How ShroomPen handles your data
ShroomPen sends text only when you ask it to write something, and only to the AI provider you set up. The request goes straight from your browser to that provider: OpenRouter, OpenAI, Google Gemini, Anthropic, or a server on your own computer such as Ollama or LM Studio. There is no ShroomPen account, no ShroomPen server in between and no telemetry from the extension. Your API keys and settings stay in Chrome’s extension storage on your device.
Published
The short version
- Nothing is read or sent until you have seen a disclosure inside the extension and chosen “Enable ShroomPen”.
- Page, field, selection and tab text is read only when you switch that source on for a request.
- Your instruction, the context you switched on and your API key go directly from your browser to the provider endpoint you configured. ShroomPen runs no backend, hosts no model and has no user accounts.
- The extension sends no analytics, usage data or telemetry.
- Remote providers must use HTTPS. Plain HTTP is accepted only for loopback addresses on your own computer.
The legal version is the privacy policy. This page says the same things in a table, so you can check them quickly.
Before it does anything: consent
The first time you open ShroomPen it shows a disclosure: what it reads, where that data goes, what it stores and how it connects. Until you tick the box and choose “Enable ShroomPen”, the overlay shows only that disclosure, the Input Helper does not attach to any text field, and the extension’s background worker refuses to generate text, test or save providers, list your tabs or read them. Choosing “Not now” stores nothing. If the disclosure changes in a way that matters, ShroomPen asks again.
What it reads, where it goes, what it keeps
| Data | When ShroomPen reads it | Where it goes | Stored? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Your instruction | When you send a request | Your provider | In session Recents only (see below) |
| Current field text | When “Current field” is on for the request | Your provider | No, held in memory for the session |
| Current page text | When “Current page” is on. Visible text, capped at 12,000 characters | Your provider | No |
| Selected text | When you use it as context | Your provider | No |
| Other tabs | The tab picker lists open tabs’ titles and addresses. A tab’s text is read only when you pick that tab | Your provider, for picked tabs only | No, unless you choose “Save context to Workspace” |
| PDF tabs | When you pick a PDF tab. ShroomPen asks for permission to reach that site, downloads the PDF from the tab’s own address and parses it inside the extension (up to 40,000 characters or 80 pages) | The extracted text goes to your provider. The PDF itself is never uploaded for parsing | No, unless saved to a Workspace |
| Google Docs | When you read the current page or pick a Docs tab. ShroomPen asks docs.google.com for the plain-text export, using your existing Google sign-in | Your provider | No, unless saved to a Workspace |
| Workspaces (instructions, notes, imported .txt or .md, saved tab snapshots) | When the Workspace is active or a source is switched on | Your provider, when included in a request | Yes, in local extension storage. Saved page text is capped at 12,000 characters |
| API keys and provider settings | When you add a provider | Only to that provider, with its requests | Yes, in local extension storage, without extra encryption |
| Recents (your prompts and results) | After each request | Nowhere | Session storage, up to 40 conversations per window. Cleared when the browser restarts or the extension reloads. The raw page, field or tab context is not copied into Recents |
| OpenRouter sign-in | When you choose to sign in with OpenRouter | openrouter.ai | Temporary sign-in state in session storage, removed when sign-in ends. The returned key is stored locally |
| Rating-request counter | After each successful Insert or Replace | Nowhere | Yes, in local extension storage: counts, dates and flags only, no text or site names. Used to show a one-line request to rate ShroomPen at most twice |
What your provider receives
When you ask for a draft, the provider gets your instruction, the context sources you switched on, the active Workspace’s instructions, any earlier turns of the conversation you kept, and the API key for that provider. A connection test sends the key, the model name and a short fixed test prompt. Loading the model list may also send the key.
Requests to OpenRouter also carry headers that name the app: HTTP-Referer: https://shroompen.com, X-OpenRouter-Title: ShroomPen and the older X-Title: ShroomPen. OpenRouter uses them to credit usage to ShroomPen on its public app pages. They contain no information about you.
You can see exactly what will be sent: the overlay can show the composed request before it goes out, with your API key hidden. What the provider does with the request after that is governed by its own privacy policy and terms.
What ShroomPen never collects
- No extension analytics, usage events, crash reports or telemetry.
- No ShroomPen account, identity profile or cloud conversation history.
- No passive browsing history. Tab titles and addresses are read only to show the tab picker you opened.
- No sensitive fields. Password inputs, and fields whose name, label or autocomplete hint points to one-time codes, card numbers, security codes, PINs, account or routing numbers, IBANs or social security numbers, are skipped.
- No remote code. All extension code ships in the package, and provider replies are treated as text, never run.
Page text is also treated as untrusted. The prompt tells the model to use page, field, tab and PDF text as reference material and to ignore any instructions hidden inside it.
Local models keep everything on your computer
If you connect a local server such as Ollama or LM Studio at http://localhost or http://127.0.0.1, requests go to that server on your own machine and nowhere else. ShroomPen accepts plain HTTP only for loopback addresses (localhost and its subdomains, 127.0.0.1 and ::1). Any other address, including your local network, must use HTTPS. The check runs before a provider is saved, before every connection test and model lookup, and before every request. Setup guides: local LLM browser extensions and LM Studio in Chrome.
Permissions it asks Chrome for
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
storage | Provider settings, keys, Workspaces (local) and Recents (session) |
tabs | The tab picker, so you can choose other tabs as context |
contextMenus | The “Open ShroomPen” right-click item |
identity | One-click OpenRouter sign-in |
offscreen | A short-lived hidden extension page that parses PDFs locally |
openrouter.ai site access | Declared up front, for OpenRouter |
| Other sites (optional) | Asked at runtime, one exact address at a time: the provider you configured, or the site of a PDF tab you picked. Chrome asks you to confirm. Local PDF files need a separate one-time grant plus Chrome’s “Allow access to file URLs” switch |
ShroomPen does not request activeTab. Its content script runs on normal http and https pages so the Input Helper and overlay are available, but running there does not send anything anywhere. You can turn ShroomPen off for specific sites in its settings.
Deleting your data
Settings, Clear local data removes provider settings and keys, Workspaces and their sources, per-site defaults, disabled sites, your shortcut, the rating-request counter and your consent record, which sends you back to the disclosure. It does not clear session Recents (a browser restart does), revoke keys at the provider, remove Chrome site permissions you granted, or delete anything your provider already logged. Revoke keys on the provider’s site and site access at chrome://extensions. Uninstalling the extension removes everything it stored.
The website is separate
This website, shroompen.com, counts page views with Vercel Web Analytics: page address, referrer, rough location, browser, operating system and device type, with no cookies. The extension sends no data to the website. The only connection is that a fresh install opens the welcome page once, as a plain page load with nothing added to the address. The welcome page and the privacy policy do not load analytics. Details are in the privacy policy.
Related
Questions
Does ShroomPen see my API key?
The key is stored in the extension’s local storage in your Chrome profile and is sent only to the provider it belongs to, with each request to that provider. There is no ShroomPen server for it to be sent to. ShroomPen does not add its own encryption on top of Chrome’s storage, so anyone with access to your browser profile could read it.
Does ShroomPen train AI models on my writing?
No. ShroomPen has no model and no server that receives your text. Whether your provider trains on your requests depends on that provider’s own terms, so check them, or use a local model if the text must not leave your computer.
Is ShroomPen open source?
No, the extension is closed source. You can still watch every request it makes: open chrome://extensions, turn on Developer mode, click “service worker” under ShroomPen and use the Network tab.
Does ShroomPen read password fields?
No. Password fields and fields that look like one-time codes, card numbers, security codes, account or routing numbers and similar secrets are skipped when ShroomPen collects the current field or page text.
Can ShroomPen work without sending anything to the internet?
Yes, if you connect a local server such as Ollama or LM Studio on localhost. Requests to a loopback address stay on your computer. Opening a PDF tab or a Google Doc as context still downloads that file from its own site.
How do I delete what ShroomPen stored?
Open ShroomPen settings and use Clear local data. It removes provider settings and keys, Workspaces, disabled sites, your shortcut, the rating-request counter and your consent record. Session-only Recents are cleared when the browser restarts or the extension reloads. Uninstalling removes everything the extension stored.