Privacy Policy | Anchor Launcher

1. Introduction & Privacy Commitment

Welcome to Anchor Launcher ("we," "our," or "us"). We are committed to safeguarding your personal privacy and providing transparent, secure, and high-performance home screen software for Android devices.

Anchor Launcher is engineered around a local-first architecture. Your personal tasks, contacts, app lists, custom wallpapers, security credentials, and daily usage habits belong exclusively to you. Primary feature processing occurs locally on your device, and we never sell, rent, or monetize personal information with third-party advertisers or data brokers.

This Privacy Policy complies with global data protection standards, including the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA/CPRA).

2. System Permissions & Operational Scope

To function as a primary Android home screen desktop replacement (android.intent.category.HOME), Anchor Launcher requests specific device permissions. The operational purpose for each permission is detailed below:

App Packages Access

QUERY_ALL_PACKAGES

Purpose: Primary launcher core feature. Required to detect, categorize, display, search, and launch installed applications from your home screen desktop and app drawer.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Queried strictly on-device. Package inventories are never transmitted off your device.

Digital Wellbeing & Usage

PACKAGE_USAGE_STATS

Purpose: Special app access. Powers built-in screen time tracking, daily app usage metrics, and alert popups when custom usage limits are reached.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Usage statistics remain in private local application storage.

App Lock & Biometric Security

USE_BIOMETRIC

Purpose: Optional security feature. Protects locked apps, hidden apps, and security settings using system biometric authentication (Fingerprint / Face Unlock).

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Delegated strictly to Android OS BiometricPrompt and hardware Keystore. Anchor Launcher never accesses or stores raw biometric data.

Quick Shortcuts & System Status

ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE, ACCESS_WIFI_STATE, BLUETOOTH, FLASHLIGHT

Purpose: Powers the clock quick shortcuts bar. Used to locally display live status highlights (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Hotspot, Flashlight, Sound mode, and Alarms) and trigger quick toggles.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Read strictly via on-device Android system binders and Settings.Global. No connection identifiers or status data are ever logged or transmitted.

Approximate Location for Weather

ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION

Purpose: Optional feature. Allows fetching real-time local weather forecasts and temperatures for the homescreen clock and weather widgets.

Handling: Ephemeral HTTPS Coordinates are sent ephemerally to Open-Meteo API over encrypted TLS without personal identifiers and are never stored on external servers.

App Uninstallation

REQUEST_DELETE_PACKAGES

Purpose: Core home screen functionality. Allows users to initiate app uninstallation directly from desktop context menus and the app drawer.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Triggers the standard Android system uninstaller dialog. Uninstallation is confirmed and performed by the operating system.

Contacts Search

READ_CONTACTS

Purpose: Optional runtime permission. Allows searching for phone contacts and dialing numbers directly from the search overlay.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Contact details are indexed and queried exclusively on your device.

In-App Billing & Purchases

com.android.vending.BILLING

Purpose: Optional commercial feature. Facilitates optional in-app purchases and subscriptions for premium features via Google Play.

Handling: Secure Google Play All payment processing is conducted securely by Google Play. Anchor Launcher does not collect or store financial card details.

Voice Input (Search & Tasks)

RECORD_AUDIO

Purpose: Optional runtime permission. Enables hands-free voice search in the search bar and voice dictation for creating To-Do tasks.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Audio input is converted to text locally by system speech services and is not retained or uploaded.

Status Bar Pull-Down Gesture

EXPAND_STATUS_BAR

Purpose: Home screen gesture support. Allows expanding the notifications panel when performing a downward swipe gesture on the desktop.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Executed directly through the Android OS StatusBarManager service.

Widgets & Wallpapers

BIND_APPWIDGET, SET_WALLPAPER, READ_MEDIA_*

Purpose: Primary launcher core feature. Enables hosting native system widgets on the desktop, picking custom wallpaper images, and applying home screen themes.

Handling: 100% Local On-Device Managed strictly via native Android operating system APIs and private local storage.

3. Data Collection, Handling & Transit Safety

The table below provides a comprehensive summary of all data types processed by Anchor Launcher, their storage location, transit encryption status, and purpose:

Data Category	Data Type	Storage / Processing	Encrypted in Transit?	Requirement	Purpose
Location	Approximate Location (Coarse Coordinates / City Name)	Ephemeral (Open-Meteo API)	Yes (HTTPS / TLS)	Optional	App Functionality (Weather Forecast & Widget)
Personal Productivity	Tasks, To-Dos, Notes, Due Dates & Priority	100% Local On-Device (Drift SQLite)	N/A (Never Transmitted)	Optional	Built-in Task Management & Productivity
Photos & Media	User-Selected Wallpaper Images & Media Icons	100% Local On-Device (Private Application Storage)	N/A (Never Transmitted)	Optional	Custom Wallpaper & Dynamic Color Palette Extraction
Security Credentials	App Lock PIN & Security Question/Answer	100% Local On-Device (Salted SHA-256 Hashes)	N/A (Never Transmitted)	Optional	App Lock & Protected App Security
Contacts	Contact Names & Phone Numbers	Local Only	N/A (Local)	Optional	App Functionality (Search & Quick Dialing)
App Activity	Installed Packages, App Usage & Screen Time	Local Only (Drift SQLite)	N/A (Local)	Required	Launcher Core & Digital Wellbeing
System Toggles & State	Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Hotspot, Sound Mode, Alarm & Flashlight Status	100% Local On-Device	N/A (Never Transmitted)	Optional	Homescreen Clock Quick Shortcuts & Toggle Status Highlighting
Financial Info	Purchase Tokens & Subscription Entitlements	Google Play In-App Billing	Yes (HTTPS / TLS)	Optional	Premium Upgrades (No financial card data stored by app)
App Info & Performance	Crash Logs (Firebase Crashlytics)	Collected Off-Device	Yes (HTTPS / TLS)	Required	Diagnostics & App Stability
App Info & Performance	Usage Analytics (Firebase Analytics)	Collected Off-Device	Yes (HTTPS / TLS)	Required	Anonymized Performance & Diagnostics
Device & User IDs	Pseudonymous App Instance ID & Firebase IDs	Collected Off-Device	Yes (HTTPS / TLS)	Required	Stability Telemetry & Cohort Verification
Audio	Voice Input (Speech-to-Text)	Local Only	N/A (Local)	Optional	App Functionality (Voice Search & Voice Tasks)

4. Data Security & Third-Party Integrations

We enforce strict security protections across all components of Anchor Launcher:

Encryption in Transit: Network communications to external APIs (weather forecasts, online wallpaper downloads, and stability telemetry) are encrypted using Transport Layer Security (TLS / HTTPS).
Encrypted Local Storage: User preferences, task items, app lock hashes, and usage statistics are stored securely in a local SQLite database (using drift) inside private application storage.
No Data Commercialization: Anchor Launcher does not include third-party advertising SDKs or tracking networks. We do not sell, rent, or trade user data.
Third-Party Services Used:
- Open-Meteo API: Provides live weather forecasts and geocoding over encrypted HTTPS without tracking user identities or storing location logs.
- Fibrly Wallpaper API (api.fibrly.in): Supplies curated 4K online wallpapers and categories. Selected wallpapers are fetched over HTTPS and cached locally on-device.
- Google Firebase (Analytics & Crashlytics): Collects anonymized crash diagnostics and system interaction metrics to improve application stability.
- Google Play In-App Billing: Handles purchase processing and entitlement verification for optional premium upgrades without exposing sensitive financial info to us.
- External Search Engines: When initiated by the user, web search queries are passed directly to the chosen search provider (Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, Brave, Yahoo, Yandex).

5. User Rights, Data Retention & Deletion Instructions

Users have complete authority to manage or request deletion of their data:

Revoking System Permissions: You can manage or revoke optional permissions (Location, Contacts, Microphone, Bluetooth) at any time via Android Settings > Apps > Anchor Launcher > Permissions.
Clearing Stored Local Data: You can permanently erase all local application databases and configuration files via Android Settings > Apps > Anchor Launcher > Storage > Clear Storage / Data or by uninstalling the application.
Data Deletion Requests: You may submit inquiries or request deletion of telemetry records by emailing our privacy support team at heliosbytes@outlook.com.

6. International Privacy Rights (GDPR & CCPA)

Under applicable international data protection regulations (such as EU GDPR and California CCPA/CPRA), users hold specific rights to access, correct, or request erasure of personal data. Because Anchor Launcher processes personal data locally on your device, these rights are directly executable by clearing or deleting local data on your device.

7. Children's Privacy

Anchor Launcher is not directed at children under the age of 13 (or under 16 in applicable jurisdictions). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a minor has submitted personal data to us, please contact us for prompt removal.

8. Policy Revisions

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect app enhancements or legal updates. Revisions will be posted on this page with an updated "Last Updated" date.

9. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or data deletion requests regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:

heliosbytes@outlook.com