I built an open-source, ad-free ModHeader alternative after the spyware incident

smartfabai — Fri, 24 Jul 2026 12:45:27 +0000

Last month, ModHeader was pulled from the Chrome and Edge stores after researchers found a hidden SDK that quietly collected the domains users visited. It had around 1.6 million installs — and I was one of them.

I use header editing every day for API work, so I didn't want to just switch to another tool that might show ads or phone home. I wanted something small I could actually trust. So I built OpenHeader.

What it does

A minimal Chrome extension to add, modify, and remove request and response HTTP headers:

Set / add / remove request & response headers
Multiple profiles (switch header sets in one click)
Per-profile URL filters
Import / export your settings
Master on/off toggle

The part that matters: it never reads your traffic

This was the whole point. OpenHeader applies header changes through Chrome's official declarativeNetRequest rule engine. That means the extension declares header rules to Chrome — it never intercepts or inspects your requests itself.

No analytics, no trackers, no ad SDKs
Your header rules are stored locally (chrome.storage.local)
Minimal permissions
MIT licensed, so you can audit every line

Try it

The Chrome Web Store listing is in review, but you can load it unpacked today:

Grab the code: https://github.com/smartfabai-commits/openheader
chrome://extensions → enable Developer mode → Load unpacked

It's intentionally minimal right now. If you're coming from ModHeader (or another editor), I'd genuinely like to know what you'd miss — issues and PRs welcome.

Repo: https://github.com/smartfabai-commits/openheader

DEV Community: smartfabai

I built an open-source, ad-free ModHeader alternative after the spyware incident

What it does

The part that matters: it never reads your traffic

Try it