Chrome add-on automatically loads cache copies for 404 errors

The Wayback Machine Chrome extension responds to 404 errors and points directly to archive copies, if they exist.


Internet Archive assures privacy


Over the error message "404 page not found" every Internet user probably stumbled. Whether the driven website is permanently offline or only temporarily technical problems are present - annoying is such an error. But a new extension for Google Chrome browser wants to help in the future: the "Wayback Machine."


The Chrome Addon "Wayback Machine" is offered by the Internet Archive, a non-profit project that has been dedicated to preserving the Web and all free digital data for humanity. In this train, all accessible websites are regularly stored - currently more than 279 billion and about 300 million weekly.


And here is the Chrome extension: If the browser reports a 404 error, a pop-up message of the addon appears with a link to the last, available version of the web page in the Internet Archive. In essence, the extension does nothing more than the Wayback Machine of the same name on archive.org. However, it makes it much easier to access the copy.


For free, you can install the Chrome Addon "Wayback Machine" in the Chrome Web Store.


The add-on "Wayback Machine" addon responds not only to the 404 error, but also to all browser error messages with the error codes 408, 410, 451, 500, 502, 503, 504, 509, 520, 521 , 523, 524, 525 and 526.


The Internet Archive understands the "Wayback Machine" addon as a help to defend the web against censorship threats. In her blog posting on the expansion, the project cites a study from Harvard University in 2013, according to which 49 percent of URLs from U.S. Supreme Court rulings were no longer available. The evidence on which the decisions were based would thus disappear. In many cases, however, there are copies to archive.org.


As far as the security of the extension is concerned, the internet archives in its blog post, the privacy of the user is paying attention. Do not attempt to log IP addresses and work with Google to add a proxy server as an additional security level.


Recently, the Internet archives made headlines when it responded to the Trump electoral victory in November 2017 and announced a copy of the project in Canada. This would prepare for a more restricted Internet and protect the archive and access to it for a long time.