Privacy Policy
Last updated: July 16, 2026
ZeroTabs is a new-tab dashboard. It pairs local browser storage with account sync through your KnowMan account. This policy explains what is stored where, what is synced, and the permissions ZeroTabs uses.
The short version
A free KnowMan account is required to use ZeroTabs. ZeroTabs syncs your tab sessions, notes, to-dos, focus history, and preferences (including display name and weather-location settings) to KnowMan's servers. This allows you to access your data across browsers and devices. ZeroTabs also allows you to create optional public share links for specific link lists. Bookmarks are read from your browser and stored locally only. ZeroTabs does load background photos from Unsplash, sends anonymous usage analytics to PostHog (which you can turn off), and fetches website icons from DuckDuckGo and Google. ZeroTabs does not sell your data and has no ads.
Data stored locally
The following data is stored locally in your browser's storage (chrome.storage.local):
- Bookmarks (read from Chrome, displayed in the bookmarks panel)
- A local cache of your synced data (sessions, notes, to-dos, focus history, preferences)
- Your KnowMan authentication credential (API key)
Bookmarks are never sent to any server. The authentication credential is stored locally and sent only to KnowMan endpoints.
Account and synced data
A free KnowMan account is required to use ZeroTabs. You sign in via the KnowMan web app; authentication is handled by KnowMan (knowman.io).
The following data is stored on KnowMan's servers and tied to your account to enable sync across browsers and devices:
- Tab sessions
- Notes
- To-dos
- Focus history
- Preferences (including display name and weather-location settings)
This data is transmitted over HTTPS. You can remove this data from KnowMan's servers at any time by disconnecting or deleting your KnowMan account.
Public share links
You can create public share links for specific link lists you choose to share. These are unique URLs hosted on app.knowman.io.
Each share link contains only the link list you explicitly chose to share (titles + URLs). Anyone with the URL can view the list. A view counter is kept for the link. You can revoke a share link at any time from the extension. Nothing is shared without your explicit action.
Permissions
ZeroTabs requests the following Chrome permissions. Each is used only for the purpose described.
storage— save a local cache of your synced data, bookmarks (read-only), settings, and your KnowMan authentication credential locally in the browser.bookmarks— read Chrome bookmarks to display them in the bookmarks panel. Not modified or sent externally.tabs— read open tabs ONLY when the user runs a "sweep" to save them as a session. No background browsing monitoring.tabGroups— read and recreate Chrome tab groups so a saved session preserves and restores its tab-group structure.contextMenus— add a right-click "ZeroTabs" menu (sweep tabs, open dashboard, recent sessions).alarms— schedule the end of a focus/pomodoro timer so its completion reminder fires reliably, even when the dashboard tab is not focused. No other background activity.notifications— show a desktop notification when a focus or break timer completes. Used only for the focus timer you start; no marketing or other notifications.geolocation— get your precise coordinates for the weather widget, but ONLY if you opt in. Off by default. See the Location section below.
External services
ZeroTabs communicates with a small number of external services:
- Unsplash (images.unsplash.com) — background photos. No user data is sent to Unsplash.
- PostHog (us.i.posthog.com, us-assets.i.posthog.com) — anonymous usage analytics. This can be disabled in Settings. No browsing history or keystrokes are recorded.
- KnowMan API (api.knowman.io, app.knowman.io) — a KnowMan account is required. ZeroTabs syncs your tab sessions, notes, to-dos, focus history, preferences, and reading queue with KnowMan. Your authentication credential is stored locally and sent only to KnowMan endpoints.
- Weather: wttr.in (wttr.in) — the primary weather provider. See the Location section below.
- Weather fallback: Open-Meteo (api.open-meteo.com) — used if wttr.in is unavailable. See the Location section below.
Favicons
Favicons (website icons) for bookmarks, tabs, and reading-queue items are fetched from DuckDuckGo (icons.duckduckgo.com) and Google (google.com/s2/favicons). Only the domain name is sent to these services, never the full URL or any page content.
Location
By default, the weather widget determines your approximate location from your IP address via wttr.in. No browser permission prompt is shown for this, and no coordinates are involved.
You can optionally switch to a more precise location in Settings, with two choices:
- Precise location (opt-in) — uses the browser's geolocation API to get your device's exact coordinates. This triggers a Chrome permission prompt the first time, and is off by default. You must explicitly turn it on.
- Manual city — type in a city name instead; no coordinates or permissions involved.
If you enable precise location, your coordinates are sent directly from your browser to the weather provider only — wttr.in (as part of the request path) or, as fallback, Open-Meteo (as query parameters) — to fetch the forecast. Coordinates are never sent to ZeroTabs or KnowMan servers, and are not stored anywhere beyond your local settings (used to avoid re-prompting on every new tab).
You can turn precise location off at any time in Settings, which reverts to IP-based auto-detection or manual city. The weather widget itself can also be disabled entirely in Settings.
What ZeroTabs does NOT do
- ZeroTabs does not sell your data.
- ZeroTabs shows no ads.
- ZeroTabs does not track your browsing history.
- ZeroTabs does not use cookies for tracking.
- ZeroTabs does not send your bookmarks to any server.
- ZeroTabs only syncs the data listed in the "Account and synced data" section, and only to KnowMan.
Contact
Questions about this policy? Contact us at privacy@knowman.io.
ZeroTabs is built by KnowMan.