Spool Privacy Policy
Last updated: 25 October 2026
Spool is made by David Defranceski. This policy explains what the app does with your information.
The short version
Spool works on your device. It has no accounts and runs no servers, and your photos and videos never leave your device. The iPhone version shows ads from Google AdMob, which use some device information to choose and measure ads (see "Ads on iPhone" below). A one-time purchase removes the ads. The Mac version shows no ads.
Your photos and videos
Spool asks for access to your Photos library so it can show your Live Photos, videos and photos and build movies from them. It only reads them. It never edits or deletes them. Everything it makes (drafts, edits and finished movies) is stored privately on your device, inside the app. Your photos and videos are not uploaded anywhere by Spool.
If you tap "Save to Photos", Spool adds the finished movie or GIF to your Photos library. If you choose Share, the movie goes where you send it, using your device's share sheet.
Location
If a photo has a location saved with it and you turn on "Place" on a clip, or use Quick movie with Places switched on, Spool shows the place name, for example "Cape Byron". To find the name, your device sends that photo's coordinates to Apple's location service, as any app does when it looks up a place. Spool does not receive, keep or send those coordinates anywhere else. Switch off Places to avoid the lookup.
Face and image analysis
When you use Quick movie, Spool analyses your clips on your device (sharpness, light, faces, and whether someone is talking) to pick the best ones. This runs entirely on your device. Nothing is sent from it.
Ads on iPhone
The iPhone version of Spool shows a small banner ad in the library and a full-screen ad after you make a movie. They are provided by Google AdMob. To show and measure ads, Google and its partners may use your device's advertising identifier, your IP address (which gives an approximate location), and information about how ads perform.
When your iPhone asks "Allow Spool to track your activity across other companies' apps and websites?", your answer decides whether ads can be personalised using your advertising identifier. If you choose Ask App Not to Track, you still see ads, but they are not personalised that way. In the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and Switzerland, Spool also asks for your consent before showing ads, and you can change your choice at any time from the Archive menu, under Ad privacy choices.
Your photos, videos, their locations and everything you make in Spool are never shared with Google or any advertiser. You can read how Google uses ad data at policies.google.com/technologies/ads.
Remove ads
A one-time purchase, "Remove ads", turns the ads off for good. Apple handles the payment; Spool never sees your payment details. Once it is bought, Spool stops asking for ads.
What we do not do
- We do not collect your personal data ourselves, and we do not have accounts or servers.
- We do not sell your photos, videos or personal information.
- We do not run our own analytics.
- We do not send your photos or videos to advertisers or to anyone else.
Crash reports
If you install Spool through TestFlight or the App Store, Apple may give the developer anonymous crash reports if you have chosen to share them with developers in your device settings. They contain no photos.
Children
Spool is for a general audience and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children.
Changes
If this policy changes, the new version will be posted at the same address with a new date.