Privacy Policy
The privacy policy for the Renewed Tab website and browser extension
Renewed Tab is built to be a useful, private new tab page. Your settings and widgets are stored in your browser, and we only receive data when it's needed to make Renewed Tab work, keep it secure and reliable, or, if you choose, help us learn what to improve. We never sell your data or use it for advertising.
Last updated: 2026-10-23.
What information is collected and how is it used?
Communication with our servers
Your client will contact the Renewed Tab servers (“Our servers”) in order to retrieve information to perform its function. Unless otherwise stated, any HTTP requests to this server are logged, including the following information: time, IP address, page URL, and response status.
We have a legitimate interest in logging requests to our servers - for security, to monitor performance and errors, to debug the server, and to generate anonymous statistics (such as view counters/graphs).
All communications with our servers are done using strong encryption.
Features
Your settings and widgets are stored in your browser. Custom background images you upload never leave your device. Data is only sent when a feature needs it, as shown below. We use this data only to provide the feature, and the legal basis is our legitimate interest in providing the features you choose to use.
| Feature | What's sent | Who receives it | What we keep |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weather widget | Location searches, or your coordinates if you share your location | Our servers, then AccuWeather, without your IP address or any identifiers | In request logs for 14 days |
| Unsplash backgrounds | The search term or collection ID you enter | Our servers, then Unsplash, without your IP address | In request logs for 14 days |
| Curated and Unsplash backgrounds | Requests for photos, which include your IP address and user agent | Unsplash, directly from your browser | Nothing |
| Background ratings | The photo and whether you liked or blocked it | Our servers | The rating, without your IP address or any identifier |
| Website icons | The website’s domain, such as example.com, not the full URL |
Our servers, which download the icon so that the website doesn’t see your IP address | Requests are logged without domain names for 14 days. |
| Website icons, fetched directly | Requests for icons, which include your IP address and user agent | Each website, directly from your browser. This is optional and only available in the browser extension, in Settings > Privacy | Nothing |
| Feeds, background image URLs, and other URLs you enter | Requests to that URL, which include your IP address and user agent | The website, directly from your browser | Nothing |
| Feeds in the web version | The full feed URL | Our servers, which fetch the feed for you | In request logs for 14 days |
| Bookmarks and browsing history | Nothing. Bookmarks and browsing history are stored locally in your browser. | No-one | Nothing |
| Feedback forms | Your feedback, browser, platform, and Renewed Tab version, and your email address if you include one | Our servers, and a private channel on Discord, which is based in the US | The feedback, see “Period of Retention” |
Opt-in Usage Statistics (PostHog)
Usage statistics are only collected if you allow them. You will be asked during onboarding when you first install Renewed Tab. You can change your choice at any time in Settings > Privacy. Nothing is sent or stored for usage statistics until you allow it.
To improve the Renewed Tab experience, we gather data on how you use the application, if you allow it. For example, the features you use, the high-level actions you take (such as adding a widget or changing a setting), and how long you’ve had Renewed Tab installed. Once a day, we also record a summary of your setup, such as which widgets you have and your type of background.
We never record the contents of your widgets. For example, we know that you changed a Feed widget’s URL, but not the URL itself. We also never collect your bookmarks, browsing history, or the websites you visit.
This is sent to PostHog, our analytics provider, along with technical information (such as your browser, operating system, screen size, language and Renewed Tab version) and your approximate region and country, worked out from your IP address. Your IP address is then discarded without being stored.
This information is linked to a random identifier stored in your browser.
The legal basis for this is your consent. If you turn off usage statistics, no more will be sent, and statistics already sent can be deleted on request, see “User Rights”. On Firefox, accepting the “technical data collection” permission when installing Renewed Tab counts as allowing usage statistics.
Your answer to the consent request is counted anonymously on our server, so that we know how many people allow or deny usage statistics and can verify the gradual roll out is working. Only the choice, which version of the consent banner, where you made it (during setup, when asked later, or in Settings), the Renewed Tab version, and whether you use Firefox or Chrome are recorded. It isn’t linked to any identifier and your IP address will not be logged.
Opt-out Error and Performance Reporting (Sentry)
Automatic error reporting is done using Sentry.io. When an error occurs, the app will automatically report:
- The error and its stack trace.
- Recent actions and log messages, with URLs redacted.
- Technical information, such as browser, operating system, device type, and the Renewed Tab version.
You will be given an anonymous unique identifier to track your current session, sent each time the page loads. This allows us to see what percentage of users are receiving errors and determine whether a release needs to be rolled back. This identifier is generated each time you open Renewed Tab and is not stored in your browser.
Sentry will automatically report performance data, allowing us to know how long the extension takes for real users to load.
Sentry does not record your IP address.
We have a legitimate interest in collecting error and session data, to help us ensure that Renewed Tab is reliable, performs well, and enable us to safely roll out updates.
You can disable Sentry in Settings > Privacy > Enable crash reporting. On Firefox, Sentry will automatically follow the “technical data collection” permission.
Website Analytics (Plausible)
This section applies to the renewedtab.com website, not the browser extension or web version.
The website uses Plausible, self-hosted on our servers, to count visits and see which pages are useful. The following information is recorded when you view a page:
- The page URL, and the website that linked you here (referrer).
- Links you click to other websites, and files you download.
- Technical information, such as browser, operating system, and device type.
- Your approximate location (country, region, and city), worked out from your IP address.
Your IP address is not stored. Plausible doesn’t use cookies or store anything in your browser. To count unique visitors, it calculates an identifier from your IP address, browser user agent, and a random value. The random value is deleted and replaced every day, so visits on different days can’t be linked together and the identifier can’t be turned back into your IP address.
This data isn’t shared with anyone else or used for advertising.
We have a legitimate interest in website analytics, to understand how people find Renewed Tab and to improve the website.
You can opt out below. Your choice is saved in your browser and applies to this website only. If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal, you are opted out automatically.
Vendors and sub-processors
Vendors that process data on our behalf do so only for the purposes described in this policy, under a data processing agreement, and may not use it for their own purposes. Other vendors handle the data they receive under their own privacy policies.
| Vendor | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Contabo | Hosts our servers in the EU, including request logs and website analytics. Processes data on our behalf. |
| PostHog | Opt-in usage statistics, stored in the EU. Processes data on our behalf. |
| Sentry | Error and performance reporting, stored in the US. Processes data on our behalf. |
| AccuWeather | Weather forecasts and location search. Receives locations from our servers, without your IP address or any identifiers. |
| Unsplash | Background photos. Receives search terms from our servers and photo requests directly from your browser. |
| Discord | Notifies us about the feedback you submit, in a private channel. Based in the US. |
Websites you choose, such as feeds and background image URLs, may also receive requests directly from your browser, as shown in “Features”.
We don’t sell your data or share it with anyone else, except where required by law.
Data Location
Our servers are based in the EU, and usage statistics are stored by PostHog in the EU. Error reports are stored by Sentry and feedback is stored by Discord, both in the US.
Sentry is certified under the EU–US Data Privacy Framework and its UK Extension, which covers transfers of data to the US. Sentry’s data processing agreement also includes Standard Contractual Clauses as a fallback.
Period of Retention
The server uses log rotation, meaning that any logged HTTP requests will be forgotten about after 14 days.
Raw website analytics data is deleted after 180 days. Aggregated reports, such as the number of visits per page, are kept indefinitely; these can’t be linked to individual visitors.
Usage statistics are deleted after 1 year, or sooner on request, see “User Rights”.
Feedback and background votes are stored indefinitely. Personal data in feedback, including emails, are stripped after 1 year, or sooner on request.
User Rights
Under data protection law (GDPR / UK GDPR), you have the right to:
- Access the personal data we hold about you.
- Correct inaccurate data.
- Erase your data.
- Restrict how we process your data.
- Object to processing based on legitimate interest.
- Data portability: receive data you gave us with your consent in a portable format.
- Withdraw consent at any time, such as turning off usage statistics in Settings > Privacy. This doesn’t affect data processed before you withdrew it.
Most of the data we collect isn’t linked to your name or an account, so we need your help to find it:
- For usage statistics, include your random identifier, shown in Settings > Privacy.
- Background ratings are stored without your IP address or any identifier, so we can’t find the ratings made by a specific person.
- For feedback, include the email address or text you sent.
- Website analytics don’t store your IP address or any identifier that lasts beyond a day, so we can’t find data about a specific visitor.
- We do not typically delete request logs on request unless they inadvertently contain personal data. All logs are automatically deleted after 14 days.
We will respond within one month. If we can’t identify your data from the information provided, we will tell you.
To make a request or ask a question, contact the data controller. Renewed Tab is operated by Andrew “rubenwardy” Ward, an individual based in the UK.
Contact rubenwardyIf you’re unhappy with how we handle your data, you can complain to your local data protection authority. In the UK, this is the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
Future Changes to Privacy Policy
Changes to the privacy policy will be announced on this website. Any changes that require affirmative consent will also be announced inside Renewed Tab using a consent modal / banner.