PlateShot Privacy Policy
Last updated: October 10, 2026
This Privacy Policy explains how Sean Lynch ("we", "us") handles information in connection with the mobile app PlateShot, listed on the App Store as "PlateShot — Macro Logger" (the "App").
1. Summary
- Your meal log stays on your phone. PlateShot has no account and no server that stores your data. Meals, photos, macros, water, shot-day notes, favorites and targets are stored on your device and never uploaded to us. On iPhone, an optional backup copy goes to your own iCloud account (section 2).
- A meal photo, a Nutrition Facts label photo, or a meal description you type for a calorie estimate may pass through PlateShot's vision proxy to Anthropic or OpenAI, only to compute that estimate. The App asks first. See section 3.
- We do not ask for your name, email address or access to your health records. Apple Health is optional and its data never leaves your phone through PlateShot (section 4).
- Subscriptions are processed by Apple and checked through RevenueCat.
- The App has no ads, no product analytics or crash-reporting service, and no tracking. We do not sell your information.
- PlateShot is not a medical device. Calorie and macro numbers are estimates for your own information.
2. Information you enter
Meals, photos you attach to a meal, calorie and macro numbers, water, optional shot-day checkboxes and notes, favorites, and your daily targets. This information is kept in the App's storage on your device. We cannot see it. Shot-day checkboxes are optional reminders for you. They are not medical records and they stay on the device.
Your log leaves your phone only if you choose to export it. A backup (free) creates a JSON file, and a spreadsheet export (a Pro feature) creates a CSV file, that you send wherever you choose through the iOS share sheet.
iCloud backup. On iPhone, PlateShot saves a backup copy of your meals, favorites, water, weigh-ins and targets to your own iCloud account, in a private PlateShot folder that is not shown in iCloud Drive, so you can restore it on a new phone. Apple stores this copy under your Apple Account; we cannot read it. Photos are not included. You can turn iCloud backup off in Settings, and Delete all data also deletes the iCloud copy.
3. Photo estimates
When cloud estimates are enabled, the photo you photograph is sent to PlateShot's vision proxy, a small server that holds the AI provider's key so the App itself never does. The proxy forwards the photo to Anthropic (Claude), or to OpenAI if Anthropic is unavailable, solely to compute a calorie and macro estimate, then returns the numbers to the App. Neither the proxy nor PlateShot keeps a copy of the photo. To limit abuse, the proxy keeps a daily request counter tied to your network (IP) address for up to 26 hours. To check that Pro is active, the App sends the proxy a random purchase identifier created by RevenueCat (not your name or email); the proxy asks RevenueCat about it and remembers a yes for up to one hour.
Neither Anthropic's nor OpenAI's API uses this data to train models by default. Each keeps API data for a limited time for safety and abuse monitoring. See their own policies: anthropic.com/legal/privacy and openai.com/policies/api-data-usage-policies.
Typed estimates. If you type a meal description (for example "2 eggs, toast") instead of taking a photo, the words are handled the same way: the App asks first, the text goes through the proxy to the same AI providers only to compute the estimate, and neither the proxy nor PlateShot keeps a copy.
Nutrition label scans. If you photograph a Nutrition Facts label, that photo is handled exactly like a meal photo, under the same permission, only to read the numbers on the label. The label photo is not saved with the meal.
If a build of the App has no vision proxy configured, estimates are generated on-device by a demo estimator instead, and nothing leaves your phone.
4. Camera and photo library
The App asks for camera access so you can photograph a meal or a nutrition label, and for photo library access so you can pick an existing picture. Both are optional. If you decline, you can still log meals by typing them in.
Apple Health. If you turn it on, the App saves the calories, macros, water and weight you log to Apple Health and reads your latest weight. Health data stays on your iPhone and in Apple Health. PlateShot never sends it to a server and never uses it for advertising or marketing.
5. Information processed by third-party services
| Purpose | Data | Provider |
|---|---|---|
| Processing and restoring subscriptions, and subscription reporting for the developer (for example, how many people subscribe) | Store transaction identifiers, purchase receipts, a randomly generated app-install identifier. Not linked to your name or email, and not used for tracking. | Apple App Store and RevenueCat |
| Optional backup of your log to restore on a new phone (iPhone) | Meals, favorites, water, weigh-ins and targets, stored in your own iCloud account. We cannot read it. | Apple iCloud |
| Computing a calorie and macro estimate from a meal photo, a nutrition label photo, or a typed meal description (cloud-enabled builds only) | The photo or text you choose to estimate, your network (IP) address for an abuse-limiting request counter kept up to 26 hours, and the random RevenueCat purchase identifier to check Pro. Not linked to your name or email, and not used for tracking or advertising. | PlateShot's vision proxy, then Anthropic (or OpenAI as a fallback) |
RevenueCat does not receive your meal log or your photos. We do not receive your real-world identity, your card number or your billing address from Apple or RevenueCat. RevenueCat's privacy policy: revenuecat.com/privacy. Anthropic's privacy policy: anthropic.com/legal/privacy. OpenAI's privacy policy: openai.com/policies/privacy-policy.
6. Subscriptions
PlateShot Pro is sold as an auto-renewing subscription (weekly, monthly or annual), and in some offers as a one-time lifetime purchase. Payment is charged to your Apple Account, and you manage or cancel the subscription in your Apple Account settings. Restore purchases is available on the paywall and in Settings.
7. Data retention and deletion
- Your meal log: kept on your device until you delete it. Open Settings → Delete all data to erase meals, favorites and goals on that device and the iCloud backup copy, or delete the App.
- Abuse-limit counter and Pro check: deleted automatically about 26 hours and one hour after they are created. Photos sent for an estimate are not stored by PlateShot.
- Purchase records: retained by Apple and RevenueCat as required for tax, accounting and disputes. Deleting your data in the App does not cancel a subscription. After a reinstall, use Restore purchases.
8. Children
The App is intended for adults managing their own nutrition and is not directed to children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided information, contact us and we will help remove it.
9. Your rights
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete or port your personal information and to object to processing. Because your log is stored only on your device, you can export or delete it directly in the App. For anything held by our providers, email us and we will pass on or act on the request within the time your law requires. California residents: we do not sell or share personal information as defined by the CCPA.
10. Security
Your log is protected by your device's security and the iOS app sandbox. No method of storage or transmission is perfectly secure.
11. Changes
We will update this policy when the App changes and revise the date above. If the App ever starts sending your photos or your log off the device, this policy will be updated before that release.
12. Contact
Sean Lynch, temveno@gmail.com. We aim to respond within 30 days. Please do not send medical questions. PlateShot is not a medical device and cannot give clinical advice.