Cronos Transparency

Under the Hood

The actual code used in Cronos Browser's telemetry system. Click each step to view the implementation.

1 Creating Your Anonymous ID A random code that can't be traced back to you

          function generateHash() {

            const randomData = crypto.randomBytes(32);

            return crypto.createHash('sha256').update(randomData).digest('hex');

          }

Generates 32 cryptographically secure random bytes and converts them to a SHA-256 hash. This hash is not derived from any device identifier, IP address, or personal information — it's purely random and cannot be traced back to you.

2 First Launch Registration Happens once when you first open Cronos

          async function initialize() {

            if (!data.registered) {

              await apiRequest('/api/install', 'POST', {

                install_hash: data.install_hash,

                os: getOSName(),

                version: browserVersion

              });

              data.registered = true;

            }

            scheduleNextPing();

          }

On first launch, Cronos sends three data points: the anonymous hash, operating system (Windows/macOS/Linux), and browser version. This registration happens only once and enables us to count total installations.

3 Activity Ping A simple "I'm still here" at random times

          const MIN = 30 * 60 * 1000; // 30 minutes

          const MAX = 4 * 60 * 60 * 1000; // 4 hours

          function scheduleNextPing() {

            const delay = MIN + Math.random() * (MAX - MIN);

            setTimeout(async () => {

              await apiRequest('/api/ping', 'POST', {

                install_hash: data.install_hash,

                ping_hash: generateHash()

              });

              scheduleNextPing();

            }, delay);

          }

The browser sends periodic pings at randomized intervals (30 min – 4 hours). Random timing prevents usage pattern analysis. Each ping includes a new random hash, providing no correlation between pings. This allows us to count active users without tracking behavior.

Verify Your Data

What We Collect

What We Don't Collect

Under the Hood

Summary