Selection Translate Privacy Policy

On Chrome 138+ the translation runs on-device using Chrome's built-in translator and your selection never leaves your machine. When the on-device API is unavailable and you have opted in to cloud fallback, the selection is sent over HTTPS to our AI service. Cloud fallback is OFF by default and requires explicit consent.

What We Collect

Only the specific text you select on a page, and only when (1) Chrome's on-device Translator API is unavailable on your browser AND (2) you have explicitly enabled cloud fallback in the install onboarding tab or popup. We do not collect browsing history, page URLs, page content other than what you select, account info, or any identifier. Cloud fallback is OFF by default. The onboarding tab on install explains the data flow and asks for explicit consent. You can revoke at any time from the popup. We do not use analytics, cookies, or third-party trackers.

What We Store Locally

Your target language choice (one of about 20 ISO codes like "en" or "es") and your cloud-fallback consent flag. Saved locally on your device using chrome.storage.local.

This data never leaves your device. It is not sent to any server, and we have no way to access it.

Why We Need Each Permission

Selection Translate only asks for the permissions it needs to work. Here is what each one does:

contextMenus

Add the "Translate" item to your browser's right-click menu when you have text selected.

storage

Save your target language and cloud-fallback consent flag between sessions.

activeTab

Grant per-invocation access to the currently active tab when you click the Translate menu item. No install-time access to your browsing.

scripting

Inject the popover into the active tab so the translation can appear next to your selection. Runs only when you invoke the menu.

host_permissions: ai-proxy-production-6b92.up.railway.app

Required so the extension can call our AI translation service when on-device translation is unavailable. Only contacted if you have enabled cloud fallback in the popup.

Third-Party Services

When you have explicitly enabled cloud fallback and the on-device translator is unavailable, the text you selected is sent over HTTPS to our service at ai-proxy-production-6b92.up.railway.app/v1/translate. That service forwards the text to OpenAI (model gpt-4.1-nano) and returns the translated text. We do not store your text after the request finishes. We do not log it, cache it beyond a short-term in-memory LRU on the proxy for repeated identical requests, train models on it, or analyse it. If you have not opted in, the extension instead opens translate.google.com in a new tab with your selection in the URL, the same as if you had opened that page yourself.

Policy Updates

If we change this policy, we will update this page. The date at the bottom shows when it was last updated.

Questions?

If you have any questions about this privacy policy, contact us at tomas.miller@extendforge.com.

Last updated: May 2026