Privacy Policy

Last updated: July 31, 2026

1. What Beam is

Beam is an iOS app that transfers files between two phones by encoding them as an animated code on the sender's screen, which the receiver's camera reads. Transfers are fully optical: no internet, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or cable is involved, and no file or part of a file is ever transmitted to any server.

2. Data we do not collect

• Your files. We never see, receive, store, or transmit your photos, videos, or any other content you transfer.
• Filenames, thumbnails, or content-derived identifiers. None of these leave your device.
• Accounts. Beam has no sign-up and no account system. We do not collect your name, email address, or contact list.
• Camera recordings. The camera feed is decoded frame-by-frame in memory and immediately discarded. Nothing is recorded or saved from the camera.
• Your photo library. Beam requests add-only access to save received files. It never reads your existing photos or videos.
• PINs and encryption keys. Optional transfer PINs are used on-device to encrypt the stream and are never transmitted anywhere.

3. Data we do collect

To understand whether the optical link works for real people on real hardware, Beam collects anonymous, aggregate transfer statistics via Google Firebase Analytics and Firebase Crashlytics:

• Transfer shape: which speed profile was used, bucketed file size (e.g. "1–4 MB", never exact bytes), bucketed duration, number of files (capped), whether encryption was on, and whether the transfer finished, was abandoned, or failed.
• Device characteristics: device model class and maximum screen refresh rate.
• Crash reports: stack traces and diagnostic breadcrumbs when the app crashes or a transfer fails.
• Purchase events: that an in-app purchase occurred (handled by Apple; we never see your payment details).

Sizes and durations are deliberately bucketed because an exact byte count can fingerprint a specific file. No analytics event contains filenames, content, PINs, or identifiers derived from your content.

4. Third-party services

• Google Firebase Analytics — anonymous usage statistics as described above. Google's privacy policy.
• Google Firebase Crashlytics — crash reporting. Subject to the same Google policy.
• Apple StoreKit — all purchases and subscriptions are processed by Apple. We receive only a confirmation that a purchase is active. Apple's privacy policy.

This website is hosted on Firebase Hosting, which logs standard HTTP request data (IP address, user agent) transiently for delivery and security.

5. Data retention

Firebase Analytics data is retained per Google's default retention settings and is not linked to any identity, since Beam collects none. Crash reports are retained for 90 days. There is nothing else to retain: your content never reaches us.

6. Your rights

Because Beam holds no personal data about you, there is generally nothing to access, correct, or delete. If you believe otherwise, or want analytics data associated with your device instance removed, email goreste90@gmail.com and we will act on it. You can also reset your device's advertising/analytics identifiers at any time in iOS Settings → Privacy & Security.

7. Children

Beam does not knowingly collect any data from children, and collects no personal data from anyone. The app contains no social features, no accounts, and no communication channels.

8. Security

Transfers happen entirely between the two physical devices in front of you. Optional PIN encryption protects the optical stream against onlookers. Since no content is transmitted to or stored on any server, there is no server-side copy of your data to breach.

9. Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, the updated version will be posted at this URL with a new "last updated" date. Material changes will also be noted in the app's release notes.

10. Contact

Questions about privacy? Email goreste90@gmail.com.