Privacy Policy

Effective date: July 3, 2026

HearthSweep is a local-first duplicate-file finder. In plain words: your files, their names, and everything the app learns about them stay on your PC. We do not have a server that receives them, there are no accounts, and we do not sell or share your data.

The short version

Your files and scan results never leave your device. Scanning, comparing, and cleaning all happen locally. We never receive file names, contents, paths, or hashes.
No account, no sign-up. The app never asks for your name, email, or any personal identifier.
No analytics, no telemetry, no ads. There is no tracking of any kind and no crash reporting that sends data to us.
Removal is always to the Recycle Bin, initiated only by you, so it is undoable from Windows.

What the app accesses

To do its job, the app reads the folders and files you explicitly choose to scan: file names, sizes, dates, and (in the default "identical content" mode) their content, in order to compare files with each other. Image files may be read to show you a small preview. When you choose to sweep, the app moves the copies you selected to the Windows Recycle Bin. All of this happens on your own device. The app does not send any of this information to us.

Information we collect

None. The app does not contain analytics, telemetry, usage tracking, advertising identifiers, or crash reporting that sends data to us. We do not build a profile of you and we do not receive your file names, file contents, folder paths, IP address, or device identifiers.

Information stored on your device (and only there)

App settings (language) in a local file under your Windows user profile.
A small cached copy of the "More from Hearth" list (see below).
Local diagnostic logs that describe the app's own activity (for example "scan finished, 3 groups found") to help you troubleshoot. They stay on your device, are cleaned up automatically after 14 days, and are never transmitted to us.

You can delete any of this at any time. Uninstalling the app and deleting its data folder (%LOCALAPPDATA%\HearthSweep) removes it.

Limited network activity

HearthSweep is designed to work offline. The only network activity is the following, none of which sends us your files or personal data:

"More from Hearth" update check. The app occasionally (at most once per day) downloads a small, public file that lists our other apps and websites, so the in-app suggestions stay current. It contains no account, no identifiers, and no information about you or your files. As with loading any web page, our hosting provider may keep standard technical request logs (such as an IP address and timestamp); we do not use these to identify you. If the app is offline, it simply uses the built-in list.
Links you click. Tapping a "More from Hearth" suggestion opens the Microsoft Store or your browser. Those third-party services run under their own privacy policies, which we do not control.

No advertising, analytics, or tracking

The app contains no third-party advertising SDKs, no analytics SDKs, and no cross-app or cross-site tracking. The "More from Hearth" suggestions promote only our own apps and websites and do not profile you.

If you contact us

If you choose to email us (for support, feedback, or a bug report), we receive your email address and whatever you include in your message. We use them only to respond to you and to fix the issue, we do not add you to any mailing list, and we do not share them with anyone. You may ask us to delete the correspondence at any time.

GDPR, UK GDPR, and other privacy laws

The app is designed for data minimization: it processes your files only locally on your device, under your control, and we act as neither a controller nor a processor of any personal data on your behalf, because no personal data ever reaches us from the app. As we hold no data about you, requests to access, correct, port, restrict, object to, or erase data held by us have nothing to act on; you can exercise full control by editing or deleting the local files described above.

California (CCPA/CPRA)

We do not collect, sell, or share personal information, and we have no personal information to disclose. "Sell" and "share" are used here as defined by California law. There is nothing to opt out of because no data is collected.

Children's privacy

The app is a general-purpose utility and is not directed at children. Because we do not collect personal information, we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

Data security

Because your data stays with you, its security depends primarily on your own device, accounts, and disks. No method of storage is completely secure, and you are responsible for securing your own device and backups.

Changes

We may update this policy as the app evolves. When we do, we will change the effective date above and post the updated policy at this URL.

Contact

For privacy questions, contact us at support@hearth-software.com or iam@nirnagar.com.