Privacy Policy

Effective October 1, 2026

Overview

FollowerSpotter is a Chrome extension designed to compare an Instagram account's Followers and Following lists and show relationship differences. FollowerSpotter performs the Instagram relationship comparison in the user's browser. Instagram Followers and Following lists and saved scan results are not uploaded to FollowerSpotter's servers.

Instagram account data

When a user starts a scan while signed in to Instagram, the extension makes authenticated requests from that user's browser to Instagram in order to retrieve the account's Followers and Following lists. The extension reads the Instagram ds_user_id cookie locally to identify the currently signed-in account. FollowerSpotter does not ask the user to enter their Instagram password.

Local storage

FollowerSpotter may store the most recent completed scan and related interface state in Chrome's local extension storage so results can be restored later. This data remains in the user's browser unless the user clears it or removes the extension.

FollowerSpotter account and authentication data

FollowerSpotter may process a user's email address and authentication information when the user signs in to paid features. Our authentication service may store subscription-entitlement information, one-time-code records, session information, device identifiers used to enforce device limits, and related security records. This information is used to authenticate users, provide paid features, prevent abuse, and maintain account security.

Instagram relationship data and our servers

FollowerSpotter does not upload or store users' Instagram Followers or Following lists on FollowerSpotter's servers. The relationship comparison is performed locally in the user's browser. Authentication and subscription systems are separate from the Instagram relationship-list data used by the scanner.

Payments and subscriptions

Paid subscriptions are processed by Creem through its hosted checkout. FollowerSpotter does not receive or store full payment-card details. Creem may process payment, billing, tax, and transaction information under its own privacy practices. FollowerSpotter receives information needed to determine subscription entitlement, such as the subscriber email address, subscription status, product or plan identifiers, and relevant subscription dates.

Website

The public FollowerSpotter website may be hosted by infrastructure providers that necessarily process ordinary web-request information such as IP address, browser information, and request logs for security and delivery. We do not currently use the website to collect Instagram credentials.

Service providers and third parties

FollowerSpotter uses service providers to operate parts of the product, including hosting and authentication infrastructure, email delivery for sign-in codes, and Creem for subscription checkout and payment processing. These providers may process the information necessary to provide their respective services.

FollowerSpotter is an independent product and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Instagram or Meta. Use of Instagram remains subject to Instagram's own terms and policies.

Free-scan allowance and account identity

In version 1.1.1 and later, FollowerSpotter sends the numeric identifier of the signed-in Instagram account to its first-party service to enforce two successful free scans per rolling seven days. The server immediately converts the identifier into a pseudonymous account key using a server-held secret. Raw Instagram IDs are not stored in the quota or analytics database. We do not send Instagram passwords, authentication cookies or session credentials to FollowerSpotter servers. The numeric account identifier read from the ds_user_id cookie is used only as an identifier, not as an Instagram login credential.

Quota records contain the pseudonymous key, a random scan/reservation ID, state, timestamps and extension version. Temporary reservations expire if abandoned. Failed and cancelled scans do not consume successful-scan allowance. Reinstalling the extension or clearing local storage does not reset server-side allowance. Completed results awaiting usage confirmation may be held locally until confirmation succeeds.

Limited first-party usage analytics

Version 1.1.1 and later sends limited pseudonymous usage information to measure product usage and improve reliability: extension installation/opening, scan starts/completions/failures/cancellations, free-limit encounters and Pro-button clicks. Events may include a pseudonymous account key, random event/scan ID, Free/Pro status, scan duration, extension version and timestamp. Installation and signed-out events may have no account key. Analytics event payloads do not contain raw Instagram IDs.

Follower/following lists and scan results remain local. Usernames, searched profile names, profile URLs, profile images, follower/following counts and individual scan-result entries are not uploaded to the quota or analytics service. No third-party analytics tracker is added. Reports provide aggregate counts and ratios; pseudonymous account keys are not shown in the summary. Pseudonymous data is not anonymous data.

Retention and use of usage information

Cloudflare provides hosting and D1 database services. Daily cleanup removes inactive quota records 30 days after completion or expiry and usage events older than 90 days. Deletion may occur at the next scheduled cleanup. Infrastructure security/delivery logs and backups may follow separate provider retention schedules; ordinary connection metadata such as IP addresses is necessarily processed by hosting infrastructure but is not stored in these quota or usage tables.

Usage information is used to enforce free limits, measure product usage and improve reliability. It is not sold, used for advertising, or used for creditworthiness or lending decisions. Clearing local extension data removes local results and pending state but does not immediately delete server usage records. Privacy questions and requests can be sent to support@followerspotter.com; information sufficient to locate a pseudonymous record and verify the request may be needed. Do not send Instagram passwords or follower/following lists.

FollowerSpotter's use and transfer of information received from Google APIs adheres to the Chrome Web Store User Data Policy, including its Limited Use requirements.

Contact

Questions about this policy can be sent to support@followerspotter.com.