Privacy Policy.

01Overview

This Privacy Policy explains what personal data Manhwave („we”, „us”) collects when you use the Manhwave browser extension, the website at manhwave.com and your Manhwave account (together, the „Service”), why we collect it and what your rights are. Manhwave, operating the website manhwave.com, is responsible for the processing of your personal data as the data controller. You can reach us at contact@manhwave.com.

02What we collect

We never put your email address, name or anything you type into the measurement events sent from your browser. Only the hashed checkout email is sent, server-side and only to Meta, for purchases made through the website checkout. The extension contains no advertising trackers and sends nothing to Meta or Google.

The reading account does not require your name, postal address or phone number. Checkout and voluntary support messages may contain additional information. Do not submit sensitive personal information for translation or support unless necessary for your request. You can sign in using an email link or one-time code, or use a password if you choose to set one. Authentication credentials are handled by our authentication provider.

03How the extension handles your reading

The extension can detect reading-page content to support its controls. A translation starts when you choose Translate this chapter; automatic translation is currently disabled. Translation works as follows:

1. Detects and reads locally. Machine-learning models bundled with the extension find the speech bubbles and captions in the comic images shown on the page and recognise the text in them. This happens entirely in your browser. Full page images are never uploaded.
2. Sends the text. Recognized text, the target language and operation identifiers are sent to our authenticated API. Our servers send the text and relevant translation context through OpenRouter to an AI provider. For target languages whose grammar marks gender or number (for example Polish, Spanish, Romanian, French or German), the extension also sends a small grayscale low-resolution preview of the page (visual context), so the AI can tell who speaks to whom. Our server decides per language whether to pass it on; today it is used for Polish. The preview goes to the AI provider only for that single request, with the no-data-collection routing described in section 05, and Manhwave does not store it. Full-resolution images are never sent. Your sign-in token authorizes our API request; it is not forwarded to the AI provider.
3. Draws the translation. The translated lines come back and are drawn over the original bubbles in your browser. Artwork cleanup under the original lettering is also done on your device.
4. Saves the result. The browser caches reading results, page URLs and content fingerprints so saved work can be reused. Our backend also stores translation results, limited source/translation context, operation identifiers and credit records for continuity, recovery and accurate billing. A complete cross-device library of every chapter is not promised.

Chapter addresses and reading-related identifiers are processed locally for the reading features described above. The optional automatic-translation state keeps only a one-way hash of the chapter address in temporary session storage, not the address itself. This is not a general-purpose record of your entire browsing history. We do not use this data for advertising or reader profiling. Our translation API does not send the chapter URL to the AI provider. Text itself can contain identifying information, so avoid translating private or sensitive material. Provider retention and processing depend on the applicable provider policies and service configuration; we do not promise universal zero retention.

Site diagnostics. To see on which sites Manhwave fails and fix them, the extension reports the site name (the hostname, not the address of the chapter) after each translation attempt, together with the extension version, the outcome class, image counts, timings and the other technical fields listed in section 02. These events contain no page path, query, title, image or comic text. We use them to measure and improve how the extension works on each site and enforce the unsupported-website policy, never for advertising or reader profiling. We also record the hostname and outcome when you activate Manhwave on a blocked website, linked to your installation or account identifier, even when optional diagnostics are disabled. Raw events are deleted after 90 days; daily per-site totals without any identifier are kept longer.

Uninstall page. When you remove the extension, Chrome opens our uninstall page. Its address carries the extension version, the last site hostname, how the last attempt ended and a coarse chapter-count bucket, so the optional survey can be prefilled. The page removes these values from the address before our website measurement runs, so they are not sent to Meta or Google. They reach us only if you send the survey.

Shared translation cache. When the recognized text of a page has already been translated into the same language, our servers can reuse that translation for the next reader of the same page instead of sending the text to the AI provider again. The cache stores only the comic text (the recognized source text and its translation), the target language and technical details of the translation (model and prompt version, the original AI cost, how often and when it was reused). It contains no account identifier, email address, chapter URL or image; our internal credit records only note that a translation was served from the cache. Because every reader of the same page in the same language can receive a cached translation, do not translate private or sensitive text. Cached entries are deleted 180 days after they were last used, and we can remove entries at any time.

04Why we use your data and on what basis

Under the GDPR we need a legal basis for each purpose. These are ours:

05Who we share data with

We share personal data only with providers who help us run the Service, under contracts that limit what they may do with it:

• Stripe processes payments and stores your payment details. Stripe acts as an independent controller for the payment transaction; see Stripe’s own privacy policy for details.
• OpenRouter and the AI provider serving a translation request process recognized text, target language and translation context and, for some target languages, the small page preview described in section 03 (currently processed by Google Gemini models). We do not include your account email, sign-in token, chapter URL, site diagnostics or full-resolution comic images in that translation payload. OpenRouter also processes request metadata. We ask OpenRouter to route translation requests only to AI providers whose published policy is not to store or train on prompts (OpenRouter’s data-collection "deny" setting). If no such provider is available for the model we use, the request is not sent to another provider. See OpenRouter privacy information and its data-processing documentation.
• Supabase provides authentication and database services. Cloudflare provides hosting, network and security services, including Turnstile. These services process the account, operational and technical data needed for their respective functions.
• Email delivery providers send sign-in links, receipts and service notices on our behalf.
• Form and website tools used on manhwave.com store the messages you submit through the contact form.
• Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd. (Facebook, Instagram) receives website measurement data through the Meta Pixel and, after a confirmed purchase, our server-side purchase event (Meta Conversions API) with the hashed checkout email, order number, amount, currency and Meta identifiers. For collecting and transmitting this data Meta and we are joint controllers (Art. 26 GDPR, Meta’s Controller Addendum); Meta is responsible for its own further processing, including ad delivery. See the Meta Privacy Policy.
• Google Ireland Ltd. (Google Analytics 4) receives website measurement data and, after a confirmed purchase, a server-side purchase event (Measurement Protocol) with our order number, plan, amount, currency and your Google Analytics identifier, but no email address. Google processes this data for us under the Google Ads Data Processing Terms. See the Google Privacy Policy.

We use Cloudflare Turnstile to protect authentication, free-trial and guest-checkout requests from automated abuse. Turnstile may run in the background and processes technical signals such as your IP address, browser information and connection characteristics. When our servers check a Turnstile result, we do not send your IP address to Cloudflare; we send only the verification token. For details, see the Cloudflare Turnstile Privacy Addendum.

We may also disclose data if required by law, to protect our rights or the safety of users, or as part of a merger or sale of the Service, in which case the acquirer takes over this policy. We never sell personal data. Sharing website measurement data with Meta and Google for our own advertising is described above; where a law such as the California Consumer Privacy Act treats this as „sharing” for cross-context behavioral advertising, you can opt out by emailing contact@manhwave.com, and you can limit ad tracking with the browser and ad settings described in section 08.

Account and checkout-reminder emails are sent through our email hosting provider’s SMTP service. Payments and checkout pages are handled by Stripe, which also receives the email address you enter at checkout.

06International transfers

Some of our providers, in particular translation and hosting providers, operate outside the European Economic Area, including in the United States. Where that is the case we rely on the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses, an adequacy decision or another safeguard recognised under the GDPR, and we send them only the data described above.

Meta and Google may process website measurement data in the United States. Both are certified under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework and its UK Extension; where that does not apply, Standard Contractual Clauses are used.

07How long we keep data

08Cookies

manhwave.com and account.manhwave.com use:

• Necessary storage: your sign-in session on account.manhwave.com and checkout recovery. Stripe sets its own cookies on the checkout page for fraud prevention.
• Measurement and advertising: from your first visit, manhwave.com loads the Meta Pixel (cookies _fbp, _fbc) and Google Analytics 4 (cookies _ga, _ga_<ID>), set on .manhwave.com. They record the events listed in section 02. On account.manhwave.com we load no third-party script; only a Meta pixel image request is sent for page views and completed purchases.
• Campaign attribution: when you arrive at manhwave.com through a link with campaign parameters (UTM parameters or click identifiers such as fbclid or gclid), we store them in a first-party cookie on .manhwave.com for up to 90 days and attach them to a purchase you start, so we can measure which of our campaigns led to it.

How to limit it. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, use an ad or content blocker, adjust Meta Ad preferences and Google My Ad Center, or install the Google Analytics opt-out add-on offered by Google. You can also email contact@manhwave.com to object to this processing (section 09).

The extension stores settings, cached translations and session information in browser storage. The account and trial websites can keep separate session or recovery information in their own browser storage or cookies. Removing the extension does not by itself delete your server-side account, billing records or website storage. Reinstall recovery depends on the information that remains in the browser; anonymous access cannot be guaranteed after browser data is cleared or on another device.

This page loads fonts from Google Fonts. Loading those fonts makes requests to Google, which can receive your IP address and request metadata. The extension itself bundles its interface font locally.

09Your rights

Under the GDPR and similar laws you have the right to:

• access the personal data we hold about you and receive a copy;
• correct inaccurate data, for example your email address;
• delete your data, including your whole account, subject to records we must keep by law;
• restrict or object to processing based on legitimate interest;
• receive your data in a portable, machine-readable format;
• withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent, without affecting earlier processing;
• object at any time to measurement and advertising based on legitimate interest (Art. 21 GDPR) by emailing us; you can also limit it yourself as described in section 08; California residents can opt out of „sharing” the same way;
• complain to a data protection authority, in particular the one in the country where you live.

To exercise any of these rights, email us from the address linked to your account. We answer within one month. We do not charge for these requests unless they are clearly unfounded or excessive.

10Security

All traffic between the extension, the website and our servers is encrypted with TLS. Sign-in supports email links, one-time codes and optional passwords. Access to production systems is limited to the people who need it, and full payment-card numbers and security codes are handled by Stripe, while our services process purchase and subscription records. No system is perfectly secure; if we learn of a breach that affects your data, we will inform you and the relevant authority as required by law.

11Children

The Service is not directed at children under 16 and we do not knowingly collect their personal data. If you believe a child under 16 has created an account, contact us and we will delete it.

12Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the Service evolves. The current version, with its version number and last-updated date, is always available at manhwave.com/privacy. Please check this page from time to time; the date at the top shows when it last changed.

Version 1.5 (13 October 2026). For some target languages the extension sends a small grayscale low-resolution preview of the page with the text, used for that request only and not stored (section 03). To see on which sites Manhwave fails, the extension reports the site name, not the address of the chapter (sections 02, 03 and 07). The uninstall page receives coarse values to prefill the optional survey (section 03). Text recognition still runs on your device, and your pages are never uploaded or stored.

13Contact

Privacy questions and requests: contact@manhwave.com.