Privacy Policy for Cull - AI Photo Cleaner
Effective date: November 1, 2026
This Privacy Policy explains how Cull - AI Photo Cleaner ("Cull", "the App", "we", "us", or "our") handles your information. Cull is developed by Yu-Cheng Lin.
1. Summary
Cull analyzes your photos and videos entirely on your device. Your photos, videos and face data are never uploaded to us or to anyone else.
Cull detects faces only to judge photo quality, for example whether faces are sharp and eyes are open. It does not recognize or identify people. See Section 3.
Cull does not use analytics, advertising or tracking, and does not require an account.
The only time information leaves your device is when you choose to send feedback from the Settings screen. See Section 6.
2. Photos and Videos
Access. With your permission, Cull uses Apple's Photos framework to read your photo library. It uses this access to find similar photos, duplicate videos and screenshots, and to recommend which items to keep. You can change or revoke this permission at any time in iOS Settings > Privacy & Security > Photos.
On-device analysis. All analysis is performed on your device. Cull may evaluate visual similarity, image quality (such as sharpness, exposure, overall visual appeal, horizon angle and how much the subject stands out) and faces, as described in Section 3. Cull may also read metadata stored with your photos and videos, such as date taken, file size, duration and location, to organize items. Your photos, videos and their metadata are never uploaded to us or to any third party.
Analysis results. Quality scores and similarity groupings are kept in temporary device memory while you review results. They are discarded when you start a new scan or when the App is closed. To make later video scans faster, Cull stores compact visual fingerprints of video frames (numeric descriptors of overall image content) in the App's cache folder on your device. These fingerprints are not face-specific and are not used to detect, analyze or identify faces or people. iOS may clear this cache at any time, and it is removed when you delete the App.
Deleting photos and videos. Cull deletes photos or videos only after you confirm. iOS also asks you to confirm and then moves the items to the Photos app's "Recently Deleted" album, where you can recover them for up to 30 days.
3. Face Data
Cull uses Apple's Vision framework, which runs entirely on your device, to detect faces in the photos you choose to scan. Cull uses this only to help rank similar photos and recommend which one to keep.
3.1 What face data is processed
For each photo it analyzes, Cull may compute:
the number of faces detected;
a face detection confidence value (how clearly a face was detected);
a face capture quality score (Apple Vision's estimate of how well a face was captured, for example blur and lighting); and
eye landmark points, used only to determine whether eyes appear open or closed.
Cull does not perform facial recognition. It does not identify or attempt to identify any person, does not create face templates, faceprints or other biometric identifiers, and does not compare faces across photos to determine identity. Cull does not use the camera, TrueDepth/ARKit face data or Face ID.
3.2 How face data is used
Face data is used solely to score photo quality within a group of similar photos (for example, preferring a photo where faces are sharp and eyes are open) and to show a short explanation of why a photo was recommended. On devices that support Apple Intelligence, a brief text summary (for example, "2 faces, faces look clear") may be passed to Apple's on-device language model to write that explanation; this processing also stays on your device. Face data is never used for advertising, analytics, profiling or training machine learning models.
3.3 Storage
All face analysis is performed on your device. Face data is kept only in temporary device memory (RAM) while scan results are in use. It is never written to device storage, never saved to iCloud and never included in device backups.
3.4 Sharing and disclosure
Face data never leaves your device. It is not sent to us, to any server or to any third party, and it is never included in feedback you send (Section 6). Because we never receive face data, we cannot sell, share or disclose it.
3.5 Retention and deletion
Face data is automatically deleted from memory when you start a new scan, or when Cull is closed or terminated by the system. It is not retained after that. Because face data is never stored or transmitted, no deletion request is needed. Face analysis never modifies your original photos.
4. On-Device Apple Intelligence
On iOS 26 or later, with Apple Intelligence enabled, Cull uses Apple's on-device Foundation Models framework to write a one-sentence explanation of why a photo was recommended. It receives only a short text summary of quality signals. No images are passed to it. This processing happens entirely on your device, and the results are not sent to us.
5. Information Stored on Your Device
Cull stores a small amount of information on your device to work properly:
app settings, such as language and scan preferences;
the number of items you have deleted and the storage space freed;
the date you last used the free daily scan; and
information used to decide when to show the App Store rating prompt.
This information stays on your device and is not sent to us. It may be included in your device backups, depending on your device settings. It is removed when you delete the App.
6. Feedback You Choose to Send
Cull lets you send feedback from the Settings screen. This is optional, happens only when you tap send, and is the only time Cull sends information off your device. A feedback submission contains:
the comment you write and the category you select;
contact information, only if you choose to provide it (for example, an email address); and
technical details: app version and build number, iOS version, device model, language/region setting, and an app-specific install identifier (Apple's "identifier for vendor"), a random ID that is not linked to your Apple ID.
Feedback never includes photos, videos, image analysis results or face data.
Where it goes. Feedback is sent over an encrypted connection (HTTPS) to our feedback service, hosted on Microsoft Azure. The service saves it as an entry in a private GitHub repository that only the developer can access. To prevent abuse, the service uses the IP address of the request temporarily for rate limiting. The IP address is not saved with your feedback. Our hosting provider may keep standard operational logs for a limited time.
Retention. We keep feedback for as long as needed to respond to it and improve the App. To have your feedback deleted, email us with the approximate date and content of your message.
7. Purchases
In-app purchases are processed by Apple through the App Store. We do not receive your name, Apple ID, or payment information. Cull checks your purchase status with Apple's StoreKit framework on your device. Apple's handling of purchase data is described in Apple's Privacy Policy: https://www.apple.com/legal/privacy/
8. App Store Ratings
Cull may show Apple's standard rating prompt. This prompt is provided and handled by Apple. We only see ratings and reviews that are published on the App Store.
9. What We Do Not Do
We do not use analytics, crash reporting, or advertising SDKs.
We do not track you across other companies' apps or websites, and we do not access the advertising identifier (IDFA).
We do not sell or rent your personal information.
We do not access your device location, contacts, camera, or microphone.
We do not require you to create an account.
10. Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell, rent or share your personal information for advertising or marketing. The only information we receive is the feedback you choose to send (Section 6). It is processed by service providers that host it on our behalf: Microsoft (Azure) and GitHub. We may disclose feedback if required by law, such as to comply with a subpoena or similar legal process. Photos, videos and face data never leave your device, so they are never shared.
11. Data Retention Summary
Face data: temporary memory only; deleted when you start a new scan or the App closes (Section 3.5).
Photo and video analysis results: temporary memory only; deleted when you start a new scan or the App closes.
Video fingerprint cache: on your device until iOS clears it or you delete the App.
Settings and statistics: on your device until you delete the App.
Feedback you send: kept as long as needed to respond and improve the App; deleted on request.
12. Children's Privacy
Cull is suitable for general audiences. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 or from anyone under the minimum age in their country. The only personal information Cull can send is optional feedback. If you believe a child has sent us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.
13. Security
Cull is designed to keep your data on your device. Photo, video and face analysis happens locally. Feedback is sent over HTTPS and stored in a private repository that only the developer can access. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, but we take reasonable measures to protect the information we receive.
14. Your Choices and Rights
Photo access: change or revoke it at any time in iOS Settings > Privacy & Security > Photos.
Local data: deleting the App removes all data Cull stores on your device.
Feedback: sending feedback is optional. You may ask us to access, correct or delete feedback you have sent.
Depending on where you live (for example, in the EEA, the UK or California), you may have additional rights over your personal information. To use any of these rights, contact us at the email address below. We will respond within a reasonable time and within any period required by law.
15. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will post the updated policy on this page and change the effective date above. We will not use face data in any new way without first updating this policy and, where required, asking for your consent.
16. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or Cull's privacy practices, contact:
Yu-Cheng Lin Email: danny.b1227@gmail.com