Privacy Policy

Overview

Mute is a focus and distraction-blocking app designed to help you commit to distraction-free time. Your privacy is fundamental to how we built it: Mute has no accounts, no user profiles, and no servers holding your personal data. Everything about how you use the app stays on your device.

Mute ships on two platforms, and they do not behave identically — the Android and iOS versions use different operating-system features and different amounts of diagnostics. This policy describes both. Sections marked Android or iOS apply only to that version; everything else applies to both.

Information We Collect

Information Stored on Your Device Only

Mute stores the following data locally on your device. It is never transmitted to our servers or any third party:

• Session History: Records of your focus sessions including start time, duration, and completion status
• Allowed Apps: The apps you have chosen to keep reachable during focus sessions (plus, on Android, allowed contacts)
• App Preferences: Your settings and configuration choices
• Purchase Records: A store-issued transaction identifier for deposit and early-exit purchases, used only to confirm the transaction and to prevent the same purchase being applied twice

We do not operate servers that store your personal data. All of the information listed above remains entirely on your device.

Information Collected Automatically by Third-Party Services

Firebase Analytics

We use Firebase Analytics to understand general usage patterns such as how often sessions are started and completed, which features are used, and how long sessions typically last. This data is anonymous and does not include any personally identifiable information. No usernames, email addresses, or account information is collected. You can turn this off at any time in the app: Settings → "Share anonymous usage data."

Firebase Crashlytics

When the app encounters an error, Firebase Crashlytics automatically collects crash reports that include your device model, operating system version, and technical details about the error (stack traces). No personal data, screen content, or message content is included in these reports. This helps us identify and fix bugs.

Firebase Performance Monitoring

We use Firebase Performance Monitoring to measure app startup times and responsiveness. This data includes general device and app performance metrics and does not contain any personal information.

Firebase Remote Config

Mute fetches configuration settings (such as visual theme options) from Firebase Remote Config. No personal data is sent during this process.

Firebase App Check

Mute uses Firebase App Check to verify that requests to Firebase services come from our authentic app. This involves device integrity verification tokens and does not access or transmit personal data.

Google Play Billing

If you choose to end a session early using the paid option ($0.99), the payment is processed entirely by Google Play. Mute never receives, accesses, or stores your payment information such as credit card numbers or billing addresses. The only information Mute receives from Google Play is an order identifier and a purchase token to confirm the transaction. The purchase token is consumed immediately after verification.

For more information on how Google handles data through these services, see Google's Privacy Policy and Firebase's Privacy Documentation.

Information We Do Not Collect

Mute does not collect, access, or transmit:

• Your name, email address, or any account information (no account creation is required)
• The content of your screen, messages, passwords, or keystrokes
• Which specific apps you use or how often you use them. On Android, the Accessibility Service only checks app identifiers against your blocked list during active sessions and immediately discards that information. On iOS, Apple never hands the app your list of installed apps at all — see Mute for iOS.
• Your location, contacts list, photos, or files
• Advertising identifiers or tracking profiles

Mute for Android — permissions

The Android version requests the following permissions, each used solely for the described purpose:

• Do Not Disturb Access: To silence notifications during your focus sessions. This permission only changes your notification settings and does not access any notification content.
• Accessibility Service: To detect when a blocked app is opened during a focus session and return you to the home screen. This service only reads the package name (app identifier) of the foreground application. It does not read screen content, text input, passwords, messages, or any other personal data. The canRetrieveWindowContent flag is explicitly set to false. The service is completely inactive outside of focus sessions you start.
• Notifications: To display a persistent notification during active focus sessions so you can see your remaining time.
• Contacts (optional): If you choose to allow specific contacts to reach you during sessions, this permission lets Mute display your contact names. Contact information is stored locally and is never transmitted.
• Billing: To process optional early exit payments through Google Play.
• Exact Alarms: To notify you when a focus session is complete.

Storage and security on Android

All locally stored data is encrypted using Android's EncryptedSharedPreferences with AES-256 encryption, backed by the Android Keystore system. All network communication uses HTTPS/TLS encryption. Cleartext (unencrypted) network traffic is disabled.

Cloud backup and device-to-device transfer of app data are disabled. Your data exists only on your current device.

Mute for iOS

The iOS version of Mute is built on different operating-system features than the Android version, and collects less. It has no analytics, no crash reporting, no remote configuration, and no network requests of any kind. There is no server component; nothing about your usage is transmitted anywhere, because the app never transmits anything.

App blocking uses Apple's Screen Time framework

Mute blocks apps using Apple's Screen Time technology (the Family Controls, Managed Settings, and Device Activity frameworks), under Individual authorization — the self-directed mode, for the person using the device. Mute is not a parental-control or child-monitoring app and never manages another person's device.

When you choose which apps stay reachable, iOS presents Apple's own app picker and hands Mute only opaque tokens in return. Apple deliberately does not reveal the underlying app names or bundle identifiers to third-party apps, so Mute cannot see, log, or transmit which apps you selected — and it does not receive any record of your app usage.

Purchases

The optional commitment deposit and early-exit fee are processed entirely by Apple through StoreKit. Mute never receives, accesses, or stores your payment information. It receives only a signed transaction identifier, which it uses on-device to confirm the purchase completed and to prevent the same purchase being applied twice.

Permissions

• Screen Time authorization: Required by iOS before any app blocking can happen. Requested once, for individual (self) use only, and never for another person's device.
• Notifications: Local notifications only, used to tell you when a focus session is complete. Mute does not use push notifications and has no push server.

Mute for iOS does not request access to your location, contacts, photos, microphone, camera, calendar, or health data.

Storage and security on iOS

Deposit-credit state and the record of which purchases have already been applied are stored in the iOS Keychain, restricted to this device. Session history, your allowed-apps selection, and preferences are stored in the app's private App Group container, readable only by Mute and its own extensions. Because the app makes no network requests, none of this data has a path off your device.

Data Retention and Deletion

All data is stored locally on your device. Mute does not maintain any servers or databases containing your information. Your session history is limited to the most recent 100 sessions.

You can delete your data at any time through the following options:

• Clear Session History: Tap "Clear Session History" in Settings to delete your session records
• Delete All App Data: Tap "Delete All App Data" in Settings to erase all app data and reset the app to its initial state
• Uninstall: Uninstalling Mute removes all app data from your device

Since we do not store your data on any server, deletion from your device is complete and permanent.

Children's Privacy

Mute is designed for general audiences and does not knowingly collect any personal information from children under 13 (or the applicable age in your jurisdiction). No account creation or personal information is required to use the app.

Your Privacy Rights

California Residents (CCPA/CPRA)

Since Mute does not collect, sell, or share personal information, the rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act are satisfied by design:

• Right to Know: No personal information is collected or stored on our servers.
• Right to Delete: All data is stored locally on your device and can be deleted through Settings or by uninstalling the app.
• Right to Opt-Out of Sale/Sharing: We do not sell or share personal information with third parties.
• Right to Non-Discrimination: Not applicable, as no personal data is collected.

European Residents (GDPR)

For users in the European Economic Area: on iOS, Mute performs no processing of personal data whatsoever, so these rights have no data to attach to. On Android, the legal basis for the limited anonymous processing through Firebase services is our legitimate interest in maintaining app quality and stability. In either case you have the right to:

• Access: Request information about what data is processed (on Android, anonymous analytics and crash data only; on iOS, none)
• Erasure: Delete all local data through Settings, and on Android switch off diagnostics entirely
• Object: On Android, turn off "Share anonymous usage data" in Settings; on iOS there is nothing to object to
• Portability: Since no personal data is stored on our servers, there is no server-side data to transfer

All Users

On Android you can turn off anonymous diagnostics at any time in Settings → "Share anonymous usage data"; this does not affect the app's functionality. On iOS there is nothing to turn off — the app collects nothing.

Third-Party Links

Mute may contain links to external websites such as our privacy policy page. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of external sites.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Any changes will be reflected with an updated "Last Updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about this privacy policy or Mute's privacy practices, please contact us:

• Email: contact@sweetactionlabs.com

Summary

Mute is built with privacy as a core principle. On both platforms, your session data, preferences, and settings stay on your device, and there are no accounts, no profiles, no advertising, and no servers holding your information. On Android, Mute additionally sends anonymous analytics and crash reports, which you can switch off in Settings. On iOS, it sends nothing at all — the app makes no network requests. We never collect, store, or share your personal information.