JSONVault Pro – JSON/YAML/XML Viewer After the Give Freely Incident

Hi HN,

In January, JSON Formatter (the 2M+ user Chrome extension) pushed an update that injected a "Give Freely" donation popup on checkout pages. Without warning. Users thought they were being hacked. Hundreds of 1-star reviews followed overnight.

I'd been wanting to build a better JSON viewer for a while. That was the signal. 3 months later: JSONVault Pro.

What it does: - Auto-detects and formats JSON, YAML and XML on any URL - JWT auto-decode: eyJ... strings show the decoded payload inline — no more jwt.io - Side-by-side diff with LCS engine (handles key-order, type coercion, null vs absent) - JSONPath and JMESPath queries directly in the browser - DevTools panel with network request capture - Web Worker parsing for files up to 50MB - 21 premium themes (Dracula, Catppuccin, Nord...) - Zero tracking. Zero analytics. Data never leaves your machine.

The free tier is genuinely useful — dark mode, collapsible tree, YAML/XML, search, sort, copy path, basic diff, DevTools panel. Not a crippled demo.

Pro adds the power features: JWT decode, advanced diff, JSONPath, export (CSV/YAML/XML/TS), history, themes, virtual rendering for huge files.

Chrome Web Store: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/ipghignebclihkckdpc... Website: https://jsonvaultpro.com

I'd love feedback on: - The UX when switching between tree, code and raw views - YAML/XML detection — does it catch your files reliably? - Anything missing that would make you switch from your current tool