- Proton confirmed that its VPN extension for Firefox is temporarily unavailable
- The issue is supposedly due to a mandatory Mozilla review process.
- While the team works on a fix, users are encouraged to use the standalone app.
Proton made headlines when it made the Proton VPN browser extension free for everyone, opening up strong privacy tools for users who don’t want to pay for a premium subscription. But Firefox users suddenly ran into a major roadblock. One of the best VPN add-ons for Mozilla’s browser has been temporarily removed, leaving free and paid users unable to download or manage the tool.
Users started noticing the issue about a week ago, reporting on Reddit that the VPN browser extension was getting stuck in an endless loading loop. This freeze prevented access to crucial settings like split tunneling, a tool that allows you to choose which websites bypass the VPN, even though the underlying encrypted connection reportedly remained active.
Shortly after these bugs appeared, the add-on completely disappeared from the Mozilla add-on store. Anyone attempting a fresh installation will encounter the standard “Page not found” error. Proton VPN has since acknowledged the situation and the company has confirmed that the extension is temporarily unavailable “due to a Mozilla review requirement.”
“The team is aware and works on it”
The sudden removal has caused understandable friction within the community, especially for those who rely exclusively on browser-based protection for light streaming or daily browsing.
On the official r/ProtonVPN subreddit, one user wrote: “I’m really disappointed, I’m a paying user who waited over a month for the Firefox extension to be fixed and repeatedly told the developers that they were ‘aware’ of the issue. Now I find that the extension has been completely removed instead of updated.”
What happened to the Firefox extension? from r/ProtonVPN
In response to the growing confusion on social media, Proton’s official support channels confirmed the current downtime.
Reassuring X users about alternative ways to stay safe while the extension is reviewed, the company stated: “You can use the desktop app.”
Additionally, community members monitoring the situation on Reddit have reiterated that “the team is aware and working on it,” although no official timeline has been provided for the addon’s return.
What to do while you wait
If you’re currently looking for the best VPN extension for Firefox and rely heavily on Proton, you’re not entirely out of luck. Until Mozilla’s review queue is cleared and the official plugin returns, there are some easy solutions:
- Use the desktop client: As suggested by the Proton support team on X, the standalone Proton VPN desktop app remains fully functional and is not affected by Mozilla’s review process. It offers superior system-wide protection, encrypts all traffic on your device, and includes advanced features not typically found in a lightweight browser plugin.
- Change your browser: The underlying issue is strictly tied to Mozilla’s specific review queue. If you prefer to keep your VPN traffic strictly isolated from your web browser – a popular option for users who want to run a VPN in one window and their standard connection in another – the extension remains fully operational on Chromium-based alternatives like Google Chrome, Brave, and Microsoft Edge.
- Download the extension (for advanced users): If you absolutely must use Firefox and are comfortable with a more technical approach, the open source community has provided an alternative method. As one Reddit user noted, “The .xpi extension can be created and then installed manually, based on the source code found here,” and it links directly to Proton’s official GitHub repository. While effective, this is generally recommended for advanced users only.
- Use Firefox’s built-in VPN: Released with update 149, Firefox now includes a free-to-use VPN built right into the browser. While the feature is only available to users in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, if you reside in these countries, you’ll be happy to know that Mozilla has removed its 50GB data cap for the entire summer; perhaps long enough for Proton to fix the problem.
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