Privacy Policy

Last updated: August 22, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how YouTube Transcript, operated by Bear Tools, processes information through its Chrome extension, companion website, and backend services. The product's purpose is to help you read, search, translate, summarise, export, and ask questions about captions from the YouTube video you are viewing.

Information processed by the extension

• YouTube page and caption data: the extension reads the current video's available captions and limited video metadata, such as video ID, title, channel or author, duration, caption-track details, and language information. This data is used to render and operate the transcript interface. When a browser-side caption request cannot be completed, the video ID, requested language, and available caption-track information may be sent automatically to our API as a fallback.
• AI feature data: when you request Summary, Chat AI, or an AI-assisted translation, the extension sends the relevant caption cues, video ID, title, and language information to our API. Chat AI requests also include your question and up to 10 recent messages from the current conversation. Our API sends the information needed to generate the result to the configured AI provider.
• Technical and anti-abuse data: the extension creates a random installation ID used to issue short-lived API sessions and apply service limits. Our backend and hosting providers also process IP address, request time, endpoint, response status, and similar request metadata needed to deliver, secure, diagnose, and rate-limit the service. The installation ID is not an account ID and is not used to identify your name or email address.
• Product analytics: we collect limited event metadata such as which feature was used, whether it succeeded, the extension version, browser or content language, translation choice, export format, cache status, request timing, error category, and an optional satisfaction rating. Analytics events do not contain transcript text, Chat AI questions, Chat AI answers, feedback message text, video titles, video IDs, or full video URLs.
• Feedback and communications: if you submit feedback, we process the rating and message you choose to provide. If you contact us by email, we process your email address and message so we can respond. Providing feedback is optional.
• Companion website data: the website uses PostHog and Vercel Web Analytics to measure page views, traffic, and limited interactions such as link and button clicks. PostHog uses a random pseudonymous site ID stored in local browser storage. Session recording is disabled, Do Not Track is respected by the PostHog configuration, and we do not intentionally send text entered into feedback forms to analytics.

Why we use this information

We process this information only as reasonably necessary to provide and improve the extension's disclosed purpose, maintain and secure the service, enforce usage limits, troubleshoot failures, measure reliability and aggregate product performance, respond to feedback, and comply with law.

Legal bases for processing

Where applicable law requires a legal basis, we process personal information as necessary to provide the features you request and perform our agreement with you; for our legitimate interests in operating, securing, maintaining, troubleshooting, and improving the service and preventing abuse; with your consent where we specifically request it; and as necessary to comply with legal obligations. Where we rely on legitimate interests, we consider those interests against the impact of the processing on your rights and freedoms.

Limited Use

The use of information received from Google APIs adheres to the Chrome Web Store User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements. We apply the same restrictions to all user data processed by the extension. We do not use or transfer user data for personalised advertising, sell it to data brokers or information resellers, use it to determine creditworthiness, or allow humans to read it except with explicit consent for specific data, for security or abuse investigation, to comply with law, or after aggregation and anonymisation for permitted internal operations.

Sharing and service providers

We share data only with providers that help deliver, secure, host, or measure the product, or where disclosure is required by law. Depending on the feature you use, the following providers may process information:

• Railway: hosts the FastAPI backend, rate-limit state, and bounded caches used to reduce repeated caption and AI-provider requests.
• PostHog (EU Cloud): receives the limited product and technical analytics described above. Extension analytics uses a pseudonymous installation-derived event ID, not a name or email address.
• OpenAI: is the configured production AI provider and may process caption cues, video metadata, questions, and limited chat history when you use AI features. Requests are made through our backend; provider credentials are never included in the extension.
• Vercel: hosts the companion website and serverless functions and provides website traffic and performance analytics.
• Supabase and Resend: feedback submitted through the site may be stored in Supabase and forwarded by email through Resend when those integrations are configured.

International data transfers

Bear Tools and its service providers may process information in countries other than the country where you live. Those countries may have different data-protection laws. Where applicable law requires safeguards for an international transfer, we rely on a recognised transfer mechanism provided by law or by the relevant service provider, such as an adequacy decision or contractual safeguards.

Storage and retention

The extension stores settings, anonymous session material, translation choices, interface state, and limited Chat AI history locally in Chrome. Chat history is limited to recent conversations and automatically pruned after 30 days. Other local data remains until it is cleared or the extension is removed.

The backend may retain bounded cached translations for up to 90 days and cached summaries or Chat AI responses for shorter configured periods to reduce repeated processing. Cache keys use content hashes and model metadata rather than installation IDs. Security and rate-limit records are retained only as needed for their operational windows. Feedback and provider logs are retained according to operational need, account configuration, and the applicable provider's retention terms.

Security

User data is transmitted over HTTPS. Provider credentials remain on the backend, and access tokens are short-lived. We use bounded inputs, access controls, rate limits, and other safeguards appropriate to the service. No internet service can guarantee absolute security.

Your choices and requests

You can choose not to use Summary, Chat AI, or AI-assisted translation. Caption fallback may contact our API automatically when captions cannot be loaded in the browser. You can stop extension processing by disabling or uninstalling it, clear locally stored data through Chrome's extension settings, clear the current Chat AI conversation from the extension, and choose whether to submit feedback.

Depending on your location and applicable law, you may have rights to ask whether we process personal information about you and to request access, correction, deletion, restriction, objection, or portability. Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time, without affecting processing that already occurred. You may also have the right to complain to your local data-protection authority.

To exercise a privacy right or ask a privacy question, contact feedback@beartools.dev. We may need enough information to verify and locate the relevant record. Because some information is stored only under pseudonymous identifiers, we may not be able to associate it with you without additional information.

Third-party sites and services

The extension and companion website may link to or interact with third-party services, including YouTube, Google, and the Chrome Web Store. Their handling of information is governed by their own terms and privacy policies. This Privacy Policy applies only to information processed by YouTube Transcript and Bear Tools.

Children

The service is not directed to children below the age at which they may independently consent to online data processing in their jurisdiction. We do not knowingly collect personal information from such children. Contact us if you believe a child has provided personal information through the service.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when the extension, its analytics, or its service providers change. If data practices change materially after installation, we will provide a prominent notice as required. The latest version and its effective date will remain available on this page.