Data Saver

A browser extension that blocks ads, images, and autoplaying video to reduce bandwidth use.

Effective: October 12, 2026
Applies to: Data Saver v2.3+
Data collected: None

In short

Data Saver collects nothing, sends nothing to any server, and has no analytics. Every rule it enforces ships inside the extension itself and runs entirely inside your own browser. Your settings and your blocked-request counts are stored by Chrome on your own device — we never see them, because the extension never sends them anywhere.

What this extension does

Data Saver blocks advertising and tracking requests, blocks images, and stops video/audio from autoplaying or streaming, using Chrome's built-in declarativeNetRequest API. Blocking decisions are made by Chrome itself, evaluating rule files bundled inside the extension package — Data Saver's own code never reads the content of the pages you visit.

Version 2.5 also added up how much data Chrome downloaded, to show "data used today" and pace an optional data budget. Chrome passed it the details of each download as it finished, including its address and its size; the extension read the size, added it to one running total for the day, and kept nothing else — not the address, not the site, not the content. Nothing was sent anywhere. Both features were removed in v2.6, and updating to v2.6 deletes the stored totals and any budget settings.

Data we collect

None. "Collect" here means what Chrome means by it: transmitted off your device. Nothing this extension records ever leaves your machine, because the extension makes no network requests of its own.

We do not collect, log, or transmit your browsing history, page content, or the URLs you visit.
We do not run analytics, telemetry, or crash reporting of any kind.
The extension talks to no server — ours or anyone else’s. Nothing your browser does is ever sent anywhere by it.

What is stored on your own device

Being precise about this matters more than the sentence above, because the extension does keep things — it just keeps them where only you can see them.

Your settings — the on/off preference for each blocking category, sites you've chosen not to block on, and any per-site rules you've created, plus the few that ship with the extension (for example, letting pictures through on photo sites) and a list of which of those have already been offered, so one you remove never comes back. Held in Chrome's storage.sync, under your own Google account if Chrome Sync is enabled, never accessible to us.
Blocked-request counts — how many ads, images and videos have been blocked, an estimated byte total, and a per-day tally for the last 60 days, so the extension can show you your own savings. Numbers only; no addresses, no page content.
Data used (v2.5 only) — one estimated byte total per day for the last 60 days, and the data-budget settings if you set one. Numbers only; no addresses, no sites, no page content. Deleted when the extension updates to v2.6.
A list of sites where something was blocked — unless you switch it off. This is the one thing the extension records that resembles browsing history. "Remember which sites" stores a capped list of hostnames so the dashboard can show where your savings came from. Since v2.5 it is on by default — for new installs, and for existing users when they update to v2.5, unless they had already switched it off. Switching it off in the dashboard deletes the list immediately, and it stays off. It stays on your device either way and is never sent anywhere.
An administrator policy, if one has been deployed to your machine by a school or employer. That is read-only, read locally, and nothing is reported back to the administrator by this extension.

Everything above can be cleared from the extension itself — the savings counter has a Reset control, and the dashboard's Clear history control deletes the daily history and the site list (and, in v2.5, the data-used totals).

Two things are kept only briefly, in memory, while you use them (since v2.5):

An image you asked to load. Pressing "Load image" on a blocked image creates a rule for that one image's address in that one tab, so Chrome lets it through. The rule is removed as soon as the image loads, and within about a minute in any case.
A tab where you allowed video. Pressing "Play on this page" remembers that tab and the site it is on, so videos keep playing there. It is forgotten when the tab leaves that site or is closed, and when the browser closes.

Neither is written to disk or sent anywhere.

Optional features that act on the page

Two features do more than block requests. Since v2.5 both are on by default — for new installs, and for existing users when they update, unless they had already switched them off. Either can be switched off in the dashboard, and stays off:

Answering cookie banners. When enabled, the extension looks for a consent banner and presses the most privacy-preserving option it offers — "reject all" or "necessary only". It never presses accept. If no privacy-preserving option can be found, the banner is hidden and no consent of any kind is recorded on your behalf. It reads nothing from the page except the text of candidate buttons.
Blocking pop-ups. When enabled, windows a page tries to open without you clicking are prevented from opening. Windows you open yourself still work. Nothing about the page is read or recorded.

Permissions we request

Chrome requires every permission to be declared up front. Here is what each one is actually used for:

Permission	Why we need it
host_permissions <all_urls>	The extension's entire purpose is blocking ads/trackers/images/video on any site you visit — that only works if its rules and scripts can apply to any site, which is what a broad host permission grants. It is not used to read or collect page content.
declarativeNetRequest declarativeNetRequestWithHostAccess	Lets Chrome itself block matching network requests (ads, trackers, images, video) using rule files bundled in the extension — the blocking decision happens inside Chrome, not in code we control.
storage	Saves your toggle choices, per-site rules, pause list and blocked-request counts — locally, or synced via your own Chrome account, so they persist between sessions. The same permission is how the extension reads an administrator policy if your school or employer has deployed one; that is read-only and read locally.
scripting	Registers the on-page scripts that pause autoplay video/audio (and, when you press play on a stopped video, offer to play it on that page), show a placeholder with a "Load image" button where an image was blocked, and count how many requests were blocked so the popup can show you your own total. Two further scripts — answering cookie banners and blocking unrequested pop-ups — run while those features are on (on by default since v2.5; either can be switched off in the dashboard).
webRequest (v2.5 only)	In v2.5, let the extension observe — not change or block — each download as it finished, so it could add its size to the day's "data used" total. Only the size was kept, as part of one number per day. No longer requested from v2.6.

One of these on-page scripts (active only while "Block Videos" is on) deliberately opens closed shadow DOM roots so autoplay video hidden inside them can still be paused. This is a real, disclosed trade-off: it weakens shadow-DOM encapsulation site-wide while active, which in principle could let other scripts on that page read content a site intended to keep closed. Turn off "Block Videos," or use "Pause on this site," on any page where you don't want this active.

Third-party rule data

The ad/tracker blocklist bundled inside the extension is compiled, at build time, from Peter Lowe's ad and tracking server list — a maintained, publicly available list of known ad and tracking domains, credited here per its usage policy. This data is a static list of domain names, refreshed manually by re-running a build script; the extension does not fetch anything from this or any other server while it's running in your browser.

Data sharing & sale

There is nothing to share or sell, because nothing is collected. Data Saver has no business model built on user data — it doesn't have a business model at all.

The uninstall page on this website

When the extension is removed, Chrome opens a page on this site asking what went wrong. Nothing is sent unless you tap a reason. If you do, this website — not the extension — stores that reason, any note you choose to type, the extension version, and the country Cloudflare reports for the request. No IP address, no identifier and nothing about your browsing is stored. It is used only to find out what to fix.

Children's privacy

Data Saver is a general-purpose browser utility, not directed at children, and does not knowingly collect information from anyone, of any age — see "Data we collect" above.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, the "Effective" date at the top of this page will be updated accordingly. Material changes will also be reflected in the extension's Chrome Web Store listing.

Contact

Questions, bug reports and privacy enquiries — including from the Chrome Web Store review team — should go to the project's issue tracker:

github.com/RatKush/Data-saver-extension/issues

The source for this extension is public at github.com/RatKush/Data-saver-extension, so every claim on this page can be checked against the code rather than taken on trust.