Pyre Privacy Policy
Pyre lets you keep a history of what you watch on streaming sites, resume where you left off, see what friends are watching, watch together in synchronized watch parties, and control playback from another device. To do that, Pyre has to handle some information about you. This policy explains exactly what we collect, why, where it is stored, who can see it, how long we keep it, and how you can delete it.
1. Who we are
Pyre is operated by Kris Brethower (the "operator", "we", "us"). You can reach us about anything in this policy at support@pyre.tv.
2. Information we collect
We only collect data that is needed for a feature you can see and use. We do not collect data for advertising, analytics, profiling, or resale.
2.1 Account information (you provide it)
| Data | Why we collect it |
|---|---|
| Email address | To create and sign in to your account, verify your email, and send password resets. Shown to nobody but you. |
| Username | Your public identity in Pyre. Visible to other Pyre users. |
| Password | To authenticate you. Stored only as a salted hash; we never store or can read the plain password. |
| Date of birth | To confirm you are old enough to use the Service and to gate adult-rated content. Not shown to other users. |
| Country and sex | Used only to tailor the content categories shown to you. Not shown to other users. |
| Profile picture (optional) | Shown next to your username to other Pyre users if you upload one. |
2.2 Watch activity (collected by the extension and apps while you are signed in)
When you are signed in and a video plays on one of the streaming sites Pyre supports (for example YouTube, Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Max, Peacock, Paramount+, Prime Video, Apple TV, Crunchyroll, Twitch, Vimeo, Tubi, Adult Swim, Cartoon Network, Showtime and Pornhub), or on a site you have explicitly asked Pyre to load on, Pyre records:
- the page URL of the video and the video or episode title, series name, season and episode number, and thumbnail image URL;
- the streaming site it came from;
- how far into the video you are, the video length, and when you started and last watched it.
This is your watch history. It powers your history page, "continue watching", episode progress on show pages, and the "what friends are watching" and watch-party features. Pyre does not record pages you visit that are not videos on a supported site, and does not collect browsing activity on any other website. Content on video-conferencing sites (Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams) is explicitly excluded and never enters your history. Nothing is recorded while you are signed out.
2.3 Social and watch-party data
- Friends, follows, blocks and groups: the usernames you connect with, so we can show you their activity and let you invite them.
- Watch-party chat messages and reactions: the text messages and emoji reactions you send inside a watch party, delivered to the other party members and stored with the party so late joiners can see them.
- Watch-party state: which video is being watched and the current playback position, so every member stays in sync.
- Voice and video chat (if you turn it on inside a watch party): audio and video are sent peer-to-peer over WebRTC between party members. Our servers only relay connection setup information (and, when a direct connection is impossible, the encrypted media stream through our own TURN relay). We never record, store or listen to voice or video chat.
2.4 Device and session data
- Session token: a random credential stored in your browser's extension storage (or app keychain) so you stay signed in. Sent to our servers with each request.
- Connected devices: when the extension, website or an app is open and signed in, our server keeps a live list of your currently connected sessions (an identifier and a device label such as "Chrome" or "iPhone") so the remote-control feature can send play, pause and seek commands from one of your devices to another. This list exists only while the session is connected and is not kept afterwards.
- Notifications: friend requests, watch-party invitations and similar in-app notifications are stored so you can see them later.
- Settings: your Pyre preferences (such as player styling, preferred video quality, which sites Pyre is enabled on, and whether adult titles are hidden) are stored in extension storage on your device and, for some settings, with your account so they follow you across devices.
2.5 What the extension reads on web pages, and what it does not send
To do its job on a supported streaming page the extension reads the page's video element, the title and episode metadata on the page, and the site's own playback metadata responses. Only the watch-history fields listed in section 2.2 leave your browser. The extension also looks for sign-in forms on supported sites purely so that it can keep its own overlay out of the way of the site's login page; it never reads, stores or transmits anything you type into those forms, including the streaming site's username or password. Pyre never reads your Chrome browsing history, bookmarks, cookies for other sites, or clipboard contents (it only writes a watch-party invite link to the clipboard when you click "copy").
2.6 Data we do not collect
We do not collect payment or financial information (Pyre is free), precise location, contacts, health data, or any form of analytics or telemetry. We do not use cookies or tracking pixels on pyre.tv beyond the session token described above. We do not run advertising.
3. How we use your information
- To provide the features described above: account sign-in, watch history and resume, show progress, friends' activity, watch parties with chat, voice and video, and remote control across your own devices.
- To send you transactional email only: email verification and password reset. We do not send marketing email.
- To keep the Service secure, for example to detect abuse of the API.
- To comply with the law when we are legally required to.
We do not use your data for advertising, to build profiles for any purpose other than the features you use, for credit-worthiness or lending, or to train machine-learning models. We do not sell personal information and have never done so. Our use of data collected by the Chrome extension complies with the Chrome Web Store User Data Policy, including its Limited Use requirements.
4. Where your data is stored and how it is protected
- On your device: your session token and preferences live in Chrome's extension storage (or the app's local storage on iOS and watchOS). Uninstalling the extension or app removes them.
- On our servers: account, watch history, social and watch-party data are stored in a MongoDB database on servers we rent from Hetzner Online GmbH, located in Ashburn, Virginia, USA. Catalog data (title and episode listings) is stored in a PostgreSQL database on the same infrastructure and contains no per-user data.
- In transit: every connection between the extension, website, apps and our servers uses HTTPS or secure WebSockets (TLS 1.2 or 1.3). Credentials are sent in the request body or an authorization header, never in URLs or query strings.
- Access: only the operator has administrative access to the servers and database, protected by SSH keys and unique passwords held in a password manager. Passwords are hashed, and session tokens are random and revocable.
5. Who we share data with
We share user data only with the parties listed here, and only for the reason given.
| Party | What they receive | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Other Pyre users | Your username, profile picture, what you are currently watching and your recent watch history, and the chat messages and reactions you send in a party. | This is the social feature of Pyre. Friends, followers and party members can see it; blocked users cannot. Your email, date of birth, country and sex are never shown to other users. |
| Hetzner Online GmbH | All server-side data, as our hosting provider. | Hosting our servers and database. Hetzner does not access the data for its own purposes. |
| Twilio SendGrid | Your email address and the contents of verification and password-reset emails. | Delivering transactional email. |
| Streaming sites you use | Nothing from us. The extension reads data from the page you are already on; it does not send your Pyre data to the streaming site, and does not send the streaming site's account data to us. | n/a |
| Law enforcement or courts | Only what a valid legal order requires. | Legal compliance. |
We do not share data with advertisers, data brokers, or analytics companies. If we ever change ownership of the Service, your data would transfer only under this policy and we would notify you first.
6. How long we keep data
- Account and watch history: kept while your account exists. You can remove individual history entries at any time from the history page.
- Watch-party chat and state: kept with the party until the party is deleted by its host or removed in our periodic clean-up of ended parties.
- Connected-device sessions: exist only while the session is connected.
- Deleted accounts: when you delete your account it is deactivated immediately, and your account record, watch history, social connections, notifications and settings are permanently removed from our database and from any backup copies within 30 days.
- Email delivery logs at SendGrid are retained by SendGrid under its own retention policy.
7. Your choices and rights
- Consent: no data is collected until you create an account and sign in, which requires agreeing to this policy. Watch activity is only recorded while signed in.
- Per-site control: in the extension's settings you can turn Pyre off for any supported site, and Pyre only ever runs on additional sites if you add them yourself.
- Edit and delete history: remove any entry, or re-categorise it, from your history page.
- Visibility: block any user to hide your activity from them.
- Sign out: signing out of the extension or app stops all collection and removes the session token from the device.
- Delete your account: from your profile settings, or by emailing support@pyre.tv from your account email. Deletion removes everything listed in section 6.
- Access and portability: email us and we will send you a copy of the data we hold about you in a machine-readable format.
- Residents of the EU, UK, California and similar jurisdictions: you also have the rights to correct your data, to object to or restrict processing, and to lodge a complaint with your local data-protection authority. We process your data on the basis of performing the service you signed up for (contract) and, for security and legal compliance, our legitimate interests. We do not "sell" or "share" personal information as those terms are defined in the California Consumer Privacy Act.
8. Children
Pyre is not directed to children under 13 (or under 16 where that is the local age of digital consent), and we do not knowingly collect data from them. If you believe a child has created an account, email us and we will delete it.
9. Changes to this policy
If we change this policy in a way that affects what we collect or how we use it, we will update the effective date above and post a notice on pyre.tv before the change takes effect. Older versions are available on request.
10. Contact
Questions, access or deletion requests: support@pyre.tv.