PrompTutor – Chrome Extension
Last updated: April 2026PrompTutor is a Chrome extension built for educational research on student–AI interactions at Carnegie Mellon University. This policy explains exactly what data the extension collects, how it is used, and the controls available to you. By installing and using PrompTutor you agree to this policy.
| Data | When collected | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Google account name, email address, and profile picture | At sign-in via Google OAuth | Account identification. The email is hashed to a one-way anonymous ID before any data is stored or transmitted. The original name, email, and picture are never sent to our servers. |
| AI chat conversation text | Only when you have explicitly enabled data collection | Educational research into how students interact with AI chatbots. |
| Prompt text (Guidance mode only) | When you manually trigger the guidance check | Sent to our detection API to classify whether the prompt is answer-seeking and to generate a suggested rephrasing. The result and your response to the suggestion are logged for research. |
| Platform name and page URL | Alongside chat or guidance data | Research context (which AI platform was in use). |
We do not collect passwords, payment information, browsing history, data from sites other than the listed AI platforms, or any data while collection is disabled.
The extension only activates on the following AI chat platforms:
Data collection is strictly opt-in. After signing in you must explicitly toggle the "Share Data" switch to begin collection. You can disable collection at any time from the extension popup or from the floating toggle on any supported page.
Your Google email is hashed using SHA-256 before it is used as a user identifier. The original email, name, and profile picture are stored only in your local browser and are never transmitted to our servers. All research data on our servers is keyed to this one-way hash and cannot be reversed to identify you.
Data is transmitted over HTTPS to research servers. Access is restricted to authorized members of the research team. Data is retained for the duration of the research project and deleted thereafter, or immediately upon your request.
| Permission | Why it is needed |
|---|---|
storage / unlimitedStorage |
Store your login state, preferences, and locally-buffered chat logs. |
identity |
Google OAuth sign-in via Chrome's identity API. |
activeTab |
Read the active tab URL to determine which AI platform is open. |
alarms |
Schedule periodic background sync of locally-buffered logs to the server. |
| Host permissions (listed AI sites) | Inject content scripts that capture chat data and display the guidance UI on those specific sites only. |
We do not sell, rent, or share your data with third parties. The only external service used is Google OAuth for authentication. Data is used solely for academic research.
PrompTutor is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 13.
This research is conducted under oversight of the Carnegie Mellon University Institutional Review Board (IRB).
We may update this policy from time to time. Significant changes will be communicated via the extension or this page. Continued use after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.