Privacy policy

Last updated: 2026-10-17

ChainShot is a forensic tool: what it records belongs to you and to your case, and nobody else. This page applies to every component (the Windows app ChainShot.exe, the PowerShell module, chainshot.py, the browser extension) and to this website. It is also the privacy policy of the extension in browser stores.

In short

No telemetry, no analytics, no crash reports, no account, no advertising.
No automatic network connection. ChainShot does not check for updates and does not "phone home".
Everything stays on your computer, in the case folders you choose.
Open source (MIT license): the code can be read and audited in the public repository, and releases are built from it by GitHub Actions, with their SHA-256.

The only network request: RFC 3161 timestamps, when you ask for one

When you choose Seal + timestamp (app), seal --tsa (command line) or a timestamped seal before a package, ChainShot sends one request to the time-stamp authority you configured (default: FreeTSA). It contains the SHA-256 of the seal file (a fingerprint from which nothing can be read back), a random number and the hash algorithm identifier. No capture, file, note, case name or personal data is sent. The signed answer is stored in the case. That authority has its own terms and privacy policy.

Links in the Help menu of the app open this website or the repository in your web browser; ChainShot itself sends nothing.

Browser extension

Data collected	None. The extension has no server and sends nothing over the network.
What it captures	The visible part of the active tab, or the whole page, only when you click Capture tab or press its shortcut, with the page URL and title; an MHTML copy of the page if you enable Page archive.
Where it goes	Your Downloads folder (`ChainShot/<case>/`), or, if you choose ChainShot app, the case open in ChainShot on the same computer, through a local channel (native messaging).
Stored in the browser	The journal of the cases created in the browser, the tag and the next note, on this computer only.
Permissions	`activeTab` (the tab you are on, after your click), `scripting` (full page: scroll the page and restore it), `downloads` (write the case files), `storage` (journal and settings), `nativeMessaging` (the ChainShot app on this computer, only if you select it), optional `pageCapture` (MHTML archive, asked when you enable it). No host permission: the extension cannot read websites by itself.

Windows app and PowerShell module

Settings are stored in %APPDATA%\ChainShot: current case and tag, app preferences, browser link manifests.
Registry values, for the current user only and only when you ask: start with Windows (HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run) and the browser link (HKCU\Software\<browser>\NativeMessagingHosts\com.chainshot.host, asked at first start). Once one of them exists, ChainShot is listed in Settings > Apps > Installed apps (HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall\ChainShot). Uninstalling it there, or Options > Uninstall from this computer, removes all of them and can delete ChainShot.exe.
Captures contain what is on your screen and may include personal data. Store case folders on media you control and apply the rules of your organisation on evidence and personal data.

This website

No cookies, no trackers, no analytics, no external fonts or scripts. The site is hosted by GitHub Pages: like any web host, GitHub processes technical data such as your IP address to serve and protect the site; see the GitHub General Privacy Statement.

Your rights and contact

ChainShot's author does not receive or keep any data about you. For any question, open an issue on GitHub; security problems: private report.