Compound
Compound Privacy Policy
Effective date: September 22, 2026
Developer: Taylor Brown (individual developer), Quebec, Canada
Contact: compound.progress.support@gmail.com
Compound is a progress-photo app. You take one photo of yourself a day, and the app shows you how you've changed over time. This policy explains what the app stores, where it stays, and what control you have. It's written to be read, not skimmed. If anything is unclear, email us.
The short version
- Your photos stay on your phone. Compound has no accounts, no servers, and no cloud. Nothing you do in the app is sent to us or to anyone else.
- We collect nothing. No analytics, no crash reports, no advertising, no tracking, no identifiers.
- You're in control. You can export every photo, delete any day, or delete everything, from inside the app.
What the app stores on your device
Everything below is stored only in Compound's private storage on your phone. Other apps can't read it, and it never appears in your camera roll unless you choose to save something there.
| Data | What it is | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Progress photos | The front and optional side photo you take each day, plus small thumbnails of each | To show your calendar, comparisons and timelapse |
| Settings | Whether the daily reminder is on and at what time, whether Face ID lock is on, your light/dark preference, and which milestones you've already seen | To remember how you set up the app |
| Onboarding flag | Whether you've finished the welcome screen | So it only shows once |
Photos are saved without location or other metadata (EXIF is stripped at capture).
We don't store your name, email, or any account information, because there is no account.
What we don't do
- We don't collect or transmit your photos, settings, or usage.
- We don't use analytics, crash-reporting, advertising, or attribution SDKs.
- We don't track you across apps or websites, and we don't use the advertising identifier.
- We don't sell, rent, or share personal information with anyone. There is no personal information in our possession to share.
- We don't require an account, a login, or any personal details to use the app.
Because the app never sends data off your device, Compound's App Store privacy label is "Data Not Collected."
Permissions the app asks for, and why
Compound only asks for a permission when you use the feature that needs it. You can change any of these later in your phone's Settings, and the app keeps working (with that feature off).
- Camera: to take your daily photo. This is the only thing the camera is used for.
- Notifications: only if you turn on the daily reminder. The reminder is scheduled on your phone; it doesn't come from a server.
- Face ID / Touch ID / fingerprint: only if you turn on the app lock. Biometric data is handled entirely by your phone's operating system; the app only learns whether the unlock succeeded.
- Add to Photos: only when you choose "Save Image" or "Save Video" in the share sheet. The app never reads your photo library.
When something leaves your phone (only when you choose)
Nothing leaves your phone unless you take one of these actions:
- Share: creating a before/after image or a timelapse video and picking a destination in your phone's share sheet (Messages, Instagram, AirDrop, Save to Photos, etc.). What happens to it after that is governed by the app or service you picked.
- Export: choosing Settings → Export Photos and picking a folder (for example iCloud Drive, Google Drive, or "On My iPhone"). The copy in that folder is governed by that storage provider's privacy policy.
- Backups: on iOS, Compound's photos are part of your own device backup (iCloud Backup or an encrypted computer backup), which is controlled by your Apple ID and Apple's privacy policy. On Android, Compound's photos are excluded from Google's app backup, so they exist only on the phone (and in any export you make).
We never see any of this data in any of these cases.
How long data is kept
Your photos and settings stay on your phone until you delete them. You can:
- delete a single day from its photo page,
- delete everything with Settings → Delete All Data, or
- uninstall the app, which removes all of its data.
Temporary files created when you share an image or video are deleted after the share sheet closes.
Your rights and how to use them
Under Quebec's Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector (Law 25), Canada's PIPEDA, and similar laws elsewhere, you have the right to access, correct, export, and delete your personal information.
Because your data is only on your device, the fastest way to exercise these rights is inside the app:
- Access / portability: Settings → Export Photos copies every photo, with dates, plus a JSON file of your settings, to a folder you choose.
- Deletion: Settings → Delete All Data, or uninstall the app.
You can also email us at the address above with any question or request. We'll respond within 30 days. Note that we can't access, recover, or delete data on your device on your behalf; we don't have it.
Person in charge of personal information protection (as required by Quebec Law 25): Taylor Brown, reachable at the contact email above.
Children
Compound isn't directed at children. If you are under 14 (Quebec) or under the age of consent where you live, please use the app only with a parent or guardian's permission. We don't knowingly collect information from children, and since the app collects nothing at all, no such information reaches us.
Security
Photos are stored in the app's sandboxed storage, protected by your device's encryption when it's locked. You can add a second layer with the app's Face ID / fingerprint lock. No system is perfectly secure; keep your device passcode on and your OS up to date.
Changes to this policy
If the app ever starts collecting data (for example, optional cloud backup in the future), we'll update this policy first, change the effective date, and describe the change in the app update notes. Continued use after a change means you accept the updated policy.
Contact
Questions, requests, or concerns: compound.progress.support@gmail.com
If you're not satisfied with our response, you can contact the Commission d'accès à l'information du Québec or the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.