PRIVACY

What stays on your Mac.

Annotator processes drawings, screen pixels and typed text on your Mac. It does not upload them to a cloud service.

If an AI app controls Annotator

The AI app may send screenshots and text to its model provider. That app has its own permissions and privacy settings. Check them before using private information. Read the AI setup guide.

Files you save

A board keeps your drawings editable, including original pasted images under covers. Do not share a board containing private details. PNG export saves an image on your Mac. Open the exported file and check it before sharing; blur can still leave details readable.

Drawing needs no screen access. Screen zoom and live pixel effects need Screen Recording permission, but Annotator does not record or save a video.

Feedback you choose to share

You can write a report in Annotator without sending it. Open GitHub draft sends your title, details and app version to GitHub in a browser link. Submitting it there makes the issue public. Remove private details before opening GitHub. No drawings, screenshots or logs are attached automatically.

Copy support info includes app and macOS versions, number of screens, permissions, update and login settings, and current app state. It does not include drawings, screenshots or document names. Copying or saving this information does not upload it; review the text before sharing it.

Updates and diagnostics

Update checks contact the release server. Its host receives connection information, including your IP address. Annotator does not send drawings or screenshots in update checks. Automatic checks are optional, and Sparkle system-profile sharing is off. What's changed reads notes included with the app, without an update request.

Optional app usage counts

Share usage counts is off by default. If you turn it on, Annotator sends at most one request a day with app version, macOS major version, chip type, opt-in date and broad feature-use counts. A random installation ID links daily records. Counts use ranges, not exact event times. No drawings, screenshots, text, file names or hardware IDs are included.

The server stores a keyed hash of that random ID, not the original ID. Raw daily records are removed after 45 days; totals without identifiers are kept. Turning sharing off deletes the local ID and unsent counts. Re-enabling creates a new ID. An already sent request cannot be recalled.

App errors use local system logs, with error details marked private. No automatic crash reports are sent to us. macOS may handle its own diagnostics according to your system settings.

Coffee reminders and contributions

All tools are free. To time coffee reminders, Annotator counts days when you draw. Those counts stay on your Mac. Not now snoozes a reminder for at least 30 days; another reminder also requires further active use.

The Buy me a coffee link opens Buy Me a Coffee only when you click it. That service and its payment providers handle contributions under their own terms and privacy policies. This website does not collect card details or load a payment widget.

Website hosting

Netlify hosts this website and the usage-count service. It receives normal connection information, including IP addresses. The collector does not read or store IP addresses or user-agent strings. Hosting logs are separate from our count records; we have not confirmed their retention period. Read Netlify's privacy policy.

This site counts one visit per browser tab and download clicks. It uses a random ID in sessionStorage, not cookies or localStorage. Events contain only a page category and a broad source category, never the full URL or referrer. Global Privacy Control and Do Not Track stop these counts. Raw records are removed after 45 days.

GitHub release-download totals and Homebrew's public install totals are separate from app and website counts. They are not a count of unique people. The private owner dashboard uses a secure, eight-hour sign-in cookie; ordinary site visitors do not get that cookie.

Before sharing your screen

App or window sharing may leave out Annotator's drawings and covers. Hiding, quitting or an app crash removes visible covers. Remove private details from your material and ask someone on the call to check their view. Read the screen-sharing limits.