Privacy Policy
For the Thesis Sync Chrome extension · Last updated: July 2, 2026
Thesis Sync is a Chrome extension that captures the web page you are viewing — its text, linked files, slides, and video transcripts — and saves them into your own Manuscript research workspace. This policy explains exactly what the extension accesses, when, and where it goes.
Summary
- The extension only reads or captures a page when you explicitly ask it to — by opening the popup and clicking Capture, Screenshot, or Record.
- Everything it captures is sent only to the Manuscript instance you configure (the URL you enter during setup). It is not sent to the extension's developer or to any third‑party analytics, advertising, or tracking service.
- Your Manuscript access token is stored locally on your device and is used only to authenticate to your Manuscript instance.
- The extension contains no analytics or telemetry and executes no remote code — all logic ships inside the package.
What the extension accesses, and when
The extension does nothing in the background. It acts only in response to your click, and only on the active tab:
| You click… | The extension reads / captures… |
|---|---|
| Capture (page) | The current page's text and metadata (title, author, description, DOI, Open Graph tags, the article body via Mozilla Readability) and, if present, embedded‑video transcripts and caption files. |
| Capture (with linked files ticked) | The specific PDF / PPTX / DOCX / XLSX files you selected from the page, downloaded from their source URLs. |
| Capture (Google Slides) | A PDF export of the current Google Slides deck. |
| Screenshot | A PNG image of the visible area of the current tab. |
| Record | Video (and, if you enable it, audio) of the current tab, captured while you record. |
To make private or signed‑in content work (e.g. an unlisted Vimeo video's transcript, a members‑only YouTube caption, a Google Slides deck you're logged into, or a paywalled PDF your institution has access to), some of these requests are sent with your existing browser session (cookies) — the same access you already have when you open the link yourself. These requests go to the content's own host; the retrieved content is then uploaded to your Manuscript instance.
Preview thumbnails. To show a small preview of the current page in the popup, the extension may load a thumbnail image — from the page's own site, from YouTube (for YouTube videos), or, as a fallback icon, from Google's public favicon service (google.com/s2/favicons, which receives the page's domain). These are ordinary image requests made only while the popup is open; no captured content is sent to them.
Where your data goes
Captured content and metadata are uploaded only to the Manuscript instance whose URL you enter in the extension's setup screen, via a direct signed upload to that instance's file storage plus a metadata record. The extension has no servers of its own and sends your captured data nowhere else. Once data reaches your Manuscript instance, its handling is governed by that instance's / that service's own privacy policy and your account with it.
Data stored on your device
The extension stores two settings in Chrome's local extension storage (chrome.storage.local), which does not sync to your Google Account: your Manuscript instance URL, and your Manuscript Personal Access Token. The token is sent only as an Authorization header to your configured Manuscript URL. You can remove both at any time from the extension's setup screen, and uninstalling the extension deletes them.
What the extension does NOT do
- It does not collect analytics, usage statistics, or telemetry.
- It does not track your browsing history or read pages you don't capture.
- It does not sell or share your data with third parties.
- It does not run in the background or on pages you haven't chosen to capture.
- It does not download or execute code from remote servers.
Permissions
Each permission the extension requests maps directly to a feature above. Broad access to arbitrary websites is not requested at install time — the extension asks for permission to download a linked file from a given site only at the moment you choose to capture that file, and only for that site.
Children
Thesis Sync is a productivity tool for researchers and is not directed to children under 13.
Changes
We may update this policy as the extension evolves. Material changes will be reflected here with a new "Last updated" date.
Contact
Questions about this policy or the extension's data handling: support@eliteainway.com.