The short version. Reco has no account, no analytics, no ads and no tracking. Your drives, your files and your scan results never leave your Mac. Reco goes online for only two things: checking for updates, and activating a license if you buy one.
Who we are
Reco is made by [Your legal name] (“we”, “us”), who is responsible for the personal data described here. You can reach us at [email protected].
What stays on your Mac
- The drives you scan. Reco reads the drive you choose, on your Mac, and never changes it. Nothing it reads is sent anywhere.
- Saved scans. So a long scan can survive quitting or unplugging the drive, Reco keeps the most recent scan in
~/Library/Application Support/Reco/Saved Scan. It’s a list of what was found (file names, types, sizes, dates and where each file sits on the drive, plus the drive’s name and size), not the files themselves. Starting a new scan replaces it, and choosing Discard deletes it. - Recovered files. Reco writes recovered files only into the folder you choose, on a different drive from the one being scanned.
- Settings and license status. Stored in Reco’s preferences on your Mac.
To read a whole drive, macOS asks you for your administrator password or for Full Disk Access. Reco uses that access only to read the drive you picked. We never see your password.
When Reco goes online
Checking for updates
Reco periodically downloads a small update feed from [where the feed is hosted, e.g. GitHub] to see whether a newer version exists, and downloads the update if you choose to install it. As with any web request, the server sees your IP address, and the request identifies the app and its version. Reco doesn’t send the optional anonymous system profile that its update framework (Sparkle) supports. [If you later turn that on, describe what it sends here.] You can turn automatic checks off in Reco’s settings.
Activating a license
When you enter a license key, Reco sends the key [and an anonymous identifier for this Mac, used to count activations] to [our license service / the payment provider’s license API] to confirm it’s valid. This doesn’t include anything about your drives or files. Without a license, Reco never contacts the license service.
When you buy a license
Purchases are handled by [payment provider, e.g. Paddle or Lemon Squeezy], which acts as the seller of record and processes your payment under its own privacy policy. We receive what we need to deliver and support your license: your name, email address, country, what you bought and when. We never see your full card details. We use this to send your license key, help you if you lose it, handle refunds, and meet tax and accounting obligations.
When you contact us
If you email us, we keep the conversation so we can help you. If you choose to attach a diagnostics file exported from Reco’s Help menu, it contains technical details about the app, your Mac and the scan, which you can read before sending. We use it only to fix your problem.
This website
This site is a set of static pages hosted on GitHub Pages. It sets no cookies and runs no analytics or trackers. GitHub, as the host, may log visitors’ IP addresses for security (see GitHub’s privacy statement). The site’s typeface is loaded from Google Fonts, so your browser contacts Google’s servers, which receive your IP address. Downloads of Reco are served by GitHub.
Who we share data with
Only the services named above, only for the purposes described, and never for advertising. We don’t sell personal data. We may disclose information if the law requires it.
How long we keep it
Purchase records are kept as long as tax and accounting law requires [e.g. 7 years]. Support emails are kept for [e.g. 2 years] after our last conversation, unless you ask us to delete them sooner. Data on your Mac stays until you delete it: removing Reco and the folder ~/Library/Application Support/Reco removes it all.
Your rights
Depending on where you live (for example under the GDPR in the EU and UK, or the CCPA in California), you can ask to see, correct, export or delete the personal data we hold about you, and object to or restrict how we use it. Write to [email protected] and we’ll answer within 30 days. You can also complain to your local data protection authority.
[If you sell to the EU/UK: state your legal basis for each use: performing the contract (license delivery, support), legal obligation (tax records), legitimate interest (fraud prevention). Name an EU/UK representative if one is required.]
Children
Reco isn’t directed at children under 13 (or the minimum age in your country), and we don’t knowingly collect their personal data.
Changes
If this policy changes, we’ll update the date at the top. If Reco ever starts sending anything new, we’ll say so here and in the release notes before it does.