Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how personal data is handled when you use the Clean Web app on iPhone, iPad and Mac (the "App") and the cleanweb.app website. Clean Web is built so that your browsing stays on your device: there is no account, no advertising, no analytics and no tracking.

Who we are

Clean Web is developed and operated by Mihai Seremet, an individual based in the United Kingdom ("we", "us"). We are the controller of the personal data described in this policy.

Mihai Seremet
9 Reardon Path, London, E1W 2AN, United Kingdom
Email: mseremet.dev@gmail.com

The short version

• We never see which websites you visit or which ones are blocked.
• We don't ask for your name, email address or any account details to use the App.
• We don't use advertising, analytics or tracking tools, and we don't sell or share your personal data.
• The little data our servers do handle is pseudonymous and short-lived: encryption keys are deleted 7 days after their last use, and server logs after 1 day.

How filtering keeps your browsing private

Clean Web uses Apple's URL filtering technology, which is built into iOS, iPadOS and macOS. Each web address your device connects to is first checked on your device against a compact filter. Most addresses are cleared right there, and nothing leaves your device.

When the filter finds a possible match, your device's operating system confirms it with our server using Private Information Retrieval (PIR). The query is encrypted on your device, and the server works on it without ever decrypting it. It only sends back an encrypted answer that your device alone can read. This means our server cannot learn which address was checked or whether it was blocked.

To be allowed to query the server, your device uses Privacy Pass tokens. These prove that a request comes from a genuine installation of the App, and they cannot be linked to you, your purchase or your other requests.

What we process, why, and for how long

Filtering keys

For PIR to work, your device uploads encryption keys that let our server compute on your encrypted queries, along with a random identifier generated by your device. The keys and the identifier are not linked to your name, Apple Account or purchase, and they can't be used to decrypt your queries. We store them only to provide filtering (legal basis: performance of our contract with you), and we automatically delete them 7 days after they were last used.

Server logs

Our servers log each request with the random identifier described above, the type of request, its time and how long it took. We do not log IP addresses, web addresses or query contents. We use these logs to keep the service secure and reliable (legal basis: our legitimate interests), and we delete them after 1 day.

Connection data

Like any internet service, our servers and our hosting provider necessarily receive your IP address when your device connects to them. The filtering service does not record it. Blocklist updates downloaded from assets.cleanweb.app are not logged. When you visit the cleanweb.app website, standard access logs (IP address, page requested, time, browser type) are kept for up to 30 days for security and troubleshooting (legal basis: our legitimate interests).

Subscriptions

Purchases are made through Apple's App Store. Apple processes your payment as an independent controller under its own privacy policy; we never receive your payment details or Apple Account information.

We use RevenueCat, Inc. to verify your subscription and unlock Premium features. RevenueCat receives a random app user ID, your App Store transaction and receipt data, your device model, operating system and app version, your App Store country and your IP address. This is needed to provide the subscription you bought (legal basis: performance of our contract with you). RevenueCat keeps this data for as long as it's needed to manage your subscription, as described in its privacy policy.

Support and feedback

If you email us, including through the App's bug report or feature request options, we receive your email address, your message and the App version included in it. We use these only to reply to you and improve the App (legal basis: our legitimate interests), and we delete them once they're no longer needed, normally within 12 months.

Data that stays on your device

Your settings, such as your chosen protection level, are stored only on your device and are never sent to us. Deleting the App removes them.

The website

The cleanweb.app website uses no cookies, analytics or tracking, and it loads no content from third parties.

What we don't do

• We don't collect your browsing history, location, contacts or any other content on your device.
• We don't use advertising, analytics or crash-reporting tools, and we don't track you across other companies' apps or websites.
• We don't sell or "share" personal data, as those terms are defined under US state privacy laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act.

Who we share data with

We share data only with service providers who process it on our behalf and under our instructions:

• Amazon Web Services, which hosts our servers and website in the United States;
• RevenueCat, Inc., which manages subscriptions, in the United States.

Apple, as described above, acts as an independent controller. We may also disclose data if the law requires it.

International transfers

Because our providers are based in the United States, your data may be processed outside the United Kingdom and the European Economic Area. Where this happens, we rely on appropriate safeguards, such as the UK Extension to the EU–US Data Privacy Framework or the UK International Data Transfer Addendum to the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses.

Your rights

Under the UK GDPR (and the EU GDPR, where it applies to you), you have the right to access your personal data, to have it corrected or deleted, to restrict or object to its processing and to receive it in a portable format. To exercise any of these rights, email us. Because we don't hold your name or account details, we may need information to find your data, such as the order ID from your App Store receipt.

You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk) or to the data protection authority in the country where you live. We'd appreciate the chance to address your concerns first.

Deleting your data

Deleting the App removes all data stored on your device. Filtering keys on our server then expire automatically within 7 days. To ask us to delete your subscription records held by RevenueCat or any emails you have sent us, contact us.

Children

The App is not directed at children under 13, and we don't knowingly collect personal data from them. If you believe a child has sent us personal data, for example by email, please contact us and we will delete it.

Security

All connections to our servers use encryption in transit (TLS), stored data is encrypted at rest, and access to our systems is restricted. PIR and Privacy Pass also mean that even we cannot see what you browse.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy, for example when we add features. We'll post the new version on this page with a new "Last updated" date. If a change materially affects how we handle your data, we'll let you know in the App or on this website before it takes effect.

Contact us

For any question about privacy or this policy, email mseremet.dev@gmail.com or write to Mihai Seremet, 9 Reardon Path, London, E1W 2AN, United Kingdom.