FileFlux - Privacy Policy

Last updated: 20 October 2026

FileFlux is a download manager that runs entirely on your own Windows PC. It has
no server, collects no analytics or telemetry, and sends none of your data to the
developer. This policy explains what data FileFlux handles, where it stays, and
what is sent elsewhere when you choose to use an optional feature that needs it.


IN SHORT

- Your data stays on your device. The one exception is a hosted AI service you
  choose to set up: when you use an AI feature with it, the details that feature
  needs are sent to that service (see "Optional AI features").
- FileFlux connects to the internet only to download the files you ask it to. If
  you turn them on, it also connects to the proxy and encrypted-DNS servers you
  choose, and to the AI service you set up.
- AI features are off until you turn them on, and are never used in Incognito
  mode.
- No accounts, no tracking, no advertising, no selling or sharing of personal data.


WHAT FILEFLUX STORES ON YOUR DEVICE

- Download history (URLs, file names, sizes, status, dates): saved locally and
  encrypted at rest with Windows DPAPI. You can clear it on exit, or use Incognito
  mode to keep downloads in memory only so nothing is written to disk.
- Settings (download folder, speed limits, proxy/DNS preferences, etc.): saved
  locally. Proxy passwords and AI service API keys are encrypted with Windows
  DPAPI.
- Saved site logins, feeds and saved views: saved locally and encrypted at rest.
- Resume data for in-progress downloads: saved locally (encrypted) so interrupted
  downloads can continue where they left off.
- The source of each downloaded file: like a web browser, FileFlux marks a
  finished file with the address it came from (the "Mark of the Web" that lets
  Windows warn you before running a downloaded program). Passwords and query
  strings are left out of that address. For Incognito downloads the warning mark
  is kept but no address is recorded.
- Agent activity log: only if you let AI agents control FileFlux (see "AI
  agents"). A local record of what an agent asked for, with web addresses
  shortened to leave out query strings and passwords. Nothing is recorded in
  Incognito mode. You can turn it off or clear it.
- Diagnostic log: a small local file of startup timings and error details, kept
  to help fix problems. Your account name, web addresses and site names are
  removed from it. It is never sent anywhere; you can attach it to a bug report
  if you choose to.


DATA FROM THE FILEFLUX BROWSER EXTENSION (OPTIONAL)

If you install the companion browser extension, it passes a download's URL, the page
referrer, your browser's User-Agent, and the cookies for that site to FileFlux over
the local Native Messaging channel. This is used only to perform the download (for
example, so downloads that require you to be signed in still work). It is sent only
to the FileFlux app on the same computer and is never transmitted to the developer
or any third party. FileFlux does not record which browser a download came from.


OPTIONAL AI FEATURES

AI features (tag suggestions, renaming, summaries, diagnosing failed downloads,
finding mirrors, extracting links and checking links) are off until you turn them
on in Settings > AI, and are never used in Incognito mode.

Where your data goes depends on the AI service you choose:
- On this computer: the on-device model built into Windows (where available), or
  a server you run yourself such as Ollama or LM Studio. Nothing leaves your
  computer.
- On your local network: a server you run on another machine you control.
  Nothing leaves your network.
- A hosted service: Anthropic (Claude), OpenAI or another OpenAI-compatible
  service, or Google (Gemini). What a feature needs is sent to that company and
  handled under its privacy policy and terms. FileFlux sends it nowhere else, and
  the developer never sees it.

What is sent, and when. Only the details the feature you are using needs, at the
moment it runs:
- Suggest tags, rename, organise into folders: the file name; the web address it
  came from, shortened (see below); your existing tag or folder names. Sent when
  you use the feature, or automatically for each new download if you turn on
  Auto-tag.
- Analyse the file for tags (an optional extra to Auto-tag): up to about 2,000
  characters of text from the finished file. Sent automatically when a download
  finishes, only if you turn it on.
- Summarise: the file name and an excerpt of the file's text. Sent when you ask
  for a summary.
- Diagnose a failed download, find mirrors: the file name and size; the shortened
  web address; technical details of what went wrong (for example error codes and
  retry counts). Sent when you ask.
- Extract links: the text you paste, exactly as you pasted it. Sent when you use
  Extract links with AI.
- AI link check (optional): the shortened web address, and the file type, name
  and size the server reported. Sent automatically while links are checked before
  downloading, only if you turn it on.
- Connect: a request for the list of available models. Sent when you click
  Connect.

Shortened web addresses. Before a web address is sent to an AI service, FileFlux
removes the parts that commonly carry passwords or access tokens: the user name
and password, everything after "?" or "#", and any part of the path that looks
like a secret key rather than a name. Cookies, browser headers and saved logins
are never sent to an AI service.

API keys you enter are stored encrypted and sent only to the address of the
service you configured. FileFlux refuses to send a key over an unencrypted (http)
connection to an address on the internet.

Proxy. By default, AI requests connect directly. If you turn on "Send AI requests
through the proxy", requests to hosted services use the proxy and DNS settings
your downloads use. Servers on your own computer or local network are always
reached directly.

Mirror suggestions. When you ask FileFlux to find another source for a download,
an AI service may suggest web addresses. FileFlux then contacts those addresses
itself to check that they serve the same file before using them. It only contacts
secure (https) addresses on the public internet, and sends them none of your
cookies or logins.


AI AGENTS (OPTIONAL)

If you turn on Agent control, AI assistants running on your computer (through
FileFlux's MCP server) can see your download list - file names, web addresses and
progress - and can add, pause, resume, queue or re-prioritise downloads, within the
permissions you set. They cannot delete files or change settings. This connection
stays on your computer, and agents get no answer in Incognito mode. However, the
assistant itself may send what it reads to its own AI service, under that
assistant's privacy policy.


NETWORK CONNECTIONS

FileFlux makes network connections only:
- to the websites and servers you choose to download from (HTTP/HTTPS/FTP), and for
  torrents, to the relevant trackers and peers;
- to other sources of the same file: mirrors that a download's server advertises,
  ones you add, and, when you ask, ones an AI service suggests (checked as
  described above);
- to the RSS/Atom feeds you subscribe to;
- to a proxy server (HTTP or SOCKS5/Tor) if you configure one;
- to a DNS provider (Cloudflare, Google, Quad9, or one you specify) if you enable
  encrypted DNS (DoH/DoT);
- to the AI service you set up, when you use an AI feature (see "Optional AI
  features");
- to the Microsoft Store when you click "Check for updates".
It contacts no other servers and performs no background reporting.


WHAT FILEFLUX DOES NOT DO

- No analytics, telemetry, crash reporting to the developer, or usage tracking.
- No advertising, and no sale or sharing of personal data.
- No user accounts and no cloud storage.
- Never sends your data to the developer, including through the AI features.


YOUR CONTROL

You can delete your download history at any time (and have it cleared automatically
on exit), use Incognito mode for trace-free downloads, turn AI features and agent
control on or off at any time, and uninstalling FileFlux removes its local data.


CHILDREN'S PRIVACY

FileFlux is a general-purpose utility, is not directed at children, and does not
knowingly collect personal information from anyone.


CHANGES TO THIS POLICY

This policy may be updated from time to time; the "last updated" date above will
change accordingly.


CONTACT

Questions about this policy: support@fileflux.online
