1. Overview

Similar Photos - Find & Clean (the “App”) helps you find exact duplicate and visually similar photos on your Windows device. Your photos are analyzed locally on your device and are never included in optional usage notifications.

2. Information processed by the App

When you choose a folder, the App may process the following information locally:

• Photo files in the folder and its subfolders that use supported formats, including JPG, JPEG, PNG, and WebP.
• File information such as file name, path, size, dimensions, and modification time.
• Cryptographic hashes used to identify exact duplicate files.
• Locally generated thumbnails and image-analysis results used to compare photos.
• Similarity and quality information, such as sharpness, resolution, and lighting estimates.
• Optional on-device face-analysis results when face checking is enabled, such as face count, closed-eye indications, face sharpness, framing, and gaze estimates.
• App preferences, including Smart Select preference, scan settings, and the optional usage-notification choice.

Photo and scan information is processed to provide the App’s features and is not sent to the developer or to an external service.

3. Data collection and network use

The App:

• Does not require an account.
• Does not upload your photos or scan results.
• Does not include advertising or advertising trackers.
• Offers an optional launch notification that is disabled until you explicitly allow it.
• Does not sell or share personal data.
• Does not use cloud-based facial recognition.

Normal Microsoft Store and Windows platform services may independently process information under Microsoft’s own terms and privacy policy. Such platform processing is controlled by Microsoft, not by this App.

If you allow anonymous launch information, the App sends only the product name, App version, and Windows product/version through a Cloudflare Worker to a private Telegram chat when the App opens. Cloudflare derives the country from the connection IP and adds that country to the notification. The App does not send photos, paths, file names, scan results, persistent device identifiers, account information, or precise location. Cloudflare and Telegram necessarily process network information such as the source IP address under their respective terms. You can withdraw consent at any time in the About dialog; later launches will not send the notification.

4. Folder access

The App accesses only folders and files that you select or otherwise authorize through Windows. Access is used to scan supported photos, generate previews, compare images, and perform cleanup actions that you explicitly confirm.

5. Local storage

To make future scans faster, the App may store the following in its per-user application-data location:

• A local SQLite scan index.
• File metadata, hashes, and comparison results.
• Generated thumbnails and cache files.
• App settings and preferences.

These files remain on your device. You can remove locally stored App data by using the applicable Windows app reset or uninstall controls. Windows behavior and retention may vary by system configuration.

6. Photo deletion and the Recycle Bin

The App does not remove a photo unless you choose and confirm a cleanup action. Selected photos are moved to the Windows Recycle Bin rather than being permanently erased directly by the App. Files in the Recycle Bin are managed by Windows and may be restored or permanently deleted using Windows controls.

7. Optional face analysis

Face checking is optional and can be enabled or disabled in scan settings. When enabled, face analysis runs entirely on your device. The App does not attempt to identify people, assign names to faces, create identity profiles, or send face information outside your device.

8. Data sharing

The developer does not receive or share the photos, scan indexes, thumbnails, hashes, face-analysis results, or scan preferences processed by the App. If—and only if—you enable anonymous launch information, the limited information described in section 3 is processed by Cloudflare and Telegram for delivery to the developer.

9. Children’s privacy

The App is a general-purpose photo management utility and does not knowingly collect information from children. All photo processing described in this policy occurs locally on the user’s device. Optional launch information is sent only after consent.

10. Security

The App is designed to keep photo analysis and related data on your device. You remain responsible for the security of your Windows account, device, selected folders, backups, and Recycle Bin contents.

11. Changes to this policy

This policy may be updated when the App’s features or data practices change. Material changes will be reflected in an updated policy and effective date. If a future feature requires external data processing, this policy will be updated before that feature is released.

12. Contact

For privacy questions or requests concerning Similar Photos - Find & Clean, contact idyllesoft@outlook.com.