Privacy Policy

Effective Date: October 19, 2026

Introduction

SnowMyScreen is a macOS application that adds seasonal desktop effects and decorative lights. Your privacy is important to us, and this policy explains how we handle your information. Website analytics and cookie choices are described below.

The Short Version

Your settings and imported images stay on your device. Weather matching is optional.

The desktop app has no accounts, advertising SDKs or in-app analytics. In version 1.3 and later, if you enable local weather matching and allow location access, your location is used to request weather from Apple's WeatherKit service. Website analytics require a separate choice, described below.

Privacy in the Desktop App

• No account registration
• No in-app analytics or advertising SDKs
• No tracking across apps or websites
• No upload of settings or imported images
• No desktop screenshots or screen recordings
• No microphone or camera access
• No location history stored by the app

What Stays on Your Mac

The app saves your preferences locally on your device:

• Effect theme, intensity and speed
• Wind direction and strength
• Selected shapes and custom images
• Overlay placement and decorative light settings
• Language preference

Settings and imported images are stored locally and are not uploaded by the app. You can reset preferences in Settings and delete imported images from the image gallery. Resetting preferences preserves imported images. Removing the app does not necessarily remove its saved preferences or app data.

Optional Location and Weather Matching

Weather matching is off by default. When you enable it and grant permission, macOS supplies a location to the app. The app requests kilometre-level accuracy; macOS controls the accuracy it provides. This location is sent to Apple's WeatherKit service to retrieve current weather and choose a matching decorative effect. It is not sent to the developer.

The app does not save coordinates or a location history to its preferences or image files. Location and weather results are used in memory to select effects. While the feature is enabled, weather is normally refreshed every 30 minutes and may be refreshed again after a location-permission change or when the app restarts.

You can turn weather matching off in the app or revoke location access in System Settings. Turning the feature off cancels its scheduled updates. Manual themes continue to work without location access. Apple processes WeatherKit requests under its own privacy policies; the app also retrieves Apple Weather attribution resources when needed.

Apple Weather & Privacy · Apple Privacy Policy

Permissions

Location permission is used only for optional weather matching. You choose PNG files through the system file picker; the app copies those images into its own local storage for later use. Launch at login is optional and can be changed in the app or System Settings. Desktop effects and cleaning tools do not require Screen Recording, microphone or camera access.

Offline Effects and Online Services

Manual themes, decorative lights, imported images and cleaning sounds work offline. Local weather matching and Apple Weather attribution need an internet connection. Opening website links and downloading App Store updates also use the internet.

Updates

Purchases and updates are handled by the Mac App Store. Apple also controls any app diagnostics you choose to share through its system settings. These services follow Apple's privacy policies; SnowMyScreen does not include its own analytics or crash-reporting SDK.

Children

The desktop app has no accounts, advertising or in-app analytics. Optional location access uses the same system permission controls for all users. Website analytics remain subject to the separate cookie choice below.

Website analytics & cookies

Website section updated: October 5, 2026

The website uses local storage to remember your cookie choice (snowmyscreen_cookie_consent_v1) and, on the download page, your language preference (snowmyscreen-language). These preferences are saved on this device.

If you allow analytics, the website loads Google Analytics 4 (measurement ID G-VB76JMX2B6) to measure page visits and browser/device information. Google processes this usage data. The Google tag is not loaded before you opt in or while optional cookies are declined. Advertising consent remains disabled.

With analytics enabled, Google Analytics can store first-party _ga and _ga_VB76JMX2B6 cookies to distinguish browsers and sessions. These website statistics are separate from the desktop app, which does not collect analytics.

Choose Accept all, Only necessary or Customize in the banner. You can reopen Cookie settings in the footer at any time. Turning analytics off removes Google Analytics cookies and reloads the page to stop the running tag. Clearing browser storage removes your saved choice.

Learn how Google handles this information:

Google Privacy Policy · Google: partner sites

Questions?

If you email support, we receive your email address and the information you choose to include. Support correspondence is used to respond to and resolve your request and kept for that purpose. To ask about this policy or request deletion of support correspondence, contact:

Email: hello@andrewsereda.com

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This privacy policy may be updated occasionally. The current version is always available here and in the Mac App Store.