Papervine app icon papervine

Privacy Policy — Papervine

Last updated: 21 July 2026

Papervine is a PDF toolkit for Android: scan, merge, split, compress, sign, protect and convert PDF files. This policy explains in plain language what data the app does and does not process, and what your choices are.

Papervine is developed and published by Jk Webdiensten, an independent developer based in the Netherlands. Questions? Email us at support@joerikros.nl.

The short version

  • Your documents never leave your device. All PDF processing happens locally, on your phone or tablet.
  • We do not require an account. No sign-up, no login, no profile.
  • We use analytics to see how the app is used — Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics, both from Google. They tell us which tools people open, whether a task finished or failed, and where the app crashes. They never receive your documents, your file names, or anything from inside a PDF. Collection is switched off until you give consent, and switches off again if you withdraw it.
  • The free version shows ads (Google AdMob). The ads SDK collects some data, described below. In the European Economic Area (EEA), the UK and Switzerland we first ask for your consent.
  • Buying "Remove Ads" or "Pro" stops ad requests entirely — no ads are loaded and no ad data is sent.

Your documents stay on your device

Everything Papervine does with your files — scanning, merging, splitting, compressing, signing, watermarking, extracting text, converting to and from images — happens entirely on your device. Your documents, photos and scans are never uploaded to us or anyone else by the app's tools.

  • You pick files through Android's built-in file picker (Storage Access Framework) and images through the system Photo Picker. The app only gets access to the specific files you choose, and only uses that access to perform the tool you selected.
  • The document scanner uses Google's ML Kit Document Scanner, which runs in a screen provided by Google Play services on your device. Scanning and image processing happen on-device; you control which scans are handed back to the app. Papervine itself does not request camera permission.
  • Results are saved where you tell the app to save them. We never modify or delete your original files.

Because of this design, Papervine itself collects no documents, photos, names, email addresses, contacts, locations, or any other personal content.

Analytics and crash reports (Firebase)

Papervine uses two Google services to understand how the app is used and to find problems: Firebase Analytics and Firebase Crashlytics. What they receive:

  • How you use the app — which tool you open, whether a task finished or failed, which tab you tap, when the upgrade screen appears and whether a purchase is started or completed.
  • Approximate technical details — device model, Android version, app version, language and country.
  • Crash reports — when the app stops unexpectedly, the technical trace of where it happened in our own code.

What they never receive: your documents. Not their contents, not their file names, not where they are stored, not the text that comes out of scanning. Page counts and processing times are sent in ranges rather than exact numbers, so a document cannot be recognised from them.

We use this to decide what to improve and to fix crashes we would otherwise never hear about. Google processes this data on our instructions; it is not passed on to other companies, which is different from the advertising data described below.

You decide. Collection is switched off when you install the app. It only starts after you agree in the consent screen, and it stops again the moment you withdraw that agreement under Settings → Privacy options. That is the same choice that governs advertising: one decision, one effect.

Advertising (Google AdMob)

The free version of Papervine shows advertisements through Google AdMob. To show and measure ads, the Google Mobile Ads SDK (made by Google) collects and shares some data from your device:

  • Device and advertising identifiers — such as the Android advertising ID.
  • Approximate location — estimated from your IP address (not GPS; Papervine has no location permission).
  • Ad interaction data — for example which ads were shown and whether you tapped them.
  • Diagnostic data — technical information about how the ads component performs.

Google uses this data for advertising, analytics and fraud prevention. It is encrypted in transit (TLS). How Google processes it is described in Google's Privacy Policy and How Google uses information from sites or apps that use our services.

We do not receive this data ourselves. Papervine has no servers and stores none of it.

Your consent in the EEA, UK and Switzerland

If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom or Switzerland, Papervine shows a consent message (Google's certified consent tool, the User Messaging Platform) before any personalized ads can be shown:

  • If you consent, you may see personalized ads.
  • If you decline, you will only see non-personalized or limited ads. Please note: even these use a small amount of data (such as your IP address and coarse, non-identifying signals) for basic delivery, frequency capping and fraud prevention.
  • You can change your mind at any time via Settings → Privacy options in the app.

Other ad controls

  • Reset or delete your advertising ID: Android Settings → Google → Ads (or Settings → Privacy → Ads, depending on your device).
  • Manage how Google personalizes ads: My Ad Center.

Removing ads

If you buy Remove Ads or Pro (lifetime), Papervine stops requesting ads completely. No ads are shown and no ad-related data is sent from the app.

Purchases (Google Play Billing)

Purchases are handled entirely by Google Play. We never see or store your payment details (card numbers, bank details, billing address). The app only receives confirmation from Google Play of what you have bought (for example "Pro purchased"), so it can unlock your purchase and restore it if you reinstall the app. Google Play's handling of payments is covered by Google Play's Terms of Service and Google's Privacy Policy.

Technical diagnostics (Google Play services)

The document scanner feature is delivered through Google Play services. Google collects limited technical diagnostics about this feature (such as device model, app version, performance timings and error codes) to keep it working. This does not include your scans or documents, and Google states this data is encrypted in transit and not passed to third parties.

Permissions

Papervine requests exactly one Android permission: Internet — needed to load ads. No camera, no location, no contacts, no storage permissions. File access works through the pickers described above, which don't require permissions.

Data retention

  • We retain nothing: Papervine has no servers and no databases of user data. There is nothing for us to keep or delete.
  • On your device: your settings, recent-file shortcuts and purchase status are stored locally in the app and are removed when you clear the app's data or uninstall it. Android may include app settings in your encrypted device backup (Google One / Android Backup); you can turn device backup off in Android settings.
  • At Google: retention of ad and purchase data is governed by Google's own policies — see Google's data retention policy.

Your rights (GDPR)

If you are in the EEA, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) gives you the right to access, correct, delete, restrict or receive a copy of your personal data, to object to processing, and to withdraw consent at any time (Settings → Privacy options in the app for ads).

Practically: we do not hold any personal data about you, so most requests will concern data processed by Google. Use the Google controls linked above, or contact Google via Google's Privacy Help Center. You can always email us at support@joerikros.nl — we will help you or point you to the right place, normally within 30 days.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your data protection authority. In the Netherlands this is the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (autoriteitpersoonsgegevens.nl).

The legal bases we rely on: your consent for personalized ads (EEA/UK/CH); legitimate interest for basic, non-personalized ad delivery and fraud prevention; and performance of a contract for delivering the app and your purchases.

International transfers

Google may process the data described above on servers outside the EEA, including in the United States. Google relies on safeguards recognized under the GDPR, such as the EU–U.S. Data Privacy Framework and standard contractual clauses.

Children

Papervine is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children. In the EEA, the consent flow described above applies before personalized ads are shown to anyone.

Changes to this policy

If we change this policy — for example when we add a new feature that processes data differently — we will update this page and the "Last updated" date. For significant changes we will point it out in the app.

Contact

Jk Webdiensten — the Netherlands
Email: support@joerikros.nl