Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 18, 2026

The short version: One Line is built so your journal stays yours. By default, everything you write — your entries, moods, photos, settings, and streaks — is stored only on your device. We operate no servers and never receive your journal: it is never sent to us or to anyone else. If you choose to turn on iCloud Sync, a copy of your journal is kept in your own private iCloud account so it is backed up and stays in sync across your Apple devices. It uses iCloud, not our servers, and we still cannot see or access it. Because your data never reaches us, we genuinely cannot read, recover, or restore your entries. You stay in full control, and you can export, stop syncing, or delete everything at any time from inside the app.

Who We Are

OneLineDiary ("we", "us", "our") provides the One Line journaling app for iOS. This Privacy Policy explains what data the app handles, where it lives, and the rights you have. If you have any questions, you can always reach us at hello@onelinediary.com.

Your Data Stays With You

One Line is an on-device-first app. There is no account required to use it, and no backend operated by us. By default your journal lives only on your device. You may optionally turn on iCloud Sync (see below), which stores a copy in your own private iCloud account through Apple.

• Every journal entry, mood rating, attached photo, persona or insight, profile setting, and streak statistic is stored on your device in a local database — and, if you enable iCloud Sync, also in your private iCloud account.
• We operate no servers of our own. With iCloud Sync off, the app does not transmit your journal data anywhere. With iCloud Sync on, your journal is synced directly to your private iCloud account using Apple's CloudKit; it still never passes through any server of ours.
• Because your data never reaches us, we cannot see, access, read, recover, or restore your entries — not for support, not for legal requests, not for any reason — whether or not iCloud Sync is on.

Please keep this in mind: with iCloud Sync off, if you delete the app, or lose or reset your device, your journal data is permanently gone unless you exported it beforehand. Turning on iCloud Sync keeps a copy in your private iCloud, so your journal is backed up and restored automatically on your other Apple devices. That copy is managed by Apple and governed by Apple's iCloud terms and privacy policy, not ours. You can turn iCloud Sync off at any time, and choose to delete the iCloud copy when you do.

What Information the App Handles

All of the following is created and stored only on your device:

• Journal text you write.
• Optional mood, recorded on a five-point scale (Terrible to Amazing).
• Optional photos you attach to entries.
• An optional display name.
• An optional birth year.
• App preferences, such as your theme, your reminder time, and whether biometric lock is turned on.
• Streak statistics calculated from your entries.

None of this is sent to us. It exists only in the app's private storage on your device.

Photos

You can attach up to five photos per entry using the standard iOS photo picker. When you select a photo, a copy is saved into the app's private on-device storage so it can appear with your entry. Photos are never uploaded and never leave your device.

Optional iCloud Sync

The app works fully without any account or sign-in. When you first use it, an anonymous identifier is generated on your device so your journal has something to belong to locally.

If you choose to, you can turn on iCloud Sync from Settings. When it is on, your journal — entries, photos, and settings — is backed up to and kept in sync across your Apple devices using your own private iCloud account, through Apple's CloudKit. This relies on the iCloud account already signed in to your device, so there is no separate login.

Your synced data lives in your private iCloud space, which only you control. We operate no servers, never receive your data, and cannot read, access, or restore it. Your use of iCloud is governed by Apple's iCloud terms and privacy policy. You can turn iCloud Sync off at any time, and choose to remove the iCloud copy, from within the app.

Permissions the App May Request

Every permission below is optional and used only on your device:

• Face ID / Touch ID (biometrics): used only to lock the app so others can't read your entries. Your biometric data is handled entirely by iOS and never leaves your device; the app never sees it.
• Local notifications: used only to deliver the daily writing reminder you schedule. These reminders are generated on your device.
• Photo library access: requested only when you choose to attach a photo, through the system photo picker.

No Tracking and No Hidden Third Parties

We want to be exact about this:

• No analytics, no telemetry, no crash reporting, no advertising, no tracking SDKs, no cookies, and no advertising identifiers (such as the IDFA).
• The only third-party software bundled in the app is GRDB, an open-source database library that runs entirely on your device and transmits nothing.
• The app may use Apple's StoreKit to occasionally show the standard "rate this app" prompt. This is Apple's native control, and it shares no personal data with us.
• The app can display a home-screen widget. The small amount of data it shows — for example, a preview of today's entry or your streak count — is shared locally between the app and its widget on the same device using an app group. It never leaves your device.

Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)

Because all processing happens locally on your device and we receive no personal data, our role is effectively limited to providing software that you operate yourself. To the extent any processing falls under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), it is based on:

• Your consent, given by choosing to use optional features such as iCloud Sync, biometric lock, notifications, or attaching photos.
• The performance of providing the app's core journaling functionality that you have requested.

You can withdraw consent at any time by turning off the relevant feature or by deleting your data, both of which you can do directly within the app.

Your Rights Under GDPR

If you are in the European Union, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of access — to obtain a copy of your data.
• Right to rectification — to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Right to erasure — to have your data deleted.
• Right to data portability — to receive your data in a portable, machine-readable format.
• Right to restriction of processing — to limit how your data is used.
• Right to object — to object to certain processing.
• Right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority — your local data protection authority in your EU member state.

Because we hold no copy of your journal, you can exercise most of these rights directly and immediately, without needing to ask us:

• Access and portability: From Settings, Privacy & Data, you can export all of your entries as JSON or CSV at any time and share that file wherever you like.
• Rectification: You can edit or correct any entry, mood, name, or setting at any time within the app.
• Erasure: You can delete your entire local journal from within the app, which permanently removes it from your device. If you use iCloud Sync, you can turn it off and delete the iCloud copy as well.
• Restriction and objection: You can turn off any optional feature, such as iCloud Sync, notifications, or biometric lock, at any time.

You always retain the right to contact us at hello@onelinediary.com with any privacy question or request, and the right to complain to your supervisory authority. Please understand that, because we hold no copy of your data, we are technically unable to access, produce, or delete your entries on your behalf — these actions can only be carried out by you, on your device, using the tools above. We will gladly help you understand and use them.

Data Retention

We retain nothing, because we receive nothing — this is true whether or not you use iCloud Sync. Your data remains on your device for as long as you keep it there, and is removed when you delete it within the app, or when you delete the app or reset your device. If you use iCloud Sync, a copy also remains in your private iCloud account until you turn sync off and delete it, or remove it through Apple's iCloud settings.

Children

One Line is a general-audience journaling app and is not directed to children under 16, which we use as the baseline age of digital consent under the GDPR. The app collects no data remotely from anyone, regardless of age. If you are under the applicable age of digital consent in your country, please use the app only with the consent of a parent or guardian.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will change the "Last updated" date at the top. Significant changes may be reflected in the app. Your continued use of the app after an update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

Contact

For any privacy questions, data requests, or other inquiries, contact us at hello@onelinediary.com.