extensions. Just as a heads up, here's my list of extensions:
1. AutoplayStopper – Stops video autoplay
2. Bitwarden – Password manager
3. Buster – Solves CAPTCHAs
4. ClearURLs – Removes tracking elements
5. Copyfish – OCR software
6. Currency.wiki – Currency converter
7. Decentraleyes – Blocks tracking via CDNs
8. Minimal Theme for Twitter/X – Refines Twitter interface
9. Privacy Badger – Blocks hidden trackers
10. Proton VPN – VPN service
11. QuillBot – AI writing assistant
12. Read Aloud – Text to speech reader
13. Return YouTube Dislike – Shows dislike counts
14. SponsorBlock – Skips sponsorships on YouTube
15. uBlock Origin – Ad blocker
16. uBlock Origin Lite – Lighter ad blocker version.
I checked in the normal Brave browser, and it was still there. No unusual activity otherwise.