PRIVACY POLICY FOR SMART AI SIDEPANEL
Last Updated: October 30, 2026
1. INTRODUCTION & CORE PRIVACY COMMITMENT
Smart AI SidePanel ("we", "our", or "the extension") is designed from the ground up with a strict Privacy-First and Data-Minimization philosophy. We believe that your browser activity, notes, and research queries should remain strictly confidential and under your control.
Smart AI SidePanel does NOT sell, rent, monetize, or transfer your personal data to third parties. We do not run external tracking scripts, advertising SDKs, or background telemetry.
2. ARE ALL REQUESTED PERMISSIONS TRULY NECESSARY?
Yes. Every permission requested by Smart AI SidePanel has been carefully audited and selected following Google Chrome's Principle of Least Privilege. We deliberately avoided aggressive or risky permissions (such as "<all_urls>", "webRequest", "cookies", or "history") that many other extensions ask for.
Here is a detailed explanation of why each specific permission is required and how it protects your privacy:
• "sidePanel":
- Why it is needed: Enables the extension to display its user interface inside Chrome's native Side Panel feature, allowing you to view and interact with the AI assistant dock side-by-side with your browsing tabs.
- Privacy impact: None. The sidePanel permission simply controls UI display on your screen and cannot monitor background network requests or inspect unrelated tabs.
• "storage":
- Why it is needed: Allows the extension to save your preferences (such as your chosen default AI model, custom prompt drafts, and personal notes written in the Scratchpad) locally on your device using Chrome's client-side `chrome.storage.local` API.
- Privacy impact: None. All stored data remains strictly on your local machine and is never transmitted to our servers.
• "activeTab":
- Why it is needed: When you explicitly click the "Summarize Page" button or use a context menu action on highlighted text, the `activeTab` permission grants temporary access to read the title and URL of that single active tab to generate an accurate summary prompt.
- Privacy impact: Minimal and secure. Unlike broad host permissions (`<all_urls>`), `activeTab` only activates when you intentionally interact with the extension. It cannot run silently in the background, cannot track what you browse in other tabs, and expires as soon as you navigate away.
• "contextMenus":
- Why it is needed: Adds handy right-click menu items (such as "Summarize with Smart AI", "Explain Selection", and "Rewrite & Polish") so you can send highlighted text directly to the side panel without manual copy-pasting.
- Privacy impact: None. The extension only receives the text snippet that you deliberately select and right-click.
3. DATA STORAGE & PROCESSING
• Local-Only Storage: All user settings, custom prompt templates, and scratchpad notes are saved exclusively inside your browser's local sandbox via `chrome.storage.local`.
• External AI Providers: If you choose to launch an official AI web portal (such as ChatGPT, Claude, DeepSeek, or Gemini) from the extension, you interact directly with the respective third-party service under their own privacy policies. Smart AI SidePanel does not sit between your browser and those official platforms.
• Optional API Keys: If you voluntarily supply your own API key in the extension settings for custom model completions, the key is saved exclusively in your local browser storage and communicated only directly to the model endpoint specified.
4. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY
The extension does not knowingly collect or solicit any personal information from children under the age of 13.
5. CHROME WEB STORE COMPLIANCE & LIMITED USE
Smart AI SidePanel fully complies with the Chrome Web Store Developer Program Policies, including the Limited Use policy:
- We do not sell user data.
- We do not use or transfer user data for creditworthiness or lending purposes.
- We do not use user data for targeted advertising.
- We only request permissions directly relevant to the core single purpose of the extension.
6. CONTACT & QUESTIONS
If you have any questions, feedback, or inquiries regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact us via our developer portal or support email.