Cringe Meter for LinkedIn

About

Cringe Meter for LinkedIn — score every post at a glance.
This extension adds a small badge to LinkedIn posts that shows a “Cringe Meter” score (0–100) with a clear label (Not cringe, Try-hard, Meh, Cringe, WTF) and a short explanation/rewrite suggestion. It’s designed to reward authenticity and clarity, and to flag engagement-bait, vague hustle, cliché jargon, emoji/hashtag overload, and bragging without substance.

What it does

Inline badge on posts — A compact badge appears on supported LinkedIn posts (activity/ugcPost). Click to open a popover with details.

Fast, readable verdicts — 0–19 Not cringe · 20–39 Try-hard · 40–59 Meh · 60–79 Cringe · 80–100 WTF.

Why + Rewrite — The popover includes a brief rationale and a suggested rewrite to tone down cringe while keeping the message.

Autoscore or on-click — Score posts automatically as you scroll, or only when you click the badge (toggle in Options).

Lightweight & respectful — Runs only on linkedin.com pages, touches only visible post text, and keeps UI minimal.

How it works

You choose one of two modes in the Options page:

OpenAI mode (your API key):
Enter your own OpenAI API key. Post text is sent directly from your browser to OpenAI to get a JSON score and suggestion. Your key is stored locally in chrome.storage and never sent to our servers.

Server mode (optional):
Enter a scoring server URL (for teams/self-hosting). The extension sends the visible post text to that endpoint and displays the returned score/rationale/rewrite. The reference server performs per-IP daily rate limiting and does not retain content.

The extension never executes remote code. It only makes JSON API requests to return scores/suggestions.

Key features

Accurate targeting: Badges are shown only on real posts (activity/ugcPost). Sponsored/promotional blocks are skipped.

Clear states: Loading spinner while scoring, friendly error if settings are missing or an API call fails.

Popover UX: Click the badge to see score, label, “Why,” and “Rewrite.” Click outside or press Esc to close.

Privacy first: No analytics, no tracking pixels, no sale of data.

Permissions we request (minimal)

storage — Save your local settings (API key/server URL, autoscore/debug toggles).

https://www.linkedin.com/* — Read visible post text and insert the badge/popover only on LinkedIn pages.

Data handling & privacy

Processed data: Only the visible text of the LinkedIn post you score.

Where it goes:
• OpenAI mode: sent directly from your browser to OpenAI using your key.
• Server mode: sent to your configured endpoint solely to compute a score.

Retention: We don’t store post content or scores. Settings remain on your device in chrome.storage.

No ads, no sale of data, no credit decisions.
Read our full policy: (link in the Privacy Policy field above).

Getting started

Install the extension and open Options.

Choose OpenAI mode (paste your API key) or Server mode (enter server URL).

Optionally enable Autoscore to rate posts as you scroll.

Visit LinkedIn. Look for the Cringe Meter badge on posts. Click to view “Why” and “Rewrite.”

Troubleshooting

Badge shows “ERR” — Open Options and add your OpenAI key or server URL.

No badges appear — Make sure you’re viewing posts (not member cards/jobs), and that the site matches https://www.linkedin.com/*.

Company networks — A strict CSP or blocker may interfere with API calls; try whitelisting your endpoint/OpenAI.

Open source & support

This project is open source. Contributions and issues are welcome on GitHub (repository link on the store page). For support or questions, please open a GitHub issue.

Disclaimer: This extension is an independent project and is not affiliated with or endorsed by LinkedIn Corporation. Names and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.