Privacy Policy for FocusForge Browser Extension
Effective Date: August 29, 2025
Last Updated: August 29, 2025
Our Commitment to Your Privacy
FocusForge respects your privacy completely. We NEVER collect, store, transfer, or have access to any of your personal data or browsing information.
What This Privacy Policy Covers
This privacy policy describes how FocusForge handles data when you use our browser extension. Our core principle is simple: your data stays with you, always.
Data Collection and Storage
❌ What We DON'T Do (Never)
- We DO NOT collect your browsing data
- We DO NOT store your data on our servers
- We DO NOT transfer your data to third parties
- We DO NOT track your online activity
- We DO NOT have access to your personal information
- We DO NOT use analytics or tracking services
- We DO NOT require user accounts or registration
✅ What We DO (Local Storage Only)
All data generated by FocusForge is stored locally on your device using Chrome's secure storage APIs:
1. Website Usage Analytics
- What: Domain names, time spent on websites, visit timestamps
- Purpose: To provide you with personal productivity insights and statistics
- Storage: Locally on your device only, using Chrome's IndexedDB
- Access: Only you, through the extension interface
2. Your Configuration Settings
- What: Time limits, blocked sites, categories, scheduled rules, UI preferences
- Purpose: To remember your productivity settings and preferences
- Storage: Chrome's local storage on your device
- Access: Only you, through the extension interface
3. AI Website Classifications
- What: Cached categorizations of websites (e.g., "Social Media", "Work", "Entertainment")
- Purpose: To improve performance by avoiding re-classification of known sites
- Processing: All AI processing happens locally in your browser using advanced machine learning models
- Storage: Local cache only, never transmitted anywhere
- Privacy: AI models run entirely offline, no data sent to external AI services
4. Gamification Progress
- What: Your achievements, streaks, goals, productivity milestones, and progress analytics
- Purpose: To provide motivation, track your progress, and offer personalized insights
- Storage: Locally on your device only
- Access: Only you, through the extension interface
- Features: Includes advanced analytics, trend analysis, and personalized recommendations
Chrome Sync (Optional)
FocusForge offers an optional Chrome Sync feature:
When Chrome Sync is DISABLED (Default)
- All data stays completely local to your device
- No data synchronization occurs
- Maximum privacy protection
When Chrome Sync is ENABLED (Your Choice)
- Settings only (limits, categories, preferences) sync across your Chrome browsers
- Usage logs and analytics data remain local and are never synced
- Synchronization is handled entirely by Chrome's secure sync service
- We never have access to this synced data
- You can disable this feature at any time in FocusForge settings
Data Export and Import
- Export: You can export your data as a JSON file to your local device
- Import: You can import previously exported data back into the extension
- Purpose: For backup, restore, or migration purposes
- Location: Files are saved to and loaded from your local device only
Third-Party Services
FocusForge does not use any third-party services, analytics, or tracking tools. The extension operates entirely locally with no external connections except for:
- Chrome Extension Store updates (handled by Chrome, not us)
- Chrome Sync (optional, handled by Chrome, not us)
Data Security
Your data security is ensured through:
- Local-only storage using Chrome's secure storage APIs
- No network transmission of personal data
- No external servers or databases
- Chrome's built-in security for storage encryption and access control
Your Rights and Control
You have complete control over your data:
- View all data through the extension's export feature
- Delete all data using the "Erase All Data" button in Privacy settings
- Control sync by enabling/disabling Chrome Sync in extension settings
- Export data at any time for backup purposes
- No account required - no registration or login needed
Permissions Explanation
Required Permissions
1. tabs
- Purpose: To detect which website you're currently visiting and manage tab redirects for blocking
- Access: Active tab information and ability to update tab URLs
- Privacy: No data sent externally, used only for local time tracking and blocking
2. storage
- Purpose: To save your settings and usage data locally
- Access: Chrome's secure local storage only
- Privacy: Data stays on your device
3. notifications
- Purpose: To send time limit warnings and productivity reminders
- Access: System notification display
- Privacy: Notifications are local only, no data transmitted
4. alarms
- Purpose: To trigger scheduled rules and time limits
- Access: Chrome's alarm system for scheduling
- Privacy: No data transmitted, local scheduling only
5. declarativeNetRequest
- Purpose: To block websites according to your rules
- Access: Chrome's built-in blocking system
- Privacy: Rules processed locally, no external communication
6. declarativeNetRequestFeedback
- Purpose: To debug and monitor blocking rule effectiveness
- Access: Feedback on rule matching for debugging
- Privacy: Used only for local debugging, no data transmitted
7. declarativeNetRequestWithHostAccess
- Purpose: To apply blocking rules to all websites
- Access: Host-level blocking permissions
- Privacy: Blocking rules applied locally, no data transmitted
8. webNavigation
- Purpose: To detect when you navigate to different websites
- Access: Navigation events within your browser
- Privacy: Used only for local time tracking, not transmitted anywhere
9. idle
- Purpose: To detect when you're away from your computer
- Access: Chrome's idle detection system
- Privacy: Used only to pause time tracking, no data sent externally
10. Host Permissions (<all_urls>)
- Purpose: To monitor website visits and apply blocking rules across all websites
- Access: Read-only access to website URLs and navigation events on any website
- Privacy: Only website URLs are accessed for time tracking and blocking purposes - no website content, personal data, or form inputs are read or transmitted
- Data Usage: URLs are processed locally to track time spent and enforce blocking rules, but never stored or sent externally
No Permissions For
- Reading website content or personal information
- Accessing other extensions or browser data
- Network access beyond the extension store
- Accessing files outside the extension
Data Retention
- Local data: Retained indefinitely until you delete it
- Exported data: Stored as long as you keep the files on your device
- Chrome Sync data: Managed by Chrome's sync policies
- No server data: We don't store any data on servers, so there's nothing to retain or delete
Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this privacy policy to reflect changes in the extension's functionality. When we do:
- We'll update the "Last Updated" date at the top
- We'll notify users through the extension if significant changes are made
- The most current version will always be available in the extension's documentation
Contact Information
Legal Compliance
This privacy policy complies with:
- Chrome Web Store Privacy Policy requirements
- General privacy best practices for browser extensions
- Local data protection principles
Summary: FocusForge is designed with privacy as the foundational principle. Your browsing data, productivity metrics, and personal settings never leave your device unless you explicitly choose to use Chrome Sync for settings synchronization. We never see, collect, or have access to any of your data.