Data Processing Documentation

Last Updated: October 13, 2026

This document provides technical information about how BirdTab processes data, intended for regulatory compliance and transparency.

1. Data Flow Overview

┌──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│                              USER'S BROWSER                              │
│  ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐  │
│  │                         BirdTab Extension                          │  │
│  │  ┌────────────┐ ┌────────────┐ ┌────────────┐ ┌────────────────┐   │  │
│  │  │  Settings  │ │ Bird Media │ │ Diagnostics│ │ Usage Events   │   │  │
│  │  │  (Local)   │ │ (Fetched)  │ │ (Sentry)   │ │ (PostHog)      │   │  │
│  │  └─────┬──────┘ └─────┬──────┘ └─────┬──────┘ └───────┬────────┘   │  │
│  └────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────────┼────────────┘  │
└───────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────────┼───────────────┘
            │              │              │                │
            ▼              ▼              ▼                ▼
   ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐ ┌──────────────┐
   │Browser Store │ │ BirdTab Media│ │ Sentry.io    │ │ PostHog      │
   │ (Local/Sync) │ │ (CDN)        │ │ (US Region)  │ │ (EU Region)  │
   └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘ └──────────────┘

2. Local Storage Data

Settings (audio, quiet hours, clock and timer, search engine, shortcuts, Google Apps, low distraction mode), the list of birds you have viewed, and cached bird data are stored locally in the browser using the extension storage API. Only three onboarding flags (whether setup and the feature tour are complete) use the browser's sync storage.

Retention: Until you clear the data or uninstall the extension. The viewing history keeps the most recent 200 birds.

3. External Services

BirdTab Media (media.birdtab.app)

The extension downloads its list of birds and their photographs and recordings from BirdTab's own media server. Requests carry no settings or identifiers. The photographs and recordings are openly licensed works from iNaturalist, Wikimedia Commons, Xeno-canto, Unsplash, Pexels and Pixabay, copied to BirdTab's server; your browser does not contact those sites unless you follow a credit link.

eBird (ebird.org)

When you open a bird's information panel, its range map is embedded from eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology). Your browser loads the map directly from eBird, without a referrer.

Google favicon service

If you show top sites or add custom shortcuts, the extension loads each site's icon from Google's favicon service (www.google.com/s2/favicons), which receives the address of that site.

Sentry.io (Error Tracking)

Error reports are sent to Sentry.io to help us identify and fix bugs. This includes:

Error messages and stack traces, with query strings removed from URLs
Extension version and browser information
A random installation ID and a few settings (auto-play, quiet hours, quick access, region)
A small sample of performance timings

Not collected: names, email addresses, browsing history or the content of websites you visit.

PostHog (Usage Analytics)

Usage events are sent to PostHog's EU servers. They include which features are used, quiz scores, the bird shown, your settings, interface language, browser and screen size, days since install, and the random installation ID. Analytics is turned off if your browser sends Do Not Track.

4. Data Retention

Data Type	Retention	Location
User settings	Until uninstall	Your device
Bird list and media cache	Until replaced by a newer version or uninstall	Your device
Error reports	30 days	Sentry.io (US)
Usage events	As set in PostHog	PostHog (EU)

5. Data Security

All network requests use HTTPS/TLS
Local data stays in the browser's extension storage, which other websites cannot read
No account, password or payment data exists to transmit

6. Your Rights

Access: View your data via browser DevTools
Deletion: Uninstall the extension to remove all local data
Opt-out: Turn on Do Not Track in your browser to stop usage analytics, or disable the extension to stop all data collection

7. Compliance

BirdTab is designed with privacy in mind:

GDPR: Minimal data collection; analytics identify an installation by a random ID, never by name or email
CCPA: No sale of personal information
Browser Web Store: Compliant with developer policies

8. Contact

For data-related inquiries:

Email: support@birdtab.app