Last updated: July 3, 2026
HearthWire runs entirely on your own computers and home network. It does not collect, transmit to us, or share any of your data. There are no accounts, no servers, no cloud, no telemetry, and no analytics. We never see your messages, your files, or your settings.
HearthWire works over your local network only, often called your "intranet": the private network your home router creates for the devices inside your house. This is not the same as the internet, the worldwide public network outside your home. In plain words:
So your information only ever travels the short way, from one of your computers straight to another, and stays on your home network the entire time.
Everything HearthWire saves stays on your device, under %LOCALAPPDATA%\HearthWire:
Downloads\My Network Files on your PC, so you can find them easily.We never receive any of these. They are read and written only on your machine.
HearthWire connects your computers over your local home network only. To do that, on your network only, it:
HearthWire does not connect to the internet to move your data. There is no cloud relay.
Traffic between your computers is encrypted with a key derived from your home network's shared secret (AES-GCM). Only computers you approved into your network can read it.
We take the security of your home network seriously and built HearthWire following established security practices: traffic between your computers is encrypted, a new computer can only join after you approve it on a computer already in the network (confirming a number that appears on both screens), and there are no accounts, servers, cloud, or data collection that could be breached or leaked from the outside. We have worked carefully to protect the App against misuse. That said, no software can be promised to be perfectly secure. You also help keep your network safe by approving only computers you trust and keeping Windows up to date.
Download and install HearthWire only from our official page or the Microsoft Store. Do not install "cracked," "free," or pirated copies from unofficial or file-sharing sites. Because the App connects your computers and your home network, a tampered copy is especially dangerous: people who pirate this kind of app often hide malware or a backdoor that can open your PC and your whole network to an outsider. A copy obtained from anywhere other than our official channels is not covered by this Privacy Policy, and we cannot vouch for what it does. See the Terms of Use for more.
Another person can view or control a computer's screen only after the person at that computer approves the request. While a session is active, an on-screen indicator shows it, and that person can stop it at any time. You can disable screen-help requests entirely for a PC in Settings. Screen data is sent directly between the two computers on your network and is never recorded or sent to us.
You decide which folders to share and who can open them (you can require a password). Shared folders are served from your PC to the other computers on your network only. You can stop sharing any folder at any time; doing so does not delete your files.
HearthWire makes no internet connections for your data. It does not send crash reports, usage statistics, or any other information off your devices. All traffic stays on your local network.
If you enable "Start with Windows," the app registers a standard packaged startup task so it can launch at sign-in. Disabling it removes that registration. No data is involved.
%LOCALAPPDATA%\HearthWire folder to remove all settings.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.
The app is designed for data minimization: it processes data only locally on your devices and home network, 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.
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.
HearthWire does not collect any personal information from anyone, including children, and is not directed at children.
If this policy changes, the updated version will be posted at this address with a new "Last updated" date.