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Privacy Policy for Podsquirrl: Podcast Player

Effective date: 16 October 2026

Podsquirrl: Podcast Player (“Podsquirrl”, “the app”) is a podcast player for Android and iOS (iPhone and iPad). It is published on Google Play by Imperial AI Limited and on the Apple App Store by Techarge Limited (each “we”, “us” for its store). This policy explains what the app does with your information.

Summary

  • We (the developer) collect no data from you. The app has no accounts, no analytics, no advertising and no crash-reporting service.
  • The app never contacts Imperial AI, Techarge or any server we operate.
  • To find podcasts, the search words you type are sent to Apple’s public iTunes Search API.
  • To play and download episodes, the app fetches podcast feeds, artwork and audio directly from each podcast’s own host.
  • Your subscriptions, downloads and settings are stored on your device only.

Data we collect

None. We do not receive, collect, log, share or sell any personal or usage data. The app does not talk to any server of ours, and it contains no third-party analytics, advertising, tracking or crash-reporting SDKs. Its dependencies are open-source libraries for networking (http), reading podcast feeds (xml), audio playback (just_audio), file locations (path_provider, path), local settings storage (shared_preferences), scheduled background work (workmanager), checking whether you are on Wi-Fi (connectivity_plus) and state management (provider). None of these sends data to the developer.

Network requests the app makes

  • Podcast search. When you search, your search words are sent to the iTunes Search API (itunes.apple.com), operated by Apple, which returns matching podcasts. Apple’s privacy policy applies to that request: https://www.apple.com/legal/privacy/
  • Podcast feeds, artwork and audio. When you open or subscribe to a podcast, and when you play or download an episode, the app requests the feed, images and audio directly from the servers that host that podcast. Like any website you visit, those hosts receive your IP address and standard request information (such as the app’s user agent) and may use it under their own privacy policies. We do not control podcast hosts.
  • Daily auto-download. If auto-download is on (the default), the app checks your subscribed podcasts about once a day and downloads the newest three episodes of each, only while you are on Wi-Fi or another unmetered network. This uses the same requests as above, made in the background. You can turn it off on the Stash screen.

Data stored on your device

The following is kept in the app’s private storage on your device and is never sent to us:

  • the podcasts you subscribe to
  • downloaded episode audio files and their details
  • the auto-download setting and when it last ran

Deleting a download removes its file. Uninstalling the app deletes all of this data.

Permissions

  • Internet and network state: to search for podcasts, fetch feeds, artwork and audio, and check that you are on Wi-Fi before auto-downloading.
  • Background work (Android: run at startup, wake lock, foreground service; iOS: Background App Refresh): used by the system scheduler (Android WorkManager) to run the daily auto-download and to keep it scheduled after the phone restarts. On iOS you can turn this off in Settings > General > Background App Refresh.
  • Notifications (Android): declared by the background-work library for long-running work. Podsquirrl does not ask for this permission and sends no notifications.
  • Background audio (iOS): so that playback can continue when the screen is locked.

The app does not use your location, contacts, camera, microphone, photos or advertising identifier.

Children

Podsquirrl is not directed at children under 13 and does not knowingly collect personal information from anyone, including children. Podcasts are third-party content; the app does not filter podcast content.

Your rights

Because we hold no personal data about you, there is nothing for us to access, correct or delete. All app data is on your device and under your control.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy, for example if the app’s behaviour changes. The latest version will be published at the same location with a new effective date. Material changes will be noted in the app’s release notes.

Contact

Google Play (Imperial AI Limited): support@imperialai.ai

Apple App Store (Techarge Limited): support@techarge.co.uk