Privacy

The short version

• Free tier: no account. The web app does not retain anything beyond the seconds it takes to deliver your file. The Chrome extension stores only your preferences locally.
• Pro / Studio: we store the minimum needed to bill you (email, hashed password, Stripe customer ID) plus your save library for the retention window of your plan (Pro: 30 days, Studio: 90 days). After the window the file is permanently deleted.
• We do not sell or share user data with anyone outside the named processors below.
• No third-party analytics on the website. No behavioural cookies. No ad tracking.
• The Chrome extension does not phone home, run analytics, or read tabs you do not act on.

What we collect, when, and why

Concrete list of every piece of data the Service touches:

• Email address (paid accounts only). Used for login and billing receipts. Stored encrypted at rest in our primary database.
• Hashed password (paid accounts only). Argon2id-hashed. We never store or log the plaintext password.
• Stripe customer ID and last 4 digits of the card (paid accounts only). The full card is held by Stripe, not by us. We see only the customer ID and the safe-to-display last 4.
• Save metadata (paid accounts only). When you save a file we record: source URL, source platform, account handle, file size, save timestamp. We store this for the retention window of your plan so that you can re-download from your library. After the window expires the metadata row is deleted along with the file.
• Saved file bytes. Free saves stream through and are deleted from worker memory within seconds. Paid saves are written to encrypted object storage (AWS S3, server-side AES-256) and deleted after the retention window.
• Server logs (all users). Standard request logs: IP address, request path, response code, request duration. Used for debugging and abuse mitigation. Logs are auto-deleted after 30 days.
• Chrome extension preferences (extension users only). Save-folder template, FAB position, hotkey choice, sidecar toggle. Stored only in chrome.storage.local on your machine.

What we do not collect

• Your browsing history, viewing habits, or searches outside the Service.
• Your contact list, location, or device identifiers.
• The content of saved files for any purpose other than delivering them to you and storing them in your retention library.
• Cookies for tracking, ads, or behavioural analytics.
• Data about people whose accounts you save unless that data is part of a save you explicitly requested.

Processors and sub-processors

We use a small set of vendors to deliver the Service. Each is named, scoped, and DPA-covered:

• AWS (us-east-1): hosting, encrypted object storage for retention libraries.
• Stripe: payment processing for paid plans.
• Resend: transactional email (receipts, password resets, plan changes).
• Cloudflare: CDN and DDoS protection in front of the website.

We do not use Google Analytics, Meta Pixel, Mixpanel, Amplitude, Segment, or any similar third-party analytics service.

Retention windows (concrete)

• Free saves: file deleted within 60 seconds of delivery to your browser.
• Pro saves: file retained 30 days, then deleted.
• Studio saves: file retained 90 days, then deleted.
• Account email + billing: retained while the account exists. On account deletion: email and saves are wiped within 24 hours; Stripe records remain in Stripe per their retention policy.
• Server logs: 30 days, then auto-deleted.

Chrome extension specifics

The Chrome extension is a separate code path that does not require a socials.download account. It uses these Chrome permissions and only these:

• storage: remembers your preferences (folder templates, FAB position).
• activeTab: reads the active tab’s URL when you click the extension.
• downloads: writes files to your local Chrome Downloads folder.
• tabs: messages the active tab to extract a media URL.
• declarativeNetRequest: rewrites the Referer header on supported CDNs so the file actually downloads.
• webRequest: passively observes network requests on supported domains to capture HLS-only video URLs (VSCO, Bluesky).
• host_permissions: only the supported platform domains. Not active on any other website.

The extension does not contact our server unless you have a paid plan and have opted in to library sync (off by default).

Your rights

Regardless of where you live, you can:

• Export your data. Request a JSON dump of your account email, save-metadata rows, and the URLs of files in your retention library. Email privacy@socials.download; we deliver within 30 days.
• Delete your account. One-click delete in account settings. Removes your email, saves, and metadata within 24 hours.
• Correct inaccurate data. Email us; we’ll fix it within 7 days.
• Object to processing. If you believe we’re processing data we shouldn’t, email and tell us why.

EU/UK users have additional GDPR/UK-DPA rights including the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.

Children

socials.download is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly create accounts for children under 13. If you believe a child has registered an account, email privacy@socials.download and we will delete it within 7 days.

Your responsibility for what you save

We deliver public content you point us at. You are responsible for complying with each source platform’s terms of service, applicable copyright law in your jurisdiction, and the privacy rights of people who appear in the content you save. The Service is a tool; what you do with the files is on you. See our Terms of Use.

Changes to this policy

If we materially change how data is handled we will (a) update this page, (b) bump the “Last updated” date, and (c) email paid users at least 14 days before the change takes effect. The Chrome Web Store will also surface any new permissions before an update reaches your install.

Contact

General privacy questions or rights requests: privacy@socials.download. We aim to respond within 5 business days.