Privacy Policy

Last updated: July 8, 2026

Focal is a reading app. Your reading content stays on your device. The short version: Focal has no accounts, no login, no analytics, and no tracking of your reading — and we run no servers and never receive your reading data. Focal is free and supported by ads served by Google AdMob (see Advertising below).

No account, no login

Focal does not require an account or login to use any feature.

Your library stays on your device

Saved links, imported documents and PDFs, the text of items you add, your reading history and position, and your app preferences are stored only in Focal's local storage on your device. This data is never uploaded to us.

We do not sell your data

Focal does not sell or rent your personal data, and we never see your reading content.

Advertising (Google AdMob)

Focal shows ads on its Home, Library, and Settings screens, and occasionally after you finish a text — never while you are reading. Ads are served by Google AdMob. To serve and measure ads, Google may collect and process data such as your device's advertising ID, IP address, and coarse app-usage signals, as described in Google's Privacy Policy and AdMob's data practices. Where required by law (for example, in the EEA and UK), you will be shown a consent screen and can decline personalized ads. You can also reset or delete your advertising ID in Android Settings → Privacy → Ads. Your reading content is never shared with advertisers.

Network use

Beyond ad serving, Focal connects to the internet only when you choose to import something:

• Importing from a URL fetches the web page you entered to extract its readable text.
• Free / public-domain books contacts the Gutendex API (gutendex.com) and Project Gutenberg (gutenberg.org) to search and download the book you select.

When you do this, the destination website receives standard request information (such as your IP address) under its own privacy policy. Focal sends no personal data of its own.

On-device processing

PDF, DOCX, and EPUB files you open, and web pages you import, are read and parsed on your device. None of this content is sent to us.

Permissions

• Internet — to fetch URLs and books you choose to import, and to serve ads.
• Clipboard — on open, Focal may read your clipboard to offer text you have already copied. This is processed on-device only and is never transmitted.
• Files — documents you open are read locally through Android's file picker; nothing is uploaded.

No analytics or crash reporting

Beyond the ads SDK described above, Focal includes no analytics or crash-reporting SDKs.

Delete your data anytime

You can erase all of Focal's local data from inside the app: Settings → Clear local data.

Children

Focal is not directed to children under 13 and collects no personal information from them.

Contact

Questions? Visit Contact or email [email protected].