Privacy Policy
Your files stay on your PC. This is exactly what the app sends, and why.
Updated: September 4, 2026 · 4 min read
This policy describes what AppGrabbit ("the App", version 3.0 and later), operated by CrowSo Studio, collects, why, and what it never collects. It is written to be read, not skimmed: every item below matches what the code does.
1. The short version
- Your videos, audio, transcripts, thumbnails and converted files never leave your PC. Downloads go from the platform's server to your disk; conversions and clips run on your computer.
- The App talks to our own server for three things: your license, the free plan's monthly quota, and anonymous usage counters. It sends identifiers and counts, never links, titles or files.
- The App talks to GitHub to check for updates and to the video platforms (through yt-dlp) to fetch what you asked for.
- The website uses Google Analytics to count visits and download clicks.
2. What the App sends to our server, and when
| When | What is sent | Why |
|---|---|---|
| When the App starts, and about once a day while it runs | A random install id created on first run, the App version, the platform ("windows"), the time, and whether a license code is set (yes/no) | To count active installs and versions, and to know when an update has reached everyone |
| When you use a free feature (single download, batch, transcript) | A hardware-derived id (SHA-256 of your Windows MachineGuid; the GUID itself is never sent) and the monthly counters for those three features | To apply the free plan per computer, so reinstalling the App does not reset it |
| When you enter a license code, and periodically afterwards | The license code, the same hardware-derived id, and your computer's name (for example DESKTOP-ABC) | To validate Pro and to keep the license on one computer at a time. The name is shown on your other computer when you move the license |
| After each successful download, and when you use a feature | The install id and the feature's name: single, batch, playlist, mix, transcript, clip, convert, thumbnail or watch | Counters of which features are used and how often, to decide what to improve |
| When you click "Manage subscription" | Your license code | To open your Stripe customer portal |
The server keeps, per license: code, purchase email, plan, dates, the hardware-derived id and name of the computer it is active on, and the count of moves. Per install: the ids above, version, platform, first and last seen, the monthly counters and the feature counters.
3. What the App never sends
- The links you paste, the titles of the videos, the channels you watch, or any search.
- The files themselves: videos, audio, transcripts, thumbnails, conversions.
- Your library, queue, settings, save folder or file paths.
- Browser cookies or sessions. The App deliberately does not read your browser's cookies, which is why it cannot access private content.
- Your Windows MachineGuid in clear text, your user name, or your email (the email comes only from your purchase, through Stripe).
4. Other connections the App makes
- Video platforms (YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and the rest): the App, through yt-dlp and FFmpeg on your PC, requests the video directly from them. They see your IP address, as any browser would.
- GitHub: on start and every six hours the App reads the release manifest to check for updates, and downloads the update package from there. GitHub sees your IP address.
- Stripe: only when you buy or manage a plan, on Stripe's pages. I receive your email and the result, never your card.
5. The website (appgrabbit.com)
The site uses Google Analytics 4 to count visits, pages and clicks on the download and pricing buttons. It sets cookies and records the country, device type and pages visited; Google Analytics 4 does not store full IP addresses. The site is hosted on Netlify, which keeps standard server logs. The site has no accounts and no forms.
6. Third-party services
- Stripe: payments (stripe.com/privacy)
- Supabase: license, quota and usage database (supabase.com/privacy)
- Resend: the email that delivers your license code (resend.com/privacy)
- GitHub: downloads and updates (docs.github.com/en/site-policy/privacy-policies)
- Google Analytics: website statistics (policies.google.com/privacy)
- Netlify: website hosting (netlify.com/privacy)
7. Security
License and install data live in Supabase with row-level security. The App writes through server functions with a limited key; it cannot read other users' rows. Your email and license code are not exposed publicly. The App's local API only accepts requests from the App itself.
8. Retention and deletion
License records are kept while the license exists. Install and usage records are kept while the install keeps reporting and up to 24 months after its last report. To delete your data, write to support@appgrabbit.com from your purchase email (Pro) or with your computer's name and the date you installed (Free); I remove the records within 7 days.
9. Your rights
You can ask what data exists about your license or install, correct it, or delete it, at any time, at the address above. You can also stop all reporting simply by uninstalling the App: it has no background service.
10. Children
AppGrabbit is not directed at children under 13, and I do not knowingly collect personal information from them.
11. Changes
This policy changes when the App changes what it sends. The date at the top is the date of the last change, and the current version is always at appgrabbit.com/privacy/. Versions: April 4, 2026 (first); September 4, 2026 (AppGrabbit 3.0: hardware-derived id for the free credits, one computer per license, feature counters, website analytics).