Debugger

debugger

High RiskCategory: Developer ToolsView Official Docs↗

⚠

Install Warning

"Read and change all your data on all websites."

Technical Context

Provides access to Chrome's remote debugging protocol, enabling deep inspection and control of page execution. This powerful API can pause scripts, modify memory, and intercept all page activity.

What This Means For You

The extension can control web pages at a very deep level, including pausing code and changing how pages run. This is extremely powerful and typically only needed by developer tools.

Related APIs

This permission enables access to these Chrome APIs:

chrome.debugger

Common Use Cases

✓Debugging tools
✓Testing frameworks
✓Performance profilers

⚠ Red Flags When Combined With

<all_urls>

How to Declare in manifest.json

Add the "debugger" permission to your extension manifest:

{
  "manifest_version": 3,
  "name": "My Extension",
  "permissions": [
    "debugger"
  ]
}

What Users Will See

When users install your extension, Chrome will display this warning:

⚠

This extension can:

"Read and change all your data on all websites."

Related Permissions

User Scripts

userScripts

The extension can run custom scripts that you or others create on websites. This is powerful for customization but means third-party code runs in your browser.

medium

All URLs

<all_urls>

The extension can see and modify every single website you visit, including sensitive pages like banking and email. This is the most powerful and potentially dangerous permission an extension can have.

high

Developer Tools

devtools

The extension can add new panels and features to Chrome's developer tools. This is only useful for web developers who use the inspector.

low

Scripting

scripting

The extension can run code on web pages to modify how they look or behave. The actual pages it can access depend on other permissions it has.

medium

Tabs

tabs

The extension can see what websites you have open in all your tabs, even if you are not actively using them. This is necessary for tab managers but means the extension knows your browsing patterns.

high