How the browser accesses a document
The web platform provides standard APIs for working with files a person deliberately selects. That makes it possible for an application to read and process a document inside the browser.
The API does not determine the product’s privacy behaviour. The application design determines what it reads, whether it transmits anything and whether it stores a result. “Runs in your browser” should describe a real processing decision, not merely a browser interface.
Separate processing, storage and site traffic
Where the document is processed, whether a result is retained and what normal website traffic exists are three different questions.
A core scan can run in browser memory. Local persistence is a separate choice, using browser storage tied to that website and device. Meanwhile, the website still loads through hosting infrastructure, which may process ordinary request data without receiving the selected document for scanning.
What a precise privacy explanation should answer
Specific answers are more useful than a broad assurance that data is simply “secure.” Data flows and trust boundaries should be clear enough for someone to make an informed choice.
- Where does the supported scan run?
- Are document contents transmitted for the scan?
- Is the original changed?
- Are results or document copies retained?
- What controls are available to the user?
- Which browser and format limits affect coverage?
SourceReady’s local scan boundary
SourceReady’s supported scan runs in your browser, on your device. You choose the document, receive a Ready or Held result, and keep the original unchanged.
The result separates findings, coverage and limits so local processing does not become a vague assurance. You can see what the scan established before deciding whether the document should enter your AI project.
Sources and further reading
Primary guidance used to check the technical claims in this article.