I found what appears to be a very cool extension for Google Chrome – a Dropbox addin that lets you compare versions of files in your Dropbox by using a diff tool.
Like most Chrome extensions, this one has some warnings about permissions:
This extension can access:
- Your data on dropbox.com and www.dropbox.com
- All data on your computer and the websites you visit
My default instinct is to download the source of the extension and look through it, but the only button I see is "Add to Chrome"
Since Google Chrome is supposed to be "open source," and there is a nice community repository for downloading extensions, I would have expected to see something like "download the source code."
My questions are:
- How do you download the source for an extension prior to installing it?
- What other ways can you "do your homework" and make sure an extension is safe besides
looking at reviews and/or looking through the source code?
Best Answer
There is Extension Gallery and Web Store Inspector extension that would show you source code and tell which features and API methods are used.