Bookmark Canvas

Privacy Policy — Bookmark Canvas

Last updated: October 8, 2026

This policy describes exactly what Bookmark Canvas does with your data. It's written to match the extension's actual code, not a generic template — if the extension changes, this document needs to change with it.

The short version

Bookmark Canvas does not have a server. There is no account, no login, and no analytics. Everything it stores lives in your own browser, on your own device, and is deleted when you uninstall the extension (apart from a trial-start timestamp, explained below). The only things that ever leave your device are: (1) direct requests to websites you've bookmarked, to fetch a preview image, (2) a request to Google Fonts to load a typeface, and (3) your license key, sent to Gumroad to verify a purchase when you activate the extension. None of those goes through us — there is no "us" the data passes through at all.

What the extension can access, and why

Bookmark Canvas requests broad site access (<all_urls>) and access to your bookmarks. Both are used exclusively for the extension's core purpose: showing a visual thumbnail for each of your bookmarks. Specifically:

  • Your bookmarks (bookmarks permission) — read to display them, and written to when you use the extension's own features (creating a bookmark via right-click, moving one between folders, renaming or deleting a folder, etc.). The extension never reads or modifies bookmarks for any purpose beyond what you directly asked it to do through its own UI.
  • Site access (host_permissions: <all_urls>) — used for two things, both entirely on-device:
    1. Capturing a screenshot of a page you're actively viewing, when you use "Bookmark this page (with screenshot)" or the extension's automatic background capture.
    2. Fetching a bookmarked page's own HTML to look for a preview image it already publishes (an og:image meta tag) — the same kind of image a site would show if you shared its link on social media. This is a direct browser request to that site, not a request that passes through any server operated by this extension.

Where your data is stored

Everything the extension keeps — your captured screenshots, cached preview images, folder colors, sort/theme/layout preferences, the times you last opened or visited your bookmarked pages (see "Last opened and visited times" below), and your license activation status — is stored using Chrome's local, on-device storage (chrome.storage.local). None of it is synced to a server, none of it is accessible to any other extension or website, and none of it survives uninstalling the extension, with one exception described next.

Trial start date. To run the 7-day free trial, the extension saves a single timestamp (the day you first used it) in Chrome's sync storage (chrome.storage.sync), so reinstalling doesn't restart the trial. If Chrome sync is on, Chrome syncs it through your Google account like other synced extension data. It's the only thing the extension stores this way, and it isn't sent to us.

Your bookmarks themselves are stored by Chrome's own built-in bookmarks system, exactly as they would be without this extension installed. If you have Chrome's own sync turned on, your bookmarks sync the way they always have — that's Chrome's behavior, not something this extension adds or changes.

Last opened and visited times (the "Rediscover" feature)

"Rediscover" shows you bookmarks you haven't used in a while. To know which ones those are, the extension remembers when you last used each bookmark:

  • When you open a bookmark from the extension's canvas.
  • When you view a page that is one of your bookmarks (for example by typing its address or following a link). The extension records the time for that page only if it is currently bookmarked. Visits to pages that are not bookmarks are not recorded, and no list of other sites you visit is kept.
  • Chrome's own "last used" time for a bookmark, which the extension reads from Chrome's bookmarks system when your version of Chrome provides it.

Only a timestamp per bookmarked page is kept (no page content, no history of repeated visits). It is stored on your device in chrome.storage.local, is never sent anywhere, and is deleted when you remove the bookmark or uninstall the extension. The extension's own background thumbnail refreshes do not count as visits.

Backup files (Export / Import)

The "Backup Thumbnails" button (bottom-left of the extension) lets you save your bookmarks and thumbnails to a file and load them on another device. Exporting is also offered on the screen shown when the free trial ends, so your data is yours to keep whether or not you buy. A backup file is created only when you choose "Export backup" from that menu (or "Export my thumbnails" on the trial-ended screen), and it is saved by your browser to wherever you choose, like any download.

It contains: your bookmarks (their titles, web addresses, folders and order), their thumbnails, the last-opened/visited times described above, folder colors, and pinned positions. Only web links (http and https) are included; other kinds, such as bookmarklets, are left out. Nothing is uploaded: the file goes only where you put it, and the extension never sends it anywhere. Because it contains your bookmark titles and links, treat it as you would any private file.

"Import backup" reads a file you pick and first shows you a summary: how many bookmarks and folders would be added, how many are already on the device, and how many thumbnails are new, would replace older ones, or are kept because you already have newer ones. Only after you confirm does it add the missing folders and bookmarks (using Chrome's bookmarks permission) and the thumbnails and settings. It never deletes or moves anything you already have, skips web addresses you have already bookmarked, and ignores anything in the file that is not a plain web link.

What leaves your device

  • Websites you bookmark. When the extension looks for a preview image, it makes a direct request to that website — the same as if you'd typed the URL into your address bar. That website sees this request the same way it would see any visit from your browser. Nothing about this request is different because of the extension, and no third party sits between you and that website.
  • Google Fonts. The extension's interface uses the Roboto font, loaded from Google's font hosting (fonts.googleapis.com, fonts.gstatic.com). This is a standard, widely-used font CDN — loading it works the same way as any website that uses Google Fonts, and is subject to Google's own privacy policy for that service.
  • Your license key, when you activate the extension. Bookmark Canvas requires a one-time purchase, handled entirely by Gumroad. When you enter your license key, it's sent directly to Gumroad's verification API (api.gumroad.com) to confirm it's valid and see which tier (Standard or Standard + Positioning) it unlocks. No other information — no bookmarks, browsing activity, or personal details — is sent along with it. The result (which tier you own) is then stored locally on your device the same way everything else is. Gumroad's handling of your purchase and license key is governed by Gumroad's own privacy policy, since that transaction happens on their platform, not ours.

Nothing else leaves your device. There is no analytics, no tracking pixel, no crash reporting, and no telemetry of any kind.

What we don't do

  • We don't have a server, so we don't collect, store, or have access to any of your data ourselves.
  • We don't sell or share data, because we don't have any to sell or share.
  • We don't build a browsing history. The only visit information kept is the last-visited time of pages you have bookmarked, described above, and it never leaves your device.
  • We don't use your data for advertising.
  • We don't require an account to use the extension. Purchasing does require going through Gumroad's checkout, which is between you and Gumroad — we never see your payment details, name, or email; we only ever see whether a license key you enter is valid.

Your controls

  • Uninstalling the extension deletes everything it stored on your device — screenshots, cached previews, preferences, and license activation status — immediately and completely, except the trial-start timestamp described above, which Chrome manages through sync. Your actual bookmarks remain, exactly as they were, since those belong to Chrome's own bookmark system, not the extension.
  • Removing a bookmark or folder through the extension removes it from Chrome's bookmarks the same as doing so through Chrome's own bookmark manager would.

This website

This website sets no cookies, uses no analytics or advertising trackers, and loads no scripts or fonts from other companies. Like any website, its hosting provider may keep standard server logs, such as IP addresses and the pages requested.

Changes to this policy

If what the extension does with data changes in a future update, this document will be updated to match, with the "Last updated" date above reflecting the most recent change.

Contact

Questions about this policy or the extension can be sent to: BookmarkCanvas.dev@gmail.com