Privacy Policy

Zero-data photography

Infrared Camera is a completely private app. All image processing happens on your device. Nothing is sent to external servers. No data is collected.

Effective date: January 1, 2025 · Last updated: April 2025

✓ Zero data collection ✓ No account required ✓ 100% on-device processing ✓ No analytics tracking

Who we are

Infrared Camera is developed by Greg Anderson, an independent developer. Infrared Camera is distributed through the Apple App Store.

Questions or concerns: Contact Support

The simple truth

Infrared Camera collects zero data.

All infrared filter processing happens on your device using Apple's Metal graphics framework and Core Image filters. Your photos never leave your device. No external services are contacted. No analytics are collected. No network connection is required to use the app.

This is not marketing language — it's architectural fact. Infrared Camera has no backend servers, no API endpoints, and no analytics SDKs. The app cannot send data externally because there is nowhere to send it.

What we do not collect

Infrared Camera does not collect, transmit, or store any of the following:

There are zero third-party SDKs in Infrared Camera. No analytics frameworks. No advertising networks. No crash reporting services. The app uses only Apple system frameworks: AVFoundation for camera access, Core Image for filtering, Metal for GPU acceleration, and Photos framework for saving images.

How filtering works

Real-Time Processing

When you view the live camera preview with a filter applied, your iPhone's GPU processes each frame using Metal-accelerated Core Image filters. This happens entirely on-device. The filtered video stream never leaves your device's memory.

Photo Capture

When you capture a photo, Infrared Camera saves an unfiltered original to memory, then applies your selected filter on-device. You can swipe through all four filters after capture — each filter is computed locally on your device. No network request is made.

Saving to Photos

When you tap Save, the filtered image is written to your Photos library using Apple's PHPhotoLibrary framework. Infrared Camera embeds IPTC metadata in the image file (description, credit line) to document which filter was used. This metadata is stored only in the saved photo on your device — it is never transmitted elsewhere.

Camera permissions

Infrared Camera requests camera permission on first launch. This permission allows the app to access your device's camera hardware to capture photos and display the live preview.

Camera access is used only to:

Infrared Camera does not access your existing Photos library except when you explicitly tap Save to add a new photo.

Filter memory

Infrared Camera remembers which filter you last used and automatically selects it when you reopen the app. This preference is stored in UserDefaults on your device only. It is never transmitted to any server.

Deleting the app permanently erases this preference.

Children's privacy

Infrared Camera is rated 4+ on the App Store. Because we collect no personal data and require no account, there are no special provisions needed for users under 13 (COPPA) or under 16 (GDPR). No personal information from any user is retained.

Your rights

Infrared Camera does not maintain a database of user data, so there is no data for us to access, correct, export, or delete on your behalf.

All photos you capture are stored in your device's Photos library under your control. You can delete them at any time using the Photos app.

Filter preferences stored in UserDefaults are deleted when you delete the app.

Network activity

Infrared Camera does not require an internet connection to function. The app makes zero network requests during normal operation.

The only network activity associated with Infrared Camera is when you initially download or update the app from the App Store — this is handled by Apple, not by us.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes materially, we will update the effective date at the top of this page and note the change in the App Store release notes. Continued use of Infrared Camera after a policy change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

However, given Infrared Camera's architecture, any policy change would likely only clarify existing practices — the app fundamentally cannot collect data without a major architectural overhaul that would require a complete rebuild.

Contact

Questions? Contact Support