Privacy Policy
Last updated:
Short version: StreamShield collects nothing. No personal data is ever collected, transmitted, or shared. Everything stays in your browser.
1. Who we are
StreamShield is a free, open-source Chrome extension that blocks ads on Twitch.tv and Kick.com. It is developed and maintained independently and is available at no cost. There is no company, no subscription, and no account system.
If you have any questions about this policy, please use the contact form on our website or reach us via Ko-fi.
2. Data we do NOT collect
StreamShield does not collect, transmit, store on any server, or share with any third party:
- Your identity — no name, email address, IP address, or any personally identifiable information.
- Browsing history — StreamShield only activates on twitch.tv and kick.com. It does not monitor any other browsing activity.
- Viewing habits — which channels you watch, when you watch, or for how long.
- Usage analytics — no telemetry, no usage data, no crash reports, no feature-level tracking of any kind.
- Financial information — StreamShield has no payment system. Ko-fi donations are handled entirely by Ko-fi's own platform.
3. Data stored locally on your device
StreamShield stores a small amount of data locally in your browser using the Chrome chrome.storage API. This data never leaves your device and is not accessible to StreamShield or anyone else:
- Preferences (chrome.storage.sync) — your on/off toggle, watchdog setting, privacy mode, whitelisted channels, and Creator Support Mode settings. If you have Chrome Sync enabled, Google may sync these values across your own devices, governed by Google's privacy policy.
- Statistics (chrome.storage.local) — a local count of ads blocked and estimated time saved, broken down by channel. Used only to populate your personal stats dashboard in the popup. Never transmitted anywhere.
- Temporary state flags (chrome.storage.local) — flags used to coordinate between extension components (e.g. whether an ad is currently being blocked). Reset on every page load.
You can delete all locally stored data at any time by removing the StreamShield extension, or by clicking "Reset stats" in the extension popup.
4. Permissions explained
StreamShield requests only the permissions it needs:
- storage — to save your preferences and local stats as described in Section 3.
- tabs — to detect which Twitch/Kick tabs are open so the popup can show the correct channel status and reload a stalled stream when requested.
- contextMenus — to add a right-click option on Twitch/Kick pages to whitelist or un-whitelist a channel.
- notifications — to display a desktop notification when Creator Support Mode activates for a small streamer (opt-in via the Creator Support Mode toggle).
- Host permissions (twitch.tv, kick.com) — required for the ad-blocking content scripts to run on these pages.
- Host permission (raw.githubusercontent.com) — used only by the automated server-side CI workflow to check for VAFT engine updates. Not used by the extension at runtime in your browser.
5. Third-party services
StreamShield itself does not use any third-party analytics, advertising, or tracking services.
The following external services are referenced, but are entirely optional and operated independently:
- Ko-fi (ko-fi.com/streamshield) — an optional donation platform linked in the extension popup and on this website. If you choose to donate, Ko-fi's own Privacy Policy applies. StreamShield receives no data about donors.
- Chrome Web Store — distributes the extension. Google's Privacy Policy governs that relationship.
The VAFT ad-blocking engine embedded in StreamShield is open-source software from the TwitchAdSolutions project. It runs entirely within your browser and makes no network requests on behalf of StreamShield.
6. Chrome Sync
StreamShield stores user preferences in chrome.storage.sync. If you have Chrome Sync enabled, Google may sync these preference values across your signed-in Chrome devices. This is handled entirely by Google's infrastructure and governed by Google's Privacy Policy. The preference values contain no personal information — only boolean flags and channel-name strings you have explicitly configured.
7. Children's privacy
StreamShield does not collect any data from any user, including minors. The extension is not directed at children under the age of 13.
8. Changes to this policy
If this privacy policy changes materially, we will update the date at the top of this page and note the change in the extension's changelog. Continued use of StreamShield after a policy update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.