Privacy Policy — PocketPDF
Last updated: 23 September 2026
Applies to: PocketPDF for Android (com.mobilebytesensei.pdftools)
Published by: MobileByteSensei
The app was published as PDF Tools until September 2026 and is now called PocketPDF. The package name, the Play listing and the on-device output folder still carry the original name, so both names refer to the same app.
The short version
Your documents stay on your phone. Every PDF and image operation — merging, splitting, compressing, signing, OCR, conversion — runs locally on your device. We never upload, receive, store, or see your files.
The app does show ads, and the Google Mobile Ads SDK collects a limited amount of device data to serve them. That is the only data collection in the app, and it is described in full below.
What we do NOT collect
- Your documents. PDFs and images you open are processed on your device and written back to your device. They are never transmitted anywhere.
- Your signature. A signature you draw is stored locally on your phone.
- Text from OCR. Text recognition runs on-device using a bundled model. Scanned content is not sent to a server.
- Account information. There is no sign-up, no login, and no user account.
- Analytics about you. We run no analytics or crash-reporting SDK. We do not know who you are, which tools you use, or how often you open the app.
What the ads SDK collects
PocketPDF displays banner advertising through Google AdMob (the Google Mobile Ads SDK). To serve and measure ads, that SDK may collect:
- your Advertising ID (a resettable identifier Google provides for advertising)
- device and network information — device model, operating-system version, language, coarse location inferred from IP address, and network type
- ad interaction data — which ads were shown, viewed, or tapped
This processing is performed by Google, not by us. We do not receive your Advertising ID, and we cannot connect ad data to you. Google's handling of it is governed by their own policy:
- Google Privacy Policy — https://policies.google.com/privacy
- How Google uses data from apps that use its services — https://policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites
The app declares INTERNET, ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE, com.google.android.gms.permission.AD_ID and
the Android Privacy Sandbox advertising permissions (ACCESS_ADSERVICES_AD_ID,
ACCESS_ADSERVICES_ATTRIBUTION, ACCESS_ADSERVICES_TOPICS) solely so the ads SDK can operate.
No app feature uses the network for anything else.
Controlling ad personalisation
You can reset or delete your Advertising ID at any time from Settings → Google → Ads on your device, which also lets you opt out of ad personalisation. Doing so does not affect any PDF or image feature — every tool keeps working offline.
Permissions and why they exist
| Permission | Why |
|---|---|
INTERNET, ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE |
Required by the ads SDK. No document ever travels over it. |
AD_ID and Privacy Sandbox ad permissions |
Required by the ads SDK to serve and measure ads. |
CAMERA |
Only when you use Scan to PDF. Images are captured straight into a local PDF. |
READ_EXTERNAL_STORAGE / WRITE_EXTERNAL_STORAGE |
To open the files you choose and save results to Documents/PDF Tools. |
FOREGROUND_SERVICE, WAKE_LOCK |
Added by the bundled AndroidX WorkManager library (and the Google measurement SDK), so background work can finish without the device sleeping mid-task. They are not used to collect anything. |
The app opens files only through Android's system file picker, so it sees a file only when you explicitly pick it.
Where your files are stored
Results are written to Documents/PDF Tools on your device — the folder keeps its original name
so that files saved by earlier versions stay where you left them. The History tab keeps a local
record of the operations you ran and the files they produced. Clearing history removes that record;
it does not delete your files. Uninstalling the app removes its local data.
Children
PocketPDF is a general-purpose utility and is not directed at children. Because the app shows advertising and the ads SDK collects an Advertising ID, we do not knowingly direct it at children under 13.
Changes
If this policy changes, the "Last updated" date above changes with it. Material changes will be noted in the app's release notes.
Contact
Questions about this policy or about data in the app: