Privacy Policy

We collect the following categories of information:

• Account information: If you create an account, we collect your name, email address, and password (stored hashed, never in plain text). If you sign in with Google instead, we receive your Google account email and basic profile information from Google.
• Block list and allow list entries: URLs and keywords you add to your personal block list or whitelist.
• Website content processed on your device: To decide whether a page should be blocked, the extension reads the current tab‘s URL and, when adult-content filtering is enabled, the visible text of the page. This happens entirely inside your browser and is compared against filter lists bundled with the extension — it is never sent to our servers or to any third party.
• Accountability partner information (optional): If you enable "Partner Email Protection," we collect the email address of the person you designate, verify it by one-time code, and store it on our servers so we can notify that person about changes to your protection settings (and, if you also enable uninstall notifications, when you uninstall the extension).
• Support and feedback: Free-text feedback you submit through the ratings prompt, and details you submit when reporting an incorrectly blocked page (the blocked URL, the reason it was blocked, and the matched text). If you are signed in, this is linked to your account ID; if you are not signed in, an encrypted copy of your block/allow lists is included instead, to help us diagnose the report.
• Product analytics: Anonymous usage data (such as which features are used) that helps us analyze how the extension performs and identify areas to improve.
• Location (IP address): Your approximate location, derived from your IP address, is incidentally received by our backend and analytics provider whenever the extension communicates with them — we do not use GPS or any device location permission.

• Account information: authentication, account recovery, and responding to support requests.
• Block/allow lists: enabling your personalized blocking and whitelisting preferences, and syncing them across your signed-in devices.
• On-device page data: deciding, in real time, whether the page you are viewing should be blocked.
• Partner email: sending the notifications you configure to your designated accountability partner.
• Feedback and block reports: improving filter accuracy and responding to support issues.
• Analytics events: understanding which features are used so we can improve the product.

We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not sell or rent it.

Block/allow lists and your feature settings are stored locally on your device using Chrome‘s Storage API. Account information and (if enabled) partner-email records are also stored on our backend servers, transmitted over HTTPS. Block-report submissions from signed-out users are encrypted on your device (RSA-OAEP + AES-GCM) before being sent to us, so only our backend can decrypt them.

We retain account data and partner-email records for as long as your account is active, and delete them within 30 days of a verified deletion request (Section 5) or account closure.

We do not sell or rent your data. We share information only with the following parties, and only as needed to operate BlockGuard:

• Backend hosting provider: stores account data, synced block/allow lists, and partner-email records on our behalf, and incidentally receives your IP address as part of normal request handling.
• Google Sign-In: only if you choose to sign in with your Google account, in which case Google processes your authentication.
• Analytics service provider: a third-party analytics service we use solely to analyze app usage and improve the extension‘s performance; it also incidentally receives your IP address with each event.
• Your designated accountability partner: only if you opt in to Partner Email Protection, that person‘s email address is stored by us and they receive the notifications you configure.
• Law enforcement or legal authorities: only when we are required to disclose information by law, subpoena, or valid legal process.

We do not share your data with advertisers, data brokers, or any party not listed above.

You can view, edit, or delete your block and allow lists at any time through the extension‘s interface, and you can remove your accountability partner or disable uninstall notifications at any time from Advanced Protection settings.

To delete your account, partner-email record, or any other data we hold about you, contact us at contact.blockguard@gmail.com and we will verify your request and delete your information within 30 days.

BlockGuard is intended for users of all ages, including families. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be communicated via the extension or our website. Continued use of BlockGuard after changes constitutes acceptance of the new policy.

For questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at contact.blockguard@gmail.com.