Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

The Ready Player Me Click Tracker ("Extension") is developed by Space Labs Research for academic and user experience research purposes. This Privacy Policy explains what data we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your data.

2. Data We Collect

This Extension collects the following types of interaction data when you use it:

2.1 Interaction Data (Required)

• Click Events: Information about elements you click on, including:
  • HTML tag name (e.g., BUTTON, DIV)
  • Element ID and CSS class names
  • Data attributes (data-cy, aria-label)
  • Image source URLs (for visual elements)
  • Timestamp of each interaction
• Session Information:
  • Start and end timestamps
  • Session duration
  • Total number of interactions
  • Participant ID (provided by you)
• Categorized Actions: Processed data that categorizes your clicks into action types such as:
  • Category selection (e.g., "Hair", "Clothing")
  • Customization choices
  • Color selections
  • View rotations

2.2 Data We Do NOT Collect

• ❌ Personal identifying information (name, email, address)
• ❌ Browsing history outside of the research session
• ❌ Passwords or authentication credentials
• ❌ Financial information
• ❌ IP addresses or location data
• ❌ Device fingerprinting data
• ❌ Content of communications
• ❌ Cookies or tracking identifiers

3. How We Use Your Data

The interaction data collected is used exclusively for:

• UX Research: Analyzing user behavior patterns in avatar customization
• Academic Studies: Understanding user interaction flows and decision-making
• Product Improvement: Helping improve the design and usability of avatar creators

We do NOT use your data for:

• Advertising or marketing purposes
• Selling or sharing with third parties
• User profiling or tracking across websites
• Any commercial purposes beyond research

4. Data Storage and Security

4.1 Local Storage

All collected data is stored locally in your browser using the browser's secure storage API. Data remains on your device until you explicitly export it.

4.2 Data Export

When you click "Export Data", the extension creates a JSON file that is downloaded to your device. This file contains your interaction data and is under your complete control.

4.3 No Remote Transmission

This extension does not transmit any data to remote servers automatically. Data only leaves your browser when you manually export and share the JSON file with researchers.

4.4 Security Measures

• Data is stored using browser's encrypted storage APIs
• No third-party analytics or tracking scripts
• Content Security Policy prevents unauthorized code execution
• Extension does not run in incognito mode

5. Data Retention

• In Browser: Data is retained locally until you clear it using the "Clear All Data" button
• Exported Files: You control retention of exported JSON files
• Research Use: Once shared with researchers, data is retained according to institutional research data policies (typically 3-7 years)

6. Your Rights and Choices

You have complete control over your data:

• Consent: Installation and use of this extension constitutes consent to data collection for research purposes
• Access: View your collected data anytime using the "View Actions" button
• Export: Download your data at any time in JSON format
• Delete: Clear all collected data using the "Clear All Data" button
• Withdraw: Uninstall the extension at any time to stop data collection
• Opt-Out: Do not share exported files with researchers if you change your mind

7. Participant ID

The extension requires a Participant ID for organizing research data. This ID:

• Is provided by the researcher or chosen by you
• Should NOT contain personally identifiable information
• Is used only for organizing research datasets
• Can be a pseudonym or code (e.g., "P001", "User_A")

8. Research Ethics Compliance

This extension is designed to comply with:

• Institutional Review Board (IRB) requirements for human subjects research
• General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) principles
• California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) requirements
• Browser extension privacy policies (Chrome, Firefox)

If you are participating in a research study, you should receive additional informed consent documentation from the researchers.

9. Third-Party Services

This extension does NOT use any third-party services, including:

• No analytics (Google Analytics, etc.)
• No advertising networks
• No crash reporting services
• No CDNs for remote code
• No external APIs

All code runs entirely within your browser.

10. Children's Privacy

This extension is not intended for use by individuals under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If you are under 18, please do not use this extension without parental consent and supervision from a research coordinator.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. The "Last Updated" date at the top indicates when changes were made. Continued use after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

12. Incognito/Private Browsing

This extension is intentionally disabled in incognito/private browsing mode to respect your privacy preferences.

13. Data Minimization

We follow the principle of data minimization:

• We only collect data necessary for research purposes
• We don't collect personally identifiable information
• We limit data retention to what's needed
• We provide tools to view and delete your data

14. Contact Information

For questions about this Privacy Policy or data practices:

• Research Team: [Your Research Team Email]
• Institution: [Your Institution Name]
• IRB Contact: [IRB Email if applicable]
• Data Protection Officer: [DPO Email if applicable]

15. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

Under GDPR, our legal basis for processing data is:

• Consent: You provide explicit consent by installing and using this extension
• Legitimate Interests: Academic research and scientific study

16. Permissions Explanation

This extension requests the following browser permissions:

• storage: To save interaction data locally in your browser
• downloads: To export your data as a JSON file
• activeTab: To capture clicks only on tabs you're actively using
• <all_urls>: To work on any website (but we only analyze Ready Player Me)

Note: Despite requesting broad permissions, we only collect data as described in Section 2.