Privacy policy

Smarter Audio Player

Last updated:

Summary

Smarter Audio Player is designed to run without collecting personal data. There are no accounts, no analytics, no advertising, and no third-party trackers. Your audiobook library, playback progress, bookmarks, and any credentials you configure stay on your device, and the app only reaches out to the storage servers and cloud accounts you point it at.

What the app stores on your device

• Storage source settings — for each source you configure (a NAS share, WebDAV server, SFTP or FTP server, Google Drive account, or a folder on this device), the app stores the host address, path, username and password or OAuth refresh token, as applicable. Passwords and refresh tokens are stored using Android's EncryptedSharedPreferences, which encrypts the file at rest with a key held in the Android Keystore.
• Library index — the app scans each source for audio files and records the folder names, track names, durations, cover images, and your per-book progress (position, playback speed, bookmarks) in a local database on the device.
• Audio cache — chunks of audio the app has read from a remote source are cached on the device so seeking is fast and repeated playback avoids re-downloading. The cache is size-capped and evicted on a least-recently-used basis. You can clear it in Settings.
• SSH known-hosts — for SFTP sources, the app records the host key fingerprint on first connect, so subsequent connections can detect a changed key (a defence against man-in-the-middle attacks). This file lives in the app's private storage.

None of the above is transmitted off the device by Smarter Audio Player.

What the app does not do

• The app does not use analytics, telemetry, crash reporting, or any third-party SDK that collects usage data.
• The app does not display advertising.
• The app does not require you to create an account with us.
• The app does not upload your library, files, credentials, or any other personal data to us or to any third party.

Network access

The app needs internet access so it can reach the storage sources and cloud accounts you configure. Once a source is configured, the app makes the following kinds of network requests:

• To your NAS or server, over SMB, WebDAV, SFTP, or FTP, to list folders and stream audio files. These connections go directly from your device to your server; they do not pass through any server of ours.
• To Google, if you sign in with Google Drive, to complete OAuth sign-in and to list and read files from your Drive account (see the section below).
• To your device's own loopback address (127.0.0.1), to serve audio to the internal media player. No data leaves the device on these connections.

Google Drive integration

When you add a Google Drive source, the app opens Google's sign-in page in a secure Chrome tab so you can grant it access. The app requests the https://www.googleapis.com/auth/drive.readonly OAuth scope. That scope lets the app list and read files and folders in the Drive account you sign in with — the same access you would give a desktop Drive client. The app does not have write, share, or delete permission.

What the app does with Drive data:

• Lists the folders you nominate (or your whole Drive if you choose that) to find audio files.
• Streams audio bytes from those files, over HTTPS from googleapis.com directly to your device, to play them.
• Stores the refresh token Google issues, encrypted, on your device, so you don't have to sign in every time.
• Extracts durations and embedded cover art from audio files during the scan.

The app does not upload the contents of your Drive to us or to anyone else; it does not use your Drive data for advertising or analytics; and it does not transfer your Drive data to any third party. You can revoke the app's Drive access at any time from your Google Account permissions page (myaccount.google.com/permissions) or by deleting the Drive source in the app.

Smarter Audio Player's use of information received from Google APIs adheres to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.

Permissions

• Internet and network state — to reach your storage sources and, if configured, Google Drive.
• Post notifications (Android 13+) — so playback controls appear in the notification area and on the lock screen while a book is playing.
• Foreground service (media playback) — so playback continues when the app is in the background.
• Wake lock — so the CPU keeps decoding audio when the screen is off.
• The app does not request access to your contacts, camera, microphone, location, SMS, or call history. It uses Android's Storage Access Framework to read only the folder you explicitly pick as a "This device" source — it does not request broad storage permission.

Backups

Encrypted credentials, the SSH known-hosts file, and the audio cache are excluded from Android's Auto Backup and Device-to-Device transfer. Your library index (progress, bookmarks) is included in the normal Auto Backup so you don't lose progress when you switch devices, but this is between your device and your own Google Drive backup — the app has no server-side backup service of its own.

Children

Smarter Audio Player is not directed at children under 13 and does not knowingly collect data from children.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Substantive changes will be reflected in the "Last updated" date at the top. The version currently in force is always the one hosted at this URL.

Contact

For any questions about this policy or the app's handling of your data, email support@worldwidechoices.com.