Yahoo is locking some users out of Mail for using ad blockers

Have you recently encountered a roadblock trying to access Yahoo Mail (and happen to run an ad blocking program)? If so, you’re not alone as some users have reportedly been locked out of their Yahoo e-mail accounts for using an ad blocker.
Digiday was the first to report on the matter, linking to a thread in the Adblock Plus forums in which a Yahoo Mail user post a screenshot showing they were locked out of their account. The dialog box suggests the user disable their ad blocker in order to keep using Yahoo’s e-mail service.


Yahoo has since reached out to multiple publications, confirming the matter. The spokesperson said Yahoo is continually developing and testing new product experiences and that this (the ad blocker ban) is a test they’re running with a small number of Mail users in the US.
As the publication correctly points out, it’s becoming increasingly more common for websites to prevent access to content to those using ad blockers. This past September, for example, BuzzFeed found that The Washington Post was conducting various ad block-related tests. A spokesperson for the paper said they were testing a few different approaches to see what moves readers to either enable ads or subscribe (both of which provide income to help keep the paper alive, pay employees and so on).
Have you experienced any trouble logging into Yahoo Mail with an ad blocker installed? Feel free to share your experience in the comments section below.