Vimeo downloader extensions
What they ask for, and why this page does the same job without it.
By using this site you confirm you have the right to download the file you request.
The permission is the whole story
A downloader extension needs "read and change all your data on the websites you visit". That is the permission it uses to spot a video on a Vimeo page, and it is the same permission that reads your webmail, your bank and every form you fill in, for as long as it stays installed.
It is also permission granted to a moving target. Extensions are bought and sold; a useful one changes hands, the new owner ships an update through the same auto-update channel, and the access you granted in 2024 belongs to somebody else now. This has happened repeatedly and the user is never asked again.
And they break on exactly this platform
Vimeo is the awkward case for an extension because the video page refuses anonymous readers — the player is what serves the file. An extension reading the page sees what you see and no more, which is why Vimeo extensions stop working every time the player markup changes.
This page rewrites the address to player.vimeo.com server-side instead, which is why it keeps working when they do not.
What runs here instead
About five kilobytes of JavaScript in one tab, with no permissions beyond that tab. The fetching and converting happen on our side and the file is deleted afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
Is any downloader extension safe?
Some are written honestly. The problem is that you cannot tell from the listing, and the permission survives a change of owner.
Why do they keep breaking?
They read the page markup, which the platform changes whenever it likes.