Posato Privacy Policy

Effective October 4, 2026.

Posato does not send your pause sets, website list, app choices, sessions, or iCloud workspace data to its developer. There is no Posato account, no analytics, no advertising, and no Posato-operated server. Optional iCloud sync and macOS update requests are described below.

Data Posato keeps on your devices

To work, Posato stores on each device:

• your pause sets: their names, which set is the default, which website domains each contains, and which apps you chose for each on that device, stored as system-provided selections that Posato cannot read as app names on iPhone;
• your sessions: when they start and end, which pause set each used, and whether they ended early;
• your schedules: their names, their pause sets, the weekdays and times they repeat, whether each is on, and which scheduled pauses you skipped or ended early;
• settings such as whether iCloud sync and the macOS helper are enabled.

This data stays in Posato's private storage on the device until you change or remove it. This data, except app choices on iPhone, can also be included in your device backups, such as iCloud Backup or Time Machine, under your backup settings. On Mac, moving Posato to the Trash does not delete this data; it remains in Posato's application data folder until you remove it.

When iCloud sync is on, Posato also keeps the history of synchronized changes in its private storage on each linked device: every pause set created, renamed, or deleted, every website added to or removed from a set, which set is the default and which set each session and schedule used, and when each change was made, including when past sessions started, when they were scheduled to end, and whether they were ended early. Entries from before Posato 1.3 also record changes to the shared app group name it used then. Changing or removing a website or a set does not erase its earlier entries from this history. The history stays until Remove workspace completes on that device or Posato's data is removed from it, and it can be included in device backups like the data above.

Posato does not collect browsing history, the pages you visit, which pages were blocked, how often you open apps, usage scores, or any other activity record.

iCloud sync

iCloud sync is optional and off until you choose Sync with iCloud.

• Your pause sets (their names, their websites, and which is the default), in changes from before Posato 1.3 the shared app group name, session start and end, and your schedules, including skipped and ended scheduled pauses, are encrypted on your device before they are stored in the private CloudKit database of your own iCloud account. Posato's developer cannot read or access them.
• Each change, and each device's registration, is stored as a separate encrypted record, and these records accumulate in your iCloud database until you choose Remove workspace; Posato does not clean them up automatically.
• The encryption key is shared between your devices through iCloud Keychain.
• App choices are never synchronized; each device keeps its own.
• Apple operates iCloud and can observe technical information needed to provide it, such as your account association, timing, record sizes, and counts, under Apple's own privacy policy.

Remove workspace deletes Posato's synchronized records from your iCloud database, its history of synchronized changes on the device where you remove it, and the workspace key from iCloud Keychain, so your other devices lose access to the workspace too; their own copies of your pause sets, sessions, and change history stay on those devices until you remove the workspace there. Pause sets and websites saved on the device where you remove the workspace stay on that device. Apple may retain backups for a period under its own policies. If every copy of the key is lost, synchronized data cannot be recovered.

Screen Time on iPhone

On iPhone, Posato uses Apple's Screen Time framework to block the websites and apps you choose. Your app choices are opaque system selections that stay on the device; Posato does not receive app names or usage from Screen Time. So that a schedule can start while Posato is closed, Posato keeps a copy of your schedules and each pause set's websites and app choices in storage shared only with its own Screen Time extension on the same iPhone. It never leaves the device, is excluded from device backups, and is deleted when Posato's data or the workspace is removed.

Blocking on Mac

On Mac, Posato's background helper blocks chosen websites by routing browser traffic through a local proxy on your Mac while a session is active. The helper examines each request only long enough to allow or block it and does not store or send it. To show its pause page in the current Safari or Chrome tab, Posato may use Automation permission; it reads only the current tab's address at that moment and keeps no record. Posato does not decrypt HTTPS traffic.

If you choose to start sessions on a Mac without an administrator password, the helper keeps a record of that permission in a system file that only the system can read. The record holds your Mac account's user number and system identifier and your Mac's hardware identifier. It never leaves your Mac and is deleted when you turn the option off or remove Posato from this Mac.

Notifications

Posato can show local notices when a pause ends or starts on another device. They are created on your device by your device's notification system; Posato sends nothing to a server for them. You can turn them off in About Posato or in your device's settings.

Updates on Mac

Posato asks before checking for updates automatically. If you agree, it checks once a day while the app is running. You can turn automatic checks off or choose Check for updates yourself. Each update requires your action to download and install, and installation waits until no session is active.

Update information and downloads come from GitHub Releases through Sparkle, an update library included in Posato. Requests do not contain your website list, app choices, sessions, iCloud data, an installation identifier, or a system profile. Posato compares versions and system requirements on your Mac.

GitHub and its delivery providers can receive your IP address, request time, the resource requested, and technical connection information. A download address identifies the version you request. They handle this information under GitHub's privacy statement. GitHub makes aggregate download counts available; Posato adds no usage analytics or tracking identifier. Opening a release or support link in your browser is subject to that website's policies and your browser settings.

Update preferences are stored on this Mac and are not synchronized through iCloud. Sparkle stores update-check state and temporary update files locally.

Diagnostics

Posato does not collect or upload diagnostics, crash reports, or telemetry. Update requests are limited to the purposes described in Updates on Mac. Your operating system or app store may collect diagnostics under your device settings and their own policies; Posato does not access or add to them.

If you ask for help, share only what you choose. Please do not include website names, app names, device details, screenshots, or logs in public reports.

Children

Posato is not designed for managing another person's device and does not knowingly collect data from anyone.

Changes

Changes to this policy will be published at the same address with a new effective date.

Contact

Privacy questions: privacy@posato.app