How to Block, Turn off Facebook's Auto-Play Feature

By Denise See, Christian Post Contributor Wednesday, February 22, 2017

People scrolling down their Facebook news feeds are bound to stumble upon videos. And while the popularity of videos on Facebook is one thing, the social networking site's auto-play feature is another thing entirely.

The video's auto-play feature on Facebook is something that was added a few years ago. And although a lot of people may find it helpful and convenient, others are not so keen on it, especially when the video also automatically plays the audio. This can prove disruptive in a workplace or public space, which is why numerous Facebook users complain about the feature.

However, there is an easy way to turn this function off. On a browser, simply log in to the Facebook account of choice and click on the down arrow found on the upper right-hand corner of the website. This will open up a dropdown menu and clicking on "Settings" will redirect to another page.

On this page, users should click "Videos" on the left-hand side of the website. It is usually found at the very bottom of the list. By clicking this, users are given many options when it comes to their video settings. On the "Auto-play Videos" area, it can be found that the setting is, more often than not, set to "Default." Click on the dropdown where this is located and users will get the option to turn the feature on or off. Choosing "Off" will disable the auto-play function.

On the Facebook mobile application, users are essentially instructed to follow the same directions. Once the application is opened, users should go to the "Settings" or "App Settings" menu. There will be an "Auto-Play" section where its functionality can be turned on or off.

However, if this does not work or if users want a more all-encompassing solution, Tech Times reports that there is an application that can be installed to fully block the auto-play function. The application, called "Disable HTML5 Autoplay," is available on Google Chrome and Opera browsers. Firefox availability will come soon. This extension will not only block auto-play on Facebook, but also on every website that has the same functionality. Of course, users can choose which websites to exempt from this block.