Legal

Privacy policy

This explains what PocketShell and its website collect, why, and how long we keep it. We are Muhammad Soban Raees, a sole trader in Australia, and we are responsible for your data (the "controller" under the EU GDPR). Contact: support@pocketshell-app.com.

What stays on your phone

Your files, your Linux home, your terminal history, your notes and your settings stay on your device. PocketShell does not upload them. If you use Backup & Restore, the backup is created where you choose and is encrypted only if you turn that on.

What we collect to run your account and license

• Account: your Google account identifier and email address (from Google Sign-In), and a display name if Google provides one.
• Devices: an installation ID, device name and model, Android version and app version, for the devices that use your license (up to five active).
• License and purchases: your trial and license status, and purchase records (amount, currency, date, status, and the payment provider's reference).
• Sign-in tokens: stored as one-way hashes on our server.

Legal basis: performing our contract with you (running your trial and license), and legal obligations for accounting records.

Payments

Our order process is handled by our online reseller Paddle.com, which is the Merchant of Record for all our orders. When you buy, Paddle collects your name, email, country, payment details and tax information, and is responsible for that data under its own privacy policy, including for tax and fraud prevention. We never see or store your card number. Paddle tells us that the purchase succeeded, together with the amount, the currency and Paddle's transaction and customer references, and we send Paddle your account email so the checkout is linked to your PocketShell account. Legal basis: performing our contract with you, and legal obligations for accounting records.

Usage statistics (off by default)

Anonymous usage and crash statistics are collected only if you turn them on in Settings. They use a random installation ID, not your account, and contain no file names, paths, command text or exception messages. You can turn them off and delete what was collected from the same screen.

Website visitor statistics

This website uses Vercel Web Analytics to count page views. It sets no cookies and does not track you across websites. Visitors are counted using a hash of the request that changes every day, so we only see totals such as page views, referring pages, countries and device types. Legal basis: our legitimate interest in knowing which pages are useful (Art. 6 (1) (f) GDPR).

Reddit

If you post on r/pocketshell, Reddit is responsible for that data under its own privacy policy. Posts there are public, so please don't share your email, payment details or license information there.

Updates

The app checks our server for new versions. That request contains the app version and nothing else that identifies you beyond your IP address, which our host processes to serve the response.

Hosting and processors

The website is served by our hosting provider and the license service by our application host. They process IP addresses and request metadata to deliver the service. Downloads are served from GitHub. We list the providers we use at launch here: Paddle (checkout and payments, as reseller and Merchant of Record), Google (sign-in), Vercel (website hosting and cookie-free visitor statistics) and GitHub (downloads).

How long we keep data

• Account and device data: while your account exists; removed or anonymised when you delete it.
• Purchase and invoice records: at least 5 years, as Australian tax law requires, and no longer than tax and accounting laws need.
• Anonymous statistics: raw events 90 days, then aggregated.

Your rights

You can ask for access, correction, deletion, restriction or a copy of your data, object to processing, and complain to a data protection authority. In Australia that is the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). In the EU it is the authority in your country. Write to support@pocketshell-app.com.

International transfers

We are based in Australia, and our service providers process data in the United States, the EU and other countries. When we or our providers move personal data out of the EU, we rely on the safeguards the GDPR allows, such as the European Commission's standard contractual clauses that these providers offer.

Children

PocketShell is not directed at children under 16.

Last updated: 2026-11-04