Privacy Policy
Privacy Policy
Effective 13 September 2026 · Last updated 8 October 2026
The short version: PixelThat collects nothing. It has no account, no analytics, no advertising identifier and no networking code of any kind. Your photos are read, turned into pixel art and written back, entirely on your device. Nothing is sent to CS42 or to anyone else, because the app cannot send anything anywhere.
1. Who this covers
This policy covers the PixelThat app for iPhone and iPad, published by CS42 ("we", "us"). It does not cover the CS42 website, which has its own privacy policy.
2. Data we collect
None. We collect no personal data, no usage data, no diagnostics and no identifiers. In App Store terms, the app's privacy label is Data Not Collected.
This is not a policy choice that could quietly change in the background: the app contains no code for making network requests. You can put your device in airplane mode and every feature still works.
3. The photos you choose
When you pick a photo or a video, iOS hands the app a copy of just that item. It is decoded on the device, framed, cut out and turned into pixel art or ASCII art on the device's own processor, using Apple's Vision framework for face detection and subject separation. Videos and batch results are written briefly to the app's temporary folder while you work and cleaned up as you go. Nothing is ever uploaded or shared unless you ask.
Choosing a picture uses the system photo picker, which gives the app only what you pick. The app never asks for access to your whole library. Pictures and text can also reach the app from the Shortcuts actions you run, and Copy puts the result on the clipboard.
4. Pictures you keep
When you save, share or copy a result, the app stores that picture and the settings that made it in its own private storage on your device (the app's Application Support folder), up to the 60 most recent. This is how the Recents screen can put old settings back on a new photo.
- It is stored on the device only. There is no iCloud container and no server copy.
- It holds the pixel art output and its settings, not the original photo.
- You can delete any of them at any time: open Recents (the clock button), press and hold a picture and choose Remove.
- Deleting the app removes everything it has ever stored.
5. Saving to your photo library
Saving a finished picture or video needs add-only permission to your photo library. The app can add the picture you asked it to save; it cannot read your library through that permission.
6. Permissions the app uses
- Photo library (add), so a finished picture or video can be saved when you tap Save to Photos.
- No photo library read access: the system photo picker hands the app only what you choose.
The app does not request the camera, microphone, location, contacts, calendars, health data, Bluetooth, local network or notifications.
7. Network use
None. The app does not contact CS42, an analytics provider, an advertising network, a crash reporter or any other service. No content delivery network, no remote configuration, no fonts fetched at runtime.
8. Third-party code and services
The app bundles no third-party SDKs. It uses only Apple's own frameworks, which run on the device. Because nothing is collected, nothing is shared with anyone.
9. Tracking
The app does not track you as Apple's App Tracking Transparency defines it, and it never presents a tracking permission prompt, because there is nothing to track. No advertising identifier is read or used.
10. Children
PixelThat is rated 4+ and is safe for children to use. It collects no data from anyone, of any age, so it does not knowingly or unknowingly collect personal information from children under 13 (or the equivalent age in your country).
11. Data retention
We hold nothing, so there is nothing for us to retain or delete. What the app stores stays on your device until you remove it or delete the app.
12. Your rights
Privacy laws such as the GDPR, the UK GDPR and the CCPA give you rights to access, correct, port and delete personal data held about you. We hold no personal data about you, so there is nothing to produce or erase. You are welcome to write to hello@cs42.org to confirm this, and we will answer.
We do not sell or share personal information, because we do not have any.
13. Security
Everything the app stores lives inside its iOS sandbox, protected by the device's own encryption and file protection. Nothing is transmitted, so there is no transport to intercept.
14. Changes to this policy
If the app ever changes in a way that affects this policy, the new version is posted here with a new date, and the change is described in the App Store release notes. Material changes will not be applied retroactively to data already on your device.
15. Contact
Write to CS42 at hello@cs42.org. We usually answer within a day or two.