Legal

Privacy Policy

Last updated: October 2, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how the Readista app for iPhone (the “App”) handles your information. In this policy, “Readista”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to the developer of the App. If you have a question at any point, write to us at litilabs@outlook.com.

1. Information that stays on your device

When you use the App, it saves the following in its private storage on your iPhone:

• The books in your library and their details (title, author, pages, cover, genres, reading status, current page, rating and dates).
• Reading sessions (when you read, for how long, pages read and the mood you picked), daily goals, streaks and your yearly challenge.
• Notes you write and photos you take or choose for covers, spines, page edges and notes.
• Your shelf layout, theme, décor and settings such as appearance and reminder time.
• The name you enter in your profile, if any.

Your books, notes, photos and profile name are not sent to us. Some usage details — such as how long a session lasted, pages read, the mood you picked, your daily goal, your yearly challenge target, your theme and your reminder time — are included in usage analytics as described in section 2. These never include book titles or notes.

Parts of this information are shared with the App’s own Home Screen widgets and Live Activities through a storage area on your device that only Readista can access, so they can show your shelf, streak and current book.

If you back up your iPhone with iCloud or a computer, this information may be included in that backup, which Apple and your backup settings control. Deleting the App deletes this information from your device. Because we don’t keep a copy, we can’t restore it for you.

2. Information handled by service providers

Some features need to talk to other services over the internet. Each provider below receives only what it needs for that feature, along with the technical information that every internet request carries, such as your IP address.

Book search and covers — Open Library, Google Books and Apple Books

When you search for a book, type an ISBN or scan a barcode, the App sends your search text or the ISBN to Open Library (run by the Internet Archive) to find titles, authors, page counts and cover images. If Open Library has no match, the App asks the Google Books API, and if that has no match either, the Apple Books search service. Cover images are loaded from their servers. These requests don’t include any identifier from the App. Results from Google Books and Apple Books link to the book’s page on those services; opening a link takes you to their website or app. Their use of the requests is covered by the Internet Archive’s policies, the Google Privacy Policy and Apple’s Privacy Policy.

Usage analytics — PostHog

We use PostHog (servers in the United States) to understand which features people use, so we can improve the App. We also use PostHog feature flags to try different versions of some screens (A/B tests); the version you see is recorded with your events and crash reports.

The App sends events such as “book added” (whether it was found online or entered by hand, its reading status, and the book’s genre, approximate length, language and which catalog it came from), “book status changed”, “book finished” (your rating and how many days it took), “book removed”, “session started” and “session saved” (planned and actual length, pages read, the mood you picked), “daily goal set” and “daily goal met”, “challenge set”, “reminder set” (on or off and the time), “theme changed”, shelf and décor changes, “note added” (text or photo), “share tapped”, “widget installed”, and upgrade-screen and purchase steps (the plan, its price and whether it included a free trial). During setup it records which steps you viewed and completed, how long each took, and your choices such as favorite genres, daily goal and shelf style. When you search for a book, it records how long the search text was, how many results came back and which catalog answered — never the search text itself. It also sends screen views; when the App is installed, updated, opened or sent to the background; and, if you tap the same spot rapidly several times, the position of those taps. The App asks PostHog for feature settings when it starts.

Each event carries random identifiers created by the App for your device and for the current session, and basic device information: device model, operating system version, screen size, app version, language, time zone and whether you’re on Wi-Fi or cellular. PostHog receives your IP address with each event and may use it to estimate your approximate location (such as country or city). Events do not include book titles, notes, photos or the name you type in the App.

Crash reports and app configuration — Google Firebase

We use Firebase Crashlytics to learn when the App crashes or hits an error, and how often it runs without crashing. When the App starts, Crashlytics records a session. When something goes wrong it sends a report with technical details such as the error message and where it happened in the code, device model, operating system version, free memory and disk space, network type, app version, and a Firebase installation identifier. In rare cases an error message can include a short piece of text that was on screen at the time.

We use Firebase Remote Config to adjust some App settings without releasing a new version, for example which layout the upgrade screen uses or the limits of the free version. Remote Config uses the same installation identifier. We don’t use Firebase Analytics.

Purchases — Apple and RevenueCat

Readista Pro is sold through Apple’s App Store. Apple handles payment, and we never see your card details or Apple ID password. We use RevenueCat to check whether you have Readista Pro, to restore purchases and to show you the right prices. RevenueCat receives a random user ID created by the App, your purchase and subscription history from Apple (such as the product, price, currency and dates), Apple’s identifier for vendor (a device identifier iOS gives to apps from the same developer), your IP address and App Store country, device and app information, which upgrade-screen design you saw, and the App’s analytics identifier. RevenueCat sends events about your subscription — such as a trial starting, a renewal, a cancellation or a refund, with the product and price — to our PostHog analytics under that same random ID. RevenueCat does not receive your name or email.

Emails you send us

If you contact us, for example with Contact support in the App, we receive your email address, your message and the app version shown in the subject line. We use them only to reply to you.

How service providers protect your information

We share information only with the service providers listed above, and only what each one needs to provide its service. PostHog, Google Firebase and RevenueCat process it on our behalf under data processing terms that require them to protect it at least as well as described in this Privacy Policy, and to use it only to provide their services to us — not for their own advertising. Open Library, Google Books and Apple Books receive only your search text or ISBN and no identifier from the App. We don’t share your information with anyone else unless the law requires it.

3. Permissions the App asks for

• Camera — to scan a book’s barcode and to photograph covers, spines, page edges and pages. Scanning and photo processing happen on your device. A photo is kept only if you save it, and only inside the App.
• Photos — when you choose a photo for a cover or a note, iOS gives the App only the photo you pick, so the App never sees the rest of your library. When you tap Save on a share card, the App asks for permission to add images to your photo library.
• Notifications — for the optional daily reading reminder and to tell you when a timed session ends. These notifications are scheduled on your device; we don’t send push notifications from a server.

You can turn any of these off at any time in the iPhone Settings app. The App doesn’t ask for or use your device’s location (GPS), contacts, microphone or health data. PostHog may estimate an approximate location from your IP address, as described in section 2.

4. What we don’t do

• We don’t sell or rent your information.
• We don’t show ads or share information with advertisers or data brokers.
• We don’t track you across apps and websites owned by other companies, and the App doesn’t ask for tracking permission.

5. Why we process information

We process information to provide the features you use (book search, purchases), to keep the App working and fix problems (crash reports), to reply to you when you write to us, and to understand and improve how the App is used (analytics and A/B tests). If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or a similar region, we rely on the performance of our agreement with you for providing features and purchases, and on our legitimate interest in running and improving the App for crash reports, configuration and analytics.

6. How long information is kept

• Information on your device stays until you delete it in the App or delete the App.
• Crash reports are kept by Crashlytics for 90 days.
• Analytics events are kept in PostHog for no longer than 12 months, then deleted.
• The Firebase installation identifier is kept until it is deleted on request or removed by Firebase after a long period of inactivity.
• Purchase records are kept by Apple and RevenueCat while they are needed to provide Readista Pro, and as long as the law or Apple requires.
• Support emails are kept only as long as we need them to answer you.

7. Your choices and rights

• You can edit or remove any book, note or photo in the App, and delete everything by deleting the App.
• You can turn off camera, photo and notification access in the iPhone Settings app.
• You can manage or cancel Readista Pro in Settings › your name › Subscriptions.
• Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct or delete information about you, or to object to certain processing. Because the App has no account and doesn’t show its random identifiers, we usually can’t match analytics or crash data to you. Deleting the App resets these identifiers, so new data can’t be linked to earlier data. You can still email us with any request and we’ll do our best to help.

You also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority.

8. Children

The App is not directed to children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has sent us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

9. International transfers

Our service providers may process information in the United States and other countries whose data protection laws may differ from yours. Where required, they use safeguards such as standard contractual clauses.

10. Security

Information on your device is protected by iOS, including its sandboxing and data encryption. Connections to our service providers use encrypted HTTPS. No method of storage or transmission is completely secure, but we work to protect your information.

11. This website

This website is hosted by GitHub Pages, which may log your IP address when you visit. The website doesn’t use cookies, analytics or third-party fonts.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when the App changes. We’ll change the “Last updated” date above, and for important changes we’ll let you know in the App or on this page.