Tripod Privacy Policy

This policy is published by Ben McCarthy, the developer of Tripod, and explains what the app does with your data.

I believe that using great software shouldn’t come at the expense of your privacy. That’s why none of the apps I’ve built relies on advertising as its business model. The online advertising industry is predicated on extracting as much personal data about you as possible so that you can be shown the most accurately targeted ads. I find the whole situation deeply unpleasant.

I believe my apps are worth paying for and hopefully you feel the same. By charging a fair price for my work, I can keep our interests aligned, and your privacy respected.

On your device

The podcasts you follow, your listening progress and your settings are stored on your device and in your own iCloud account, so they stay in sync across your devices. That data lives in your Apple account under Apple’s terms; I have no access to it. You can turn iCloud syncing off for Tripod in the Settings app, under your name, then iCloud.

Tripod has no accounts of its own. There is nothing to sign up for, and I never learn who you are or what you listen to.

Transcripts are generated on your device. The audio is not sent anywhere to be transcribed, and the transcripts are not shared with me.

Podcasts

When you follow or play a podcast, Tripod downloads its feed, artwork and audio directly from the servers of whoever publishes or hosts that podcast. As with any podcast app, those servers see your IP address and can count the download, and some hosts use this for their own audience statistics. Tripod sends them nothing else that identifies you.

Purchases

Tripod’s subscription is bought through Apple’s In-App Purchase. Apple handles the payment; I never see your name, email address or payment details.

To check whether a subscription is active, Tripod uses RevenueCat, a subscription service based in the United States. RevenueCat receives a random identifier for your copy of the app, your purchase history for Tripod as reported by Apple (what was bought, when, and whether it has renewed or been cancelled), and basic technical details such as your App Store country, device type and app version. It is not given your name, email address or anything about the podcasts you follow.

You can read RevenueCat’s privacy policy for details of how it handles this data.

Analytics

Tripod uses TelemetryDeck, an analytics service based in Germany, to collect lightweight, anonymised usage data: things like how many users complete onboarding and which features are most used. I’m only interested in the data in aggregate, and no personal data is collected.

What’s Collected:

• what features are most used
• certain errors and crashes
• app usage, such as whether onboarding was completed or abandoned, and whether certain views are shown

What’s Not Collected:

• Personal information (name, email, phone number, address)
• User account data or login credentials
• Location data or GPS coordinates
• Which podcasts you follow or what you listen to
• Photos, contacts, or other personal files
• Unique device identifiers that could identify you personally
• Browsing history or data from other apps

You can read TelemetryDeck’s privacy policy for details of how it handles this data.

Support Email

If you email me for support, those emails will be stored, as they may be relevant for solving future issues. Emails are not shared with any third parties. If you request the deletion of a support email, I’m happy to do so.

If you email me from within Tripod, some basic information will be attached to the email, such as your device model and operating system version.

Contact

Questions about this policy, or a request to see or delete anything I hold about you, can go to support@obscura.studio.