The short version
- Your codes stay on your phone. What you scan, create and save is stored on your device only. QR Max does not upload it.
- No account, no ads, no tracking. QR Max has no sign-in, shows no ads and has no analytics of its own.
- We do not sell or share your data. We do not collect personal data about you in the first place.
- Two Google services are involved. Google Play handles the Pro purchase, and Google's on-device barcode library may send Google basic technical diagnostics. Both are explained below.
Who we are
QR Max is made by Alchemedia Group (“we”, “us”). If you have any question about this policy or your privacy, contact us at duncan@alchemedia-group.com.
What QR Max does with information
Camera
QR Max uses your camera to read QR codes and barcodes. Reading happens on your phone. Camera images are not saved and are not sent to us or to anyone else by QR Max.
Codes you scan, create and save
When you scan a code, or create or save one, QR Max keeps it in the app's History and My Codes lists so you can find it again. This includes the text inside the code, which can be a web address, a Wi-Fi network name and password, a contact card, a phone number and similar details, together with the name you give a saved code, its design and the date.
This information is stored in the app's private storage on your phone. It is protected by Android's app sandbox, which keeps it away from other apps, but QR Max does not add a separate layer of encryption. It is not uploaded to us and not copied to any cloud backup (QR Max turns Android's backup off for itself).
You can delete any item from History or My Codes at any time.
Pictures you choose
If you use From a picture to read a code in a photo, you choose the single picture yourself using Android's photo picker. QR Max does not ask for permission to see your photos or files. The picture is read on your phone and is not uploaded.
If you add your own logo to a code (a Pro feature), QR Max keeps a copy of that image in its private storage on your phone so your saved code can be redrawn later.
Saving and sharing
- Save puts the code image in your phone's Pictures folder (in a folder named QR Max) only when you tap Save. The image stays there until you delete it.
- Share passes the code to the app you pick on Android's share sheet. From that point, that app's own privacy policy applies. We never see what you share or who you share it with.
- When you tap Open link, your browser opens the website in the code. That site's own policy applies, so check a code is from a source you trust before opening it.
- Copy and Paste use your phone's clipboard. QR Max reads the clipboard only when you tap Paste.
Settings
QR Max remembers your language choice and whether you have bought Pro on your phone, so it can open the way you left it.
Buying Pro
QR Max Pro is a one-time purchase handled entirely by Google Play. Your payment details are given to Google and never to us. QR Max asks Google Play on your phone whether your Google account owns Pro, so it can unlock Pro and restore it if you reinstall. This is why the app uses Google Play Billing. Google’s own privacy policy governs how Google handles your purchase.
Technical information from Google’s barcode library
QR Max reads codes with Google’s ML Kit barcode scanning library, which runs on your phone. Google states that ML Kit may collect basic technical information for diagnostics and usage analytics: your device’s make, model and operating system version, the app’s name and version, per-installation identifiers that Google says are not intended to uniquely identify you or your device, and performance details such as speed and error codes. Google says this is sent over an encrypted connection and not passed to third parties. Google, not QR Max, controls this collection. See Google’s ML Kit disclosure and the Google Privacy Policy for the details.
QR Max itself does not send the contents of the codes you scan or create, or any pictures, to Google or anyone else.
What we do not do
- We do not ask you to create an account.
- We do not show advertising.
- We do not use analytics, tracking or crash-reporting tools of our own.
- We do not sell your information or share it with third parties.
- We do not copy your codes to the cloud.
Permissions QR Max asks for
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
| Camera | To read QR codes and barcodes. |
| Internet and network state | Used by Google Play (for the Pro purchase and restoring it) and by Google's barcode library for the diagnostics described above. QR Max does not use it to send your codes anywhere. |
| Google Play billing | To let you buy and restore Pro. |
QR Max does not ask for access to your contacts, location, microphone, photos or files.
How long we keep information, and deleting it
We hold no personal data about you, so there is nothing for us to keep or delete on our servers. On your phone, your History and saved codes stay until you delete them, or until you uninstall QR Max, which removes all of the app’s stored data. Images you saved to your Pictures folder stay there until you delete them. Because backups are off, your History and saved codes do not move to a new phone automatically. Your Pro purchase can be restored on a new phone with the same Google account.
Your rights
Because QR Max does not collect or hold personal data about you, there is generally nothing for us to access, correct or erase on our side. You still have rights under data protection laws such as the UK GDPR and the EU GDPR, including the right to ask what we hold, to ask us to correct or erase it, and to complain to your data protection authority (in the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office). To make a request, or if you have a question, contact us at duncan@alchemedia-group.com. For data held by Google, contact Google.
Children
QR Max is a general-purpose tool and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.
Security
Your codes are kept in the app’s private storage on your phone and are not transmitted by QR Max, which keeps the risk low. Anything stored on a phone is only as safe as the phone, so we recommend using a screen lock.
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy we will post the new version here and update the effective date. If a change is significant we will tell you in the app.
Contact
Alchemedia Group
duncan@alchemedia-group.com