Last updated: 11/05/2026 (v1.9.0 — iCloud Sync + photo sync via CloudKit)
Summary: Cell Culture and Lab Assistant ("the App") does not collect, receive, transmit, or store any personal data on any server. All data you enter stays on your device. No analytics. No tracking. No accounts. No third-party services. No internet requests to the developer.
This policy describes what happens to data when you use the App. Because the App has no server component and performs no network requests for data collection, the scope of data processing by the App is limited to your own device.
The App does not collect, access, or transmit any personal data. Specifically:
The App Store privacy label for this App is "Data Not Collected", which reflects the App's actual behavior.
Any information you enter into the App (cultures, experiments, experiment templates, checklist steps, tasks, calculator inputs, timers, cell line information, reagents, reagent lots, virus stocks, frozen vials, freezer items including antibodies, plasmids, lysates, nucleic acids, primers, siRNA, bacterial stocks, tissue, serum, proteins, peptides, buffers, and other lab supplies, storage container layouts (Tank/Rack/Box hierarchy and box geometry), expiry policy rules, lab identity (display name and lab name), barcode strings, lab equipment, maintenance records, plate layouts, notebook entries, voice transcriptions, and photos) is stored locally on your device in Apple's standard on-device storage. This data is under your control at all times. You can delete it at any time via Settings > Data & Backup > Delete All Data, or by uninstalling the App.
From version 1.9.0 onward, the App uses Apple's CloudKit framework to automatically sync your App data between your own Apple devices that are signed in to the same Apple ID. The data that syncs includes: cultures, culture templates, experiments, reagents and reagent categories, reagent lots, freezer items and storage containers, virus stocks, frozen vials, cell lines, equipment and equipment maintenance events, plate layouts, protocols, lab notebook entries and procedure categories, tasks, the logbook (auto-recorded action history), saved media recipes, saved buffer recipes, timer presets, and photos (including the original image and a thumbnail). Photo bytes are transmitted to your private iCloud database via Apple's CloudKit CKAsset mechanism. The developer has no access to any of this data.
App preferences (Lab Identity name and lab name, alert toggles, theme, expiry-policy rules in the freezer module, and the in-app sample-data toggle) are intentionally NOT synced and live independently on each device.
iCloud Sync is operated entirely by Apple. Your data is stored in the private database of an iCloud container that lives in your own iCloud account. The developer of this App has no access to your iCloud data. Apple does not share it with the developer or with any third party. Apple's privacy policy and iCloud terms govern this storage.
You can turn iCloud Sync off at any time in Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Apps Using iCloud > Cell Culture and Lab Assistant. When iCloud Sync is off, the App continues to work with the data already on your device, and no further data is sent to or received from iCloud.
If you tap "Delete All Data" inside the App while iCloud Sync is on, the deletion propagates through iCloud to every other device signed in to the same Apple ID. To delete data on this device only, first turn iCloud Sync off as described above, then perform the deletion.
Independently of iCloud Sync, if you have enabled iCloud Backup in your iOS Settings, your App data is also included in your iPhone's standard iCloud device backup, alongside all other app data on your device. This is a separate iOS feature provided by Apple, not by this App. The developer has no access to your iCloud backups either.
You can manage iCloud Backup in Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup on your device.
When you choose to attach a photo to an experiment or notebook entry, the App requests access to your camera and/or photo library through iOS. Photos you capture or import are stored locally on your device in the App's sandboxed storage. From version 1.9.0 onward, if iCloud Sync is on, photos also sync to your own private iCloud database via Apple's CloudKit framework, alongside the other App data described in the iCloud Sync section above. Photos are never transmitted to any server other than Apple's iCloud and are never shared with any third party. If iCloud Backup is also enabled, photos are included in that separate device backup as well.
The App also uses your camera to scan barcodes on freezer items and lab supplies (Freezer Inventory > Scan to Find, and the optional barcode field on the Add Freezer Item form). All barcode recognition runs entirely on your device through Apple's VisionKit framework. No camera frames or barcode images are saved, retained, or transmitted; the App receives only the decoded barcode text string and discards the underlying video buffer immediately.
The App provides an optional voice-to-text feature to dictate lab notes hands-free (for example, while wearing gloves at the bench). When you activate this feature, the App uses your device's microphone and Apple's on-device speech recognition (SFSpeechRecognizer with requiresOnDeviceRecognition = true).
All speech processing happens entirely on your device. No audio recordings or transcriptions are sent to any server, the developer, or any third party. Audio buffers are processed in real time and discarded immediately after transcription. No audio is retained.
The App requests microphone and speech recognition permissions the first time you use the voice feature. You can revoke these permissions at any time in the iOS Settings app. The voice feature is entirely optional; the App functions fully without it.
If you use the companion Apple Watch app, timer data (timer names and durations) and today's task data (task titles, due times, priorities, and completion status, scoped to today's overdue and due-today tasks) are transferred between your iPhone and Apple Watch using Apple's WatchConnectivity framework. Tap-to-complete actions performed on the Watch are sent back to the iPhone via the same framework so the underlying task is updated. This data stays on your devices and is not sent to any server. Timer and task state is cached on the Apple Watch so it displays correctly between sessions. The optional "Lab Timer" watch-face complication reads this on-device cached snapshot to render the countdown; it does not send or receive any additional data.
The App provides Siri Shortcuts integration for hands-free bench actions: starting, stopping, and finishing lab timers by voice; logging a culture observation; logging a feed event on a culture; and asking Siri for an overdue equipment status summary. When you use these features, the relevant inputs (timer names and durations, observation text, culture names, equipment names, and completion / overdue status) may be shared with Siri to enable the functionality. Siri data is processed by Apple according to Apple's privacy policy. No data is sent to the developer. All Siri-driven actions act only on the data already stored locally on your device.
The App indexes your items (culture names, experiment titles, reagent names, equipment names, virus stock names, frozen vial labels, plate layout names, protocol names, cell line names, notebook entry titles and previews, and freezer item names, types, lot numbers, barcode strings, and type-specific details) in the system search index (Spotlight) so you can find them from your home screen. The App also shares limited state (timer status, today's task counts, active culture alert counts) with its Home Screen widgets, Lock Screen widgets, Live Activities, the expanded Dynamic Island, and (on iOS 18) a Control Center "Lab Timer" button. The App and its watch-face complication share their on-device cached state through an Apple App Group (a sandbox-shared storage area available only to this App and its own extensions on your device). All of this data remains on your device and is not transmitted externally.
The App functions fully offline. It does not make network requests for data collection, analytics, or remote configuration. The only outbound actions are standard iOS operations: (a) App Store review prompts, handled by iOS, (b) opening the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use in your browser when you tap the corresponding links in Settings, (c) iCloud Backup, handled by iOS, (d) from version 1.9.0 onward, iCloud Sync via Apple's CloudKit, handled by iOS as described in the iCloud Sync section above. None of these send your App data to the developer.
The App is intended for use by adult laboratory professionals in a research context. The App does not knowingly collect information from any user. In particular, because no data is collected at all, no data from children under 13 (US/COPPA) or under 16 (EU) is collected.
App data is stored locally on your device, and (from version 1.9.0 onward, if iCloud Sync is on) in your own iCloud private database. It is retained for as long as you keep the App installed AND, where applicable, until you delete it from iCloud. Uninstalling the App removes all local App data from your device, but the iCloud-synced copy remains available for future installs of the App on devices signed in to the same Apple ID. To remove the iCloud-synced copy, either tap "Delete All Data" inside the App while iCloud Sync is on, or remove the App's data from iCloud via Settings > [your name] > iCloud > Manage Account Storage. iCloud Backup copies (separate from sync) likewise remain in your personal iCloud storage until you remove them manually. The developer has no ability to access, retain, or recover any of your data in any of these locations.
Because the App does not collect or store any personal data on any server, there is no server-side personal data to access, correct, export, or delete. You retain complete control over your data through your device:
Residents of the EU, UK, California, and other jurisdictions with comparable data protection laws have additional statutory rights regarding personal data. Because this App does not collect, receive, or process any personal data, those rights are satisfied by your direct control of your device and the functions listed above.
For the identity and postal address of the provider responsible for this App, see the Impressum. This satisfies the identification requirement under GDPR Article 13(1)(a) and § 5 DDG.
For questions about this Privacy Policy or about the App, you can write to: fervour-rambles-9b@icloud.com. This is an Apple iCloud "Hide My Email" alias that forwards to the developer and does not reveal a personal email address.
If you contact the developer by email, the content of your message and your email address are processed solely to respond to your inquiry. Correspondence is not used for marketing and is not shared with third parties. Emails are retained only as long as necessary to respond to your inquiry and to handle reasonable follow-up, typically not longer than 12 months.
This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time. Material changes will be reflected on this page with an updated date at the top. Continued use of the App after an update constitutes acknowledgment of the revised policy.