Privacy

The short version

Your captures are yours to keep and share. Orbshot processes screenshots, recordings, edits and recognised text on your Mac. The app does not upload captured content to an Orbshot media service or sync it to a cloud account. You choose where to save exported files and which apps to share them with.

Internet connections support licence activation, licence refresh, app updates and optional installation statistics. The website also handles sign-in and purchases. The sections below explain the data used for those services.

What Orbshot processes on your Mac

• Screenshots, scrolling captures and screen recordings, including anything in the History folder.
• Anything Orbshot reads with OCR, and anything it detects as sensitive in order to blur it. Text recognition runs on the Mac, in Apple's Vision framework.
• Camera and microphone input. Both are recorded only into the file you are making.
• The names of your windows and applications, which the capture overlay reads in order to let you pick one.
• Your settings, shortcuts and editing history.

Licence requests

Orbshot contacts api.orbshot.com when you activate a licence, periodically afterwards to refresh it, and when you release a seat. After a successful refresh, the app waits a day before its next automatic attempt; failed requests may be retried after an hour. Depending on the action, the request contains:

• Your licence key. Used to activate your purchase. The licence database stores a salted hash of the key rather than the original key.
• The signed licence token this Mac was issued. Sent when refreshing access or releasing a seat. It contains licence and device references, the plan and validity details.
• A one-time activation code. Sent when you activate using Open in Orbshot or paste an activation code. The code works once and expires after ten minutes.
• A one-way hash of this Mac's hardware identifier. Used to count seats and recognise this Mac. The app sends the hash, not the underlying hardware identifier.
• The name of this Mac, as it appears in Sharing settings. Sent during activation so your account can show which Macs use the licence.

Licence requests do not include captured content, usage statistics or advertising identifiers. A connection failure leaves the stored licence in place. Pro remains available while that licence and its grace period are valid; Free limits apply afterwards. A server response revoking a licence can remove Pro access.

App updates

The release build uses Sparkle to check Orbshot's update feed for new versions. Automatic checks are enabled; updates are not automatically downloaded by the release configuration. Checking the feed or downloading a release makes a network request and exposes ordinary connection information, including your IP address, to the hosting provider. These requests do not include your captures.

What this website keeps

• Your sign-in email and account identifier, used to link purchases and manage your licences.
• Licence details: plan, seat count, paid access date, status and a hash of the licence key.
• Device records: the device hash, Mac name and last check-in time for each activated Mac.
• Payment references, including Stripe customer, checkout and subscription identifiers where applicable.
• Licence and payment events used for fulfilment, support and disputes. Checkout-start events include the refund acknowledgement timestamp and IP address.
• Temporary activation-code records and rate-limit counters. Rate-limit bucket identifiers are hashed; this is separate from the IP address recorded with checkout consent.

Signing in uses Firebase Authentication, which is operated by Google. It sends you a link by email and keeps the resulting session in your browser's own storage. Google Analytics 4 is loaded only after you allow analytics. It uses an analytics cookie to count visits to public pages and clicks on the download button. Advertising storage, Google signals and ad personalisation are disabled. Account and sign-in pages are excluded; page addresses sent by Orbshot omit query strings and fragments. Use Analytics settings to change your choice. Download clicks do not prove that a download completed.

Optional installation statistics

Share installation statistics is off by default in the app and can be changed in the Permissions window. If enabled, Orbshot sends a randomly generated installation identifier, app version, first-open or existing-install status, and a one-time observation of Pro access to its API and Google Analytics. This identifier is separate from your licence, account and hardware identifier. These statistics contain no captures, email, licence keys, Mac names or editing activity. Hosting providers still receive ordinary connection information such as your IP address.

The API keeps a hashed event identifier and receipt/delivery timestamps to prevent ordinary retries from counting twice. The app keeps the random identifier, your choice and delivery flags in local preferences. Clearing app data can create a new identity. Existing app data is classified separately from new app data. Counts cover consenting installations observed after this feature is released; they do not reconstruct past installs. Turning sharing off stops future reports but does not remove reports already received.

Payments and email

Stripe hosts checkout and billing. Information you enter there, such as payment, billing and tax details, is handled by Stripe. Orbshot keeps payment references and licence events so purchases can be fulfilled and supported. Starting checkout records the time and IP address associated with the refund acknowledgement, even if you do not complete the purchase.

Firebase Authentication handles sign-in emails. Resend delivers licence and renewal reminder emails, including the recipient address and message contents. A licence delivery email contains your licence key. If you email support, the message and attachments are used to respond to your request.

Where it is kept, and for how long

The licence database and the servers that read it run in Google Cloud in Singapore (asia-southeast1). Licence and payment records support access, billing and dispute handling. A fixed retention period after a licence ends has not yet been specified. Activation codes expire after ten minutes and rate-limit windows reset after an hour; expiry does not mean the stored records have already been deleted. Service providers may process information in other locations under their own terms.

Asking for a copy, or for deletion

Write to team@orbshot.com from the address on the account. You can request access, correction or deletion of your information. Support will confirm your identity and explain any effect on licence access, along with any records that need to be retained for payment disputes or legal obligations.

Changes

This page will be updated when Orbshot's data handling changes. The date above identifies the current wording. Contact support if you have questions about it.