Beacon and Ad-Blockers

Customers using Beacon have reported that Beacon is sometimes blocked from loading when JavaScript blocking extensions (Adblock, NoScript, uBlock) are in use. This article talks about why Beacon is blocked, and what you can do to help customers gain access to Beacon. 

Why is Beacon blocked? 

Even though Help Scout does not serve ads, ad-blocking and JavaScript blocking plugins often block JavaScript embeddables. Many of these services use a common subscription list, such a EasyList, which maintains a database of services and URLs that could compromise privacy.

Beacon gathers unique customer attributes and events (Docs articles viewed, browser type, location) and sends them through to Help Scout when a customer submits a message via Beacon. While none of these events are malicious, our Beacon embed URLs have been added to EasyList. 

Unblocking Beacon

There are several options for restoring access to Beacon:

1. If you're loading Beacon via an external script ensure that the file containing your installation code is not called beacon.js. This is a common file name for third-party JavaScript trackers and may be blocked by a number of extensions. Instead, use a name such as support-embed.js.
2. Instruct customers to disable their ad-blocking extension on specific pages where Beacon is in use. 
3. Instruct customers to add your domain to any allow lists within the script-blocking extension or plugin. 

Despite the nature of Beacon, it's likely that Beacon will continue to be included on EasyList, as well as other similar privacy lists. If you have any questions or concerns about customer privacy or the Beacon embeddable, give us a shout!