Privacy Policy
GetRef is a private library for design references. We take the trust you place in us seriously, and this policy sets out exactly what we collect, why we collect it, who it is shared with, and what control you have over it.
We are not in the business of selling, renting or trading your personal information or email address with anyone. We do not run advertising, and we do not build profiles of you for marketing purposes.
This policy covers the GetRef website at getref.in, the GetRef web application at app.getref.in, and the GetRef browser extension. By using any of them, you agree to the terms set out here.
The short version. We store the references you choose to save and the email address you sign up with. Your library is private and nobody else can browse it. Tags are generated on your own device. Your images are never sent to any AI company. We do not sell your data and we do not track you across other websites.
1. When we collect information
We collect personal information when you:
- Create a GetRef account or sign in
- Save a reference through the web app or the browser extension
- Search your library
- Contact us for support, or send feedback or a bug report
- Request an upgrade or purchase a paid plan
- Visit our website
2. What we collect and why
| Data | Why we collect it |
|---|---|
| Email address | To create your account, sign you in, and send essential service messages. |
| Authentication credentials | A session token so you stay signed in. Passwords are hashed and are never stored or visible in readable form. |
| References you save: images, screenshots, links, notes and text prompts | This is the core of the product. We store what you save so that you can find it again. |
| Source page URL and title | So a saved reference links back to where it came from. Captured only at the moment you choose to save. |
| Tags and descriptions generated from your saves | To make your library searchable by description. |
| Search queries | To return results, and in aggregate form to improve search quality. |
| Support correspondence | Anything you send us (messages, screenshots, error logs) so we can help and fix problems. |
| Basic usage data: page views, referring site, country | To understand how many people use GetRef and where they arrive from. |
What we use it for
- To provide the service: storing, tagging and searching your references
- To keep your account secure and prevent abuse
- To respond to your support requests
- To notify you about meaningful changes to the service
- To understand usage patterns and improve the product
We will not use your personal information for a purpose other than the one it was collected for without asking you first.
3. Your library is stored in the cloud
We want to be direct about this. Unlike desktop-only tools, GetRef stores your references on our servers so that they sync across your devices and can be searched from anywhere. Your images and files are uploaded to our storage provider.
What that does not mean: your library is not public, is not shared, is not browsable by other users, and is not used to populate any feed or discovery surface. Access is restricted to your account and enforced at the database level, not merely hidden in the interface.
4. Automatic tagging happens on your device
To make your references findable by description, GetRef reads each image you save and works out a set of tags: for example "hero, landing page, dark, navy". This is what makes search by vibe possible.
All of it runs inside your own browser. Reading the text in an image, sampling its colours, and judging its layout are performed locally on your device. The image itself is never transmitted anywhere for analysis. Only the resulting words are saved, and only to your own library.
GetRef uses no third-party AI service. Your references are not sent to OpenAI, Google, Anthropic or any other AI company. They are not used to train any model, ours or anyone else's, and no such company holds a copy of your content.
Search itself runs on our servers against your own saved tags and text. It uses a fixed vocabulary of design terms that we wrote by hand. No machine-learning model is involved, and nothing is sent to an outside service to answer a query.
The one thing your browser does download is the open-source text-recognition engine that performs this work, served from the public jsDelivr CDN. That is a download to your device; nothing of yours is uploaded in exchange.
5. The browser extension
The extension has a single purpose: saving a reference to your GetRef library. It requests the minimum permissions needed to do that.
- activeTab: reads the URL, page title, and the specific image or selection you are saving, only at the moment you click the GetRef button or use the right-click menu.
- contextMenus, adds a single "Save to GetRef" option to your right-click menu.
- storage, remembers that you are signed in.
- Access to app.getref.in, to send the saved reference to your account. This is the only remote host the extension talks to.
The extension does not read pages in the background, does not track your browsing history, does not inject advertising, and does not collect anything from pages you have not actively chosen to save from. It contains no analytics, no spyware and no third-party trackers.
6. Cookies and analytics
We use a small number of cookies, and only where they are necessary:
- Authentication cookies: set when you sign in, so you stay signed in. Without these the app cannot work.
- Preference storage, remembers small interface choices such as your last view.
For analytics we use Vercel Analytics, which is privacy-friendly: it does not set tracking cookies, does not fingerprint visitors, and does not follow you across other websites. It tells us how many people visited a page and which site referred them, nothing more.
We do not use advertising cookies, retargeting pixels, or third-party ad networks.
7. Who we share information with
We do not sell, rent or trade your personal data. We share it only with the service providers required to operate GetRef, on a need-to-know basis. There is no AI provider on this list, and there is no advertising or data-broker relationship of any kind:
| Provider | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Supabase | Database, authentication and file storage |
| Vercel | Website and application hosting, privacy-friendly analytics |
| Resend | Sending service email, such as your upgrade request |
| jsDelivr (CDN) | Delivering the open-source text-recognition engine to your browser. Receives no content of yours. |
We may also disclose information where we are legally required to, or where it is reasonably necessary to protect the rights, property or safety of GetRef, our users, or others.
7a. Payments
GetRef does not currently take payments through the website. If you ask to upgrade, we record your request and email you a payment link directly. We never see, handle or store your card details.
8. Email from us
We send two kinds of email:
- Service emails: account confirmation, password resets, billing notices, and notice of significant changes. These are necessary and cannot be opted out of while you hold an account.
- Product updates: occasional news about new features. If we ever send these, every one will carry an unsubscribe link, and you can email us at any time to be removed.
We do not share your email address with other organisations, and we do not send marketing on behalf of third parties.
9. Security
All traffic to and from getref.in and app.getref.in is encrypted over HTTPS. Passwords are hashed. Access to your references is enforced by database-level access rules tied to your account, not merely hidden in the interface.
Uploaded images are held in private storage. They are not reachable by a public link: each one is served to you through a short-lived signed URL that only your signed-in session can obtain. Site icons shown next to your saved links are fetched by our own servers rather than your browser, so no third party learns which sites you save.
No system is perfectly secure, but we take reasonable and current measures to protect your data, and if a breach ever affects your information we will tell you.
10. Links to other sites
References you save may link out to other websites, and our site may contain links to third-party services. Those sites are not operated by us. We have no control over their content or privacy practices, and we recommend reviewing their own policies before providing them with information.
11. Your rights and choices
- Access, ask us what personal information we hold about you and we will tell you.
- Export, ask us for a copy of everything you have saved and we will send it to you.
- Correct: update your account details, or ask us to correct anything inaccurate.
- Delete: remove individual references at any time, or delete your account entirely from Settings, which removes your references and uploaded files from our systems.
- Object, tell us you do not want your information used in a particular way and we will honour that where we are able to while still providing the service.
To exercise any of these, Contact Support. We will respond within 30 days.
12. How long we keep information
We keep your references for as long as your account exists. If you delete your account, your data is removed from our active systems within 30 days, and cycles out of backups within 90 days. Support correspondence may be retained for up to two years so we have context if you contact us again.
13. Children
GetRef is not intended for anyone under 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with information, contact us and we will delete it.
14. International users
GetRef is operated from India, and your information is processed by service providers that may store data in other countries, including the United States and the European Union. By using GetRef you consent to your information being transferred and processed in those locations.
15. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. Any revised version will be posted on this page with a new date at the top, and it replaces all previous versions. Where a change materially affects how we handle your information, we will notify you by email. We suggest reviewing this page occasionally.
16. Contact us
Questions about this policy, requests about your data, or complaints: Contact Support. We read everything and reply.
