Privacy Policy — QR Code Scan

Effective Date: January 2025

This Privacy Policy describes how the QR Code Scan app ("the App") handles your information. We designed the App to scan QR codes and barcodes on your device with privacy in mind.

Information We Collect

Email Addresses

• When collected: Only when you voluntarily send feedback through the app
• Purpose: To respond to your feedback and improve the app
• Sharing: Email addresses are shared with email service providers (Gmail, etc.) to enable feedback functionality
• Retention: We do not store email addresses on our servers
• Optional: You can use the app without ever providing an email address

App Interaction Data

• When collected: Automatically during app usage for core functionality
• Purpose: Required for barcode scanning functionality through Google ML Kit
• Sharing: Shared with Google for analytics purposes to improve ML services
• Processing: Data is processed ephemerally (in memory only)
• Required: This data collection is necessary for the app's core scanning feature

Camera Input (On-Device Only)

• Processing: Camera frames are processed locally and are not stored or transmitted
• Purpose: Solely to detect and decode QR codes and barcodes in real time
• Retention: Frames are discarded immediately after processing

Scan Results

• Storage: Scan history is stored locally on your device only
• Sharing: Results are only shared when you choose to act on them (open URLs, share content, etc.)

Ask AI App Feature

• When used: When you choose to use the "Ask AI App" feature to share scanned content with AI applications
• Clipboard usage: Scanned text is temporarily copied to your device's clipboard to facilitate sharing with AI apps
• App detection: The App checks if AI applications (ChatGPT, Gemini) are installed on your device to provide sharing options. This check is performed locally and no information about installed apps is collected or transmitted
• Sharing with AI apps: When you select an AI app, the scanned text is shared directly with that third-party application (ChatGPT or Gemini) via Android's standard sharing mechanism
• Third-party privacy: Once content is shared with an AI app, it is subject to that app's privacy policy (OpenAI's privacy policy for ChatGPT, Google's privacy policy for Gemini)
• Optional: This feature is completely optional - you can use the app without ever using the "Ask AI App" feature
• Retention: We do not store, transmit, or have access to the content shared with AI apps

Permissions We Use and Why

• android.permission.CAMERA: Enables scanning QR codes and barcodes with the device camera.
• android.permission.VIBRATE: Provides optional haptic feedback after a successful scan.
• android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE and android.permission.INTERNET: Allows the App to open links you choose, fetch website titles, and check connectivity when needed for user-initiated actions.
• android.permission.ACCESS_WIFI_STATE and android.permission.CHANGE_WIFI_STATE: Lets the App read Wi-Fi status and help you connect to Wi-Fi networks from QR codes.
• android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION and android.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION: Used for location-based QR code functionality (maps, directions).

Data Sharing

Third-Party Services

• Email Service Providers: When you send feedback, your email address is shared with email service providers (Gmail, Outlook, etc.)
• Google ML Kit: App interaction data is shared with Google for analytics and service improvement
• Website Servers: When fetching website titles, URLs are transmitted to the respective website servers
• AI Applications (ChatGPT, Gemini): When you use the "Ask AI App" feature, scanned content is shared directly with the AI app you choose (ChatGPT by OpenAI or Gemini by Google). This sharing is user-initiated and the content is subject to the respective AI app's privacy policy

What We Don't Share

• We do not sell, rent, or share your personal data with advertisers
• We do not share scan history or camera data
• We do not share data with analytics or advertising SDKs
• We do not collect or transmit information about which apps are installed on your device
• We do not access or store clipboard content - clipboard is only used temporarily when you choose to share with AI apps

Data Retention

• Email addresses: Not stored on our servers; only used for feedback responses
• App interaction data: Processed ephemerally and not retained
• Camera frames: Processed in memory and discarded immediately
• Scan history: Stored locally on your device until you clear it
• Website titles: Cached temporarily for display purposes
• Clipboard content: Used temporarily only when sharing with AI apps; not stored or accessed by us
• AI app sharing: Content shared with AI apps is handled by those apps according to their privacy policies

Data Security

• All data transmission is encrypted in transit (HTTPS, TLS)
• Camera processing happens entirely on-device
• We take reasonable measures to protect any data we handle
• No method is 100% secure, but we minimize data collection and transmission

Your Rights and Choices

• Email collection: Completely optional - you can use the app without providing your email
• App interaction data: Required for core functionality, but processed ephemerally
• Scan history: You can clear this data anytime through the app settings
• Ask AI App feature: Completely optional - you can use the app without ever sharing content with AI apps
• Data deletion: Uninstalling the app removes all local data

Third-Party Libraries

The app uses the following libraries that may collect data:

• Google ML Kit: For barcode scanning functionality
• ZXing: For barcode processing (no data collection)
• CameraX: For camera functionality (no data collection)
• Room Database: For local data storage (no data collection)

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect improvements or legal requirements. Updates will be posted in this file and/or on the App's store listing with a new effective date. Continued use of the app after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

This privacy policy complies with Google Play Console data safety requirements and accurately reflects our data collection practices.