Legal

Privacy Policy

Applies to: Flow Download Manager desktop app and browser extension
Last updated: May 2025

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Short version: Flow collects no personal data, sends nothing to any server, and stores everything locally on your device. The browser extension only communicates with the Flow app running on your own computer.
Contents
  1. Overview
  2. Browser Extension — Data Handling
  3. Desktop App — Data Handling
  4. Android App — Data Handling
  5. Third-Party Services
  6. Contact

1. Overview

Flow Download Manager ("Flow", "we", "the app") is a free, open-source download manager. This Privacy Policy explains what data is collected, how it is used, and your rights regarding that data.

We do not collect, transmit, or sell any personal data. All data generated by Flow stays on your device.

2. Browser Extension — Data Handling

What the extension does

The Flow browser extension intercepts download links in your browser and sends them to the Flow desktop app running locally on your computer. It does not send any data to external servers.

Permissions used and why

PermissionWhy it's neededData sent externally?
downloads To intercept and cancel browser downloads before the save dialog appears, then redirect them to Flow. No
activeTab To detect download links on the current page and show the Flow overlay button. No
storage To save user preferences (enabled/disabled toggle, port number) locally in the browser. No
webRequest To detect download responses (Content-Disposition headers) before the browser processes them. No
notifications To show a notification if the Flow app is not running when a download is intercepted. No
host_permissions: <all_urls> Required to detect download links on any website and to communicate with the local Flow app server (localhost). No

Local communication only

The extension communicates exclusively with http://localhost:15151 — the Flow desktop app running on your own machine. No data is sent to any external server, cloud service, or third party.

What is stored locally

  • Whether the extension is enabled or disabled (boolean)
  • The port number for the local Flow server (integer, default: 15151)

No URLs, filenames, browsing history, or personal information are stored.

Content script access

The content script runs on all pages to detect download links. It reads link URLs only to determine if they point to downloadable files. This information is never stored or transmitted — it is used only to decide whether to show the Flow overlay button.

3. Desktop App — Data Handling

The Flow desktop app stores the following data locally on your device only:

  • Download history (URLs, filenames, file sizes, status)
  • App settings and preferences
  • Queue configurations
  • Category definitions

The app checks for updates by querying the GitHub Releases API (api.github.com). This request includes no personal data — only the current app version is compared against the latest release.

No telemetry, analytics, crash reporting, or usage data is collected or transmitted.

4. Android App — Data Handling

The Android app follows the same principles as the desktop app. All data is stored locally on your device. No personal data is transmitted to any server.

Permissions requested by the Android app are used solely for download functionality (internet access, storage access, notifications) and are not used to collect personal data.

5. Third-Party Services

Flow does not integrate with any third-party analytics, advertising, or tracking services.

The only external network requests made by Flow are:

  • GitHub API — to check for app updates (no personal data sent)
  • Your download URLs — the actual files you choose to download

This landing page uses Google Fonts (loaded from fonts.googleapis.com). Google's privacy policy applies to that request.

6. Contact

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us via:

This policy may be updated from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page will reflect any changes.