Privacy by default: Why your saves never leave your device

Local-first storage

Local-first means your data stays on your device. We made this the default behavior, not an opt-in setting.

Your indexed saves are stored locally in your browser's IndexedDB. Uninstalling the extension automatically deletes your index. We do not keep copies on any server.

What stays private

Reel captions & hashtags: All text processing for fuzzy search runs offline inside your browser.

Videos & URLs: Reelic does not download or host your videos. It links back to Instagram, loading video bytes directly from their servers to your browser.

Creator list: Your list of bookmarked accounts is processed entirely within your local index.

What we share (only with your permission)

To power the global leaderboard and taste twin features, we need to compare libraries. To keep this private, we only transmit high-level aggregates, never individual reel details.

This aggregate payload includes: a custom display name, total save counts, and your top 20 creators and hashtags. No URLs, captions, or thumbnails are shared.

Both features are opt-in and off by default. You can disable them at any time to delete your aggregate records from the database.

Why we chose this design

Stashing copies of your personal saves on external servers represents a security risk. The safest data is the data that is never gathered. Running calculations locally also removes network latency, making your search query return in milliseconds.

How to audit Reelic

You can verify our privacy design on your own computer in five minutes:

Open the Reelic sidepanel and open your Chrome DevTools Network tab.

Search for a reel: You will see zero outgoing network calls. The search runs completely offline.

Sync your saves: You will see Instagram's standard page requests, with no data transmitted to Reelic servers.

Opt into the leaderboard: You will see a single secure request containing only the aggregate counts. Opt out, and the calls cease.