meshTerm · iOS SSH Client

Privacy Policy

James Betchley  ·  Effective March 2026  ·  Version 1.0
Short version: meshTerm does not collect your terminal content, SSH credentials, or personal data. We do not sell your data. We do not display advertisements.

Contents

  1. Information We Do Not Collect
  2. Information We Do Collect
  3. How Information Is Stored on Your Device
  4. Tailscale
  5. Third-Party Services
  6. Apple App Store and Apple Services
  7. Children's Privacy
  8. Your Rights
  9. Data Retention
  10. Security
  11. Changes to This Privacy Policy
  12. Contact Us

Your privacy is important to us. This Privacy Policy explains how James Betchley ("Developer", "we", "us", or "our") collects, uses, and protects information when you use meshTerm (the "Application"). We have designed meshTerm with privacy as a core principle — the Application is built to handle sensitive SSH credentials and terminal sessions, and we take that responsibility seriously.

1 Information We Do Not Collect

meshTerm is designed so that the following sensitive information never leaves your device and is never transmitted to the Developer or any third party:

We do not use advertising identifiers (IDFA) or any equivalent tracking technologies. meshTerm does not contain advertising SDKs or analytics SDKs that transmit personal data to third parties.

2 Information We Do Collect

2.1 Crash Reports

If the Application crashes, anonymised crash data may be collected through Apple's standard crash reporting infrastructure (if you have opted in to sharing diagnostic data with app developers in your iOS Settings). This data includes:

Crash reports explicitly exclude terminal content, SSH credentials, command history, and any other user data. We configure our crash reporting to prevent any such data from appearing in crash logs.

2.2 Subscription Information

When you purchase a meshTerm Pro subscription, Apple processes your payment and provides the Application with a transaction receipt. We receive:

We do not receive your payment card details, billing address, or Apple ID. All payment processing is handled entirely by Apple Inc.

2.3 iCloud Sync Data

If you use iCloud sync for your snippet vault, host configurations, and settings, this data is stored in your personal iCloud account using Apple's CloudKit framework. This data is:

We do not have access to the contents of your iCloud data.

3 How Information Is Stored on Your Device

3.1 SSH Credentials

SSH private keys and passwords are stored in the iOS Keychain with the following protections:

3.2 Application Data

All application data stored on your device (host configurations, snippets, themes, known SSH host keys) is protected by iOS Data Protection with NSFileProtectionComplete, meaning data is encrypted when the device is locked.

3.3 SSH Host Keys

SSH host key fingerprints are stored locally on your device only and are not synchronised to iCloud. This is intentional — known host key trust is device-specific for security reasons.

4 Tailscale

The Application integrates with Tailscale networking. When you use Tailscale features:

Tailscale's privacy policy is available at: tailscale.com/privacy-policy

5 Third-Party Services

The Application uses the following third-party open source components. These run entirely on your device and do not transmit data to third-party servers:

The Application does not integrate any advertising networks, social media SDKs, or data broker services.

6 Apple App Store and Apple Services

The Application is distributed through the Apple App Store. Apple may collect certain information in connection with your download and use of the Application, including your Apple ID and device identifiers, subject to Apple's own Privacy Policy available at apple.com/legal/privacy.

In-app subscription purchases are processed by Apple. Apple's privacy policy governs the data collected in connection with those transactions.

7 Children's Privacy

meshTerm is not directed at children under the age of 13 (or 16 in the European Economic Area). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. The Application is intended for use by developers, system administrators, and technical users who manage remote Linux infrastructure.

8 Your Rights

Under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and applicable data protection legislation, you have the following rights:

Given the privacy-by-design nature of meshTerm, we hold minimal personal data about you. Most data is stored exclusively on your device and in your iCloud account, both of which you control directly. To exercise any of these rights or for any privacy-related enquiry, please contact us at the address below.

9 Data Retention

We retain crash report data (if collected through Apple's crash reporting) for a period of up to 12 months, after which it is deleted. This data is anonymised and cannot be linked back to you individually.

Subscription transaction data is retained for the period required by applicable tax and financial regulations, typically 7 years in the United Kingdom.

All other data (SSH credentials, snippets, host configurations) is stored exclusively on your device and in your iCloud account. Deleting the Application removes all locally stored data. You can manage iCloud data through your device Settings → Apple ID → iCloud → Manage Storage.

10 Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect the limited data we handle. The Application itself employs multiple layers of security including iOS Keychain storage, Data Protection, biometric authentication, and SSHv2 with modern cipher suites.

However, no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

11 Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by updating the effective date at the top of this document and, where appropriate, providing notice within the Application. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.

Your continued use of the Application after any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

12 Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

James Betchley

Email: meshterm@gmail.com

Application: meshTerm on the Apple App Store

We will respond to all privacy enquiries within 30 days.