Privacy policy

01 Scope and operator

This policy explains how the AlbumTrail iPhone app and its product website handle information. It applies to the current features described here. Legal operator: Li Yuqing (李雨青), an individual. For privacy and personal information requests, contact alonicatrail@gmail.com.

AlbumTrail is a photo organizer that does not require an app account. This revision applies to App 1.1 when you install or upgrade to it. This does not mean that 1.1 is already available on the App Store; check the store for the downloadable version. Users of 1.0 can read the App 1.0 privacy policy. This page describes the current browsing, organizing, Memories, Places, Journeys and on-device recognition features; you can choose iCloud organization backup or optional App Store tips. AlbumTrail account sign-in is not offered, and no name, email or authorization credentials are collected for app sign-in.

02 Photo access and on-device data

After you grant permission through iOS, AlbumTrail reads the photos and videos you allow it to access, along with details such as capture dates, media types, favorites, photo identifiers and recorded locations. These are used to browse, organize and search your library, display photo details and show photos on a map.

You can grant access to selected photos and change or withdraw access in system settings. Features that depend on photos cannot work without access. Listing system albums requires full photo access; limited access still lets you organize the photos you have authorized.

Albums and notes

Album names, membership, cover identifiers, notes, organization history and preferences are stored in the app’s storage on this device to remember your work.A photo can belong to several AlbumTrail albums. Notes do not change captions in Apple Photos.

Originals and caches

Apple Photos manages the original files. Creating albums does not copy your entire library into AlbumTrail. Browsing uses thumbnail caches, and sharing may create temporary copies.

Access changes

Photos that are no longer authorized become unavailable. Album relationships and notes remain so you can continue organizing them if you grant access again. You can clear this AlbumTrail data separately.

03 Text and image recognition

Photo recognition, text recognition and content search use Apple Vision and models included with the app, running on your device. Photo content and search text are not uploaded to a cloud recognition service. The app does not offer a cloud or local recognition selector.

The models are installed and updated with the app. No separate download is required, and clearing caches does not remove the built-in models. If separately downloaded resources remain from an older version, you can confirm their deletion in Profile → Privacy; built-in models, photos and existing recognition results are kept. If recognition becomes unavailable, new recognition pauses while existing results and other features remain usable. A recovery action is available in Privacy.

By default, recognition uses photo content available on the device. Only if you allow iCloud downloads in search settings will search and smart organizing ask the Apple system to download relevant iCloud photos. This may use network data. Opening an iCloud original, video or Live Photo, or preparing a share, can trigger a separate system download; the search setting does not control all of those downloads.

Text and visual-feature indexes stay on this device and are excluded from backups. No extra original photos are stored. Model changes rebuild affected visual indexes, preserving albums and notes. Images cannot reliably prove exact counts, absence, spatial relationships or personal identity. Full video content is not analyzed. Delete them in “Profile → Storage → Clear search cache”; later searches will recognize photos again. Recognition records for photos whose permission is withdrawn are also cleared.

04 Photo maps and capture locations

Capture coordinates may reveal sensitive personal information, including where someone has been. AlbumTrail reads locations already recorded in photos to place them on a map, look up place names and generate enabled city organization suggestions. It does not read your phone’s live location. This processing connects photos to where they were taken; displaying or sharing location information may reveal your activities or those of others.

The map retains your valid selected scope rather than automatically switching to the entire library when opened. You can choose an album, date range or photo selection. Loading map tiles or looking up place names sends map areas or relevant photo coordinates to Apple’s map service. AlbumTrail does not send original photos, notes or album names for these lookups; place results are cached and reused. Location conditions in combined search and trip-organizing suggestions use on-device administrative boundaries and photo coordinates without additional per-photo coordinate requests. Photos without reliable location data are not assigned a capture place from scenery. Missing boundaries do not cause location conditions to be ignored.

Places matches administrative areas and calculates counts on your device. Opening Places automatically retrieves required public geoBoundaries data hosted on GitHub. Requests contain country codes and portions of boundary files, but no photos, notes, album names or per-photo coordinates. Requested file portions can reveal the administrative area being queried; the service may also process IP addresses and request paths. Data is cached locally to reduce repeat transfers. Places and its exports currently require a network connection; the Places map is not shown while offline. See the GitHub Privacy Statement.

Images exported from Memories, Places and Journeys are generated on your device and can contain titles, dates, places, routes, counts and selected photos. Exported map images do not copy GPS metadata from original photos, but the visible image can still reveal places visited. Saving requires photo-library permission; sharing goes to an app you select and is not published automatically. Review the preview, scope and display settings before proceeding.

Journeys stores source photo identifiers, original coordinates and times, membership, and your edited names, map-photo references, representative positions, order, transport modes, merges and removal states on your device. It does not copy full original photos. Confirmed positions affect journey display without changing photo GPS or true administrative membership. Deleting a journey removes that journey and its edits, not its source album or phone photos.

Turn off “Show locations” in “Profile → Preferences” to hide related views and stop the associated queries. Turning off the display does not remove location metadata from original files or guarantee that shared files omit it. See Apple Maps & Privacy for the map service’s information practices.

05 System services and sharing

Apple Photos and iCloud

Browsing, playing or sharing content stored only in iCloud may cause the Apple system to download it. Changes to favorites and original-photo deletions you confirm are handled by Apple Photos and may sync through iCloud Photos.This is separate from AlbumTrail’s iCloud organization backup: iCloud Photos handles originals, while the app backup saves your organization data.

System sharing

Selected content is passed to a destination app or location only when you initiate sharing and choose a destination. The recipient handles it under its own rules. Files may contain original capture dates, locations and other metadata. The current flow shares Live Photos as still images and videos as video files.

AlbumTrail services

The current version has no advertising or behavioral analytics SDK. The AlbumTrail account service is not enabled. Photo content and search text are processed on the device and are not sent to a cloud recognition service.

Apple system services are handled by their providers under the applicable terms. See the Apple Privacy Policy. In this policy, “on-device” refers to AlbumTrail’s organization and recognition processing. It does not mean that maps, iCloud downloads and backups, App Store purchases or sharing work entirely offline.

06 iCloud organization backup and restore

You can back up manually or enable automatic backup in Profile → iCloud Backup. Automatic backup is off by default. The feature uses your device’s iCloud account and writes to your private CloudKit database. No AlbumTrail account or account server is involved. Private backup contents are not visible in the developer’s CloudKit portal and count toward your iCloud storage.

The backup includes album names and membership, cover references, photo and library identifiers, available iCloud photo identifiers, notes, preferences and photo organization choices. It also contains backup dates, device type, a random source identifier, item counts and integrity checks. Original photo/video files, recognition indexes, model packages, operation history and journey records are not included. Apple handles the backup under its iCloud service rules; we do not promise that all information stays on the device or in a particular region. See the Apple Privacy Policy.

Restoring merges albums and notes while retaining existing local content; differing notes for the same photo are kept together. Matching photo references requires the originals to be transferred and the relevant photo access to be granted. Some references may remain unmatched until iCloud Photos finishes syncing. Restoring organization data does not transfer or download your entire photo library.

Automatic backup updates while you use the app and does not promise background real-time sync. Normally, the latest three backups per device are kept; older backups are cleaned up after a successful new backup. Turning off automatic backup leaves existing backups intact. You can delete AlbumTrail backups in the current iCloud account from the same page without deleting local organization data or original photos. Changing the system iCloud account pauses automatic backup until you confirm it again.

07 Optional tips and transaction information

Profile → Support AlbumTrail offers optional, one-time tips processed by the Apple App Store. Current mainland China tiers are CNY 6, 18, 38 and 108; the App Store confirmation sheet determines the actual amount, currency and availability. Tips are not subscriptions, do not renew automatically, include no physical goods and unlock no features. Photo organizing, maps and backup remain available without tipping. TestFlight purchases run in sandbox and do not incur real charges.

The app uses StoreKit to load products and verify transactions. Product and transaction identifiers, handled and pending states, support records and prompt preferences are stored locally to avoid duplicate processing and display the outcome. They are not sent to an AlbumTrail account server. Apple handles purchases, refunds and transaction records under its rules; the operator can view Apple-provided sales and settlement reports in App Store Connect. AlbumTrail does not receive your payment card or complete payment details, and does not send photos, notes or album contents with a purchase. See App Store & Privacy.

If a purchase is awaiting confirmation or cannot yet be verified, do not pay again. Refund requests for real purchases use Apple’s refund process. This website does not accept payments or request card details or verification codes.

08 Website visits and email

This website is hosted with Sites and delivered through Cloudflare for web delivery and security. Its pages are publicly readable without signing in. The pages do not include advertising trackers, traffic analytics, third-party fonts, photo uploads or an online feedback form, and contain no scripts that read or write browser local storage. Images and styles are served with the site.

Hosting and network services may process IP addresses, browser information, request paths, access times and security logs to deliver pages, investigate faults and prevent abuse, and may use necessary security cookies. Network information may be processed outside mainland China. Platform logs are retained according to service, security and legal needs; AlbumTrail does not maintain a separate visitor database. See the OpenAI Privacy Policy and Cloudflare Privacy Policy for their handling, retention and rights-request channels. Visiting the site does not give it access to your phone library, AlbumTrail albums or private iCloud backups.

Clicking an email link opens your chosen mail app. Only after you send a message does alonicatrail@gmail.com receive your email address, message and any files you attach, to respond, investigate an issue or handle a privacy request. The mailbox uses Google's Gmail, which may process mail on servers outside mainland China. See the Google Privacy Policy.

Support correspondence is kept only as long as needed to handle the request, necessary follow-up and applicable legal obligations. Once handling ends, information no longer needed is deleted. Records needed for an unresolved dispute or a legal obligation are limited to what is necessary until that purpose ends. The mail provider handles its security logs and backups under its own policy. You can use the same email address to request access, correction or deletion of information we received.

Describe the problem first. Do not send your entire library, identity documents, passwords or verification codes; redact private information from screenshots.

09 Retention, clearing data and backups

Local album relationships and notes remain until you change or clear them. Thumbnails are functional caches; temporary share files and search indexes can be cleared separately. Uninstalling the app normally removes its local data, but does not necessarily delete backups held by Apple’s system or other services.

• Clear search cache: Removes recognized text, classifications and image feature indexes while keeping original photos, albums, covers and notes.
• Clear temporary sharing files: Removes temporary share files and thumbnail memory caches while keeping organization data.
• Clear albums and notes: Removes AlbumTrail albums, notes, organization records, preferences and caches on this device and turns off automatic backup. Original photos, favorites, journeys, recognition models and existing iCloud organization backups remain. Delete journeys from their own menus; old downloaded resources can be removed in Privacy; delete cloud backups separately in Profile → iCloud Backup.
• Delete original photos: A separate action that requires your explicit choice and Apple’s system confirmation. iCloud Photos may sync the deletion.

Data-clearing actions are available in “Profile → Storage”. Journeys are not currently included in AlbumTrail’s iCloud organization backup. Whole-device backup and restoration are managed through your iPhone’s system settings, separately from the app’s organization backup. Local support and transaction states are retained as needed to handle transactions and prompts; uninstalling the app does not erase purchase records held by Apple.

10 Your choices and information rights

You can view and edit organization data in the app, manage access in “Photo access” or iOS settings, and delete local data in “Storage”. Declining optional processing or withdrawing permission does not affect features that do not need the information. Withdrawal does not affect processing lawfully performed before it.

You can also use our privacy email to request access, a copy, correction, completion, deletion, an explanation or withdrawal of consent, as applicable. Describe the affected feature and the action you want. Any identity verification should be limited to what is necessary. AlbumTrail cannot retrieve your local albums or recognition indexes from its servers, or inspect your private iCloud backups in the developer portal. You can manage or delete this data in the app.

After receiving a request, we check its scope and the information involved, asking for additional verification only when necessary. We respond within the period required by applicable law, using the email address you contacted us from. If we cannot fulfill a request or need more time, we explain why and the next steps. Request records follow the necessary-retention principles in Section 8. You may reply for further discussion or complain to the relevant authority.

11 Children and young users

AlbumTrail is not a service specifically directed at children. Young users should understand permissions and deletion actions with guidance from a parent or guardian. Personal information of children under fourteen is sensitive personal information under the applicable mainland China rules. If a service needs to process it, guardian consent and dedicated rules must be provided before processing. This policy alone does not constitute that consent.

If you are a parent or guardian and discover that your child has provided information through email or another channel that needs attention or deletion, please contact the privacy email above.

12 Security and disclosure

The current AlbumTrail app uses iOS permissions and app storage to control access, and photo search indexes stay on the device. Please protect your device and system account. We do not sell personal information or use your photos, notes or recognition results for advertising profiles.

Information is not provided to other parties except through system services or sharing you choose, where required by law, or with valid consent where applicable. If future changes involve entrusted processing, disclosure to another controller or cross-border provision, applicable requirements and notices will be completed before the processing begins. A general authorization will not be used to cover later changes.

If a personal information security incident occurs, remedial measures and the applicable reporting and notification obligations will be handled in accordance with law.

13 Policy updates

When features or information practices change, we will update this page and its date. Material changes affecting your rights will be communicated appropriately. Where new or separate consent is required by law, continued use will not replace that consent.

This revision is dated 2026-10-23 and applies to App 1.1. The App 1.0 policy effective September 24, 2026 remains available for reference.