Legal

Privacy Policy

Last updated: 2026-05-31

1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how Pausix (“we”, “us”, “our”) handles information when you use the Pausix mobile application and visit this website. Pausix is designed as an offline-first internet speed limiter; the throttling engine runs entirely on your device and we do not operate any backend servers that receive your network traffic or browsing data.

To help us keep the app stable and to understand, in aggregate, how the app is used, the mobile app integrates Google’s Firebase Crashlytics and Firebase Analytics SDKs. The data these services process is described in detail below.

This policy is written with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the UK GDPR and comparable US state privacy laws in mind. It applies to users in the United States, the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, and elsewhere.

2. Data controller & contact

For the purposes of GDPR and similar laws, the data controller responsible for any limited information processed in connection with Pausix is the Pausix team. You can reach us at [email protected]. Google Ireland Limited / Google LLC acts as our processor for the Firebase services described in section 6.

3. What data the app collects

The Pausix mobile app is designed to minimise the personal data it handles. Specifically:

We do not require an account, login or email address to use the app.
We do not collect or upload your browsing history, visited domains, packet contents, URLs, DNS queries or per-app traffic records.
The app does not include third-party advertising SDKs.
The app integrates Firebase Crashlytics (crash diagnostics) and Firebase Analytics (aggregate usage metrics), as described in section 6. These services receive automatically-generated technical data only; they do not receive your network traffic.

4. Data stored locally on your device

Pausix stores the following information only on your device, using the operating system’s local storage:

Your selected speed preset and any custom speed limit values.
Your throttle direction preference (download, upload, or both).
Theme and onboarding preferences.
Temporary in-memory traffic counters (packets forwarded, dropped, bytes per second) shown on the live stats screen.

These preferences are removed when you uninstall the app or clear its application data through your operating system settings.

5. How the local VPN / network throttling works

Pausix uses your operating system’s VPN APIs (such as Android’sVpnService and iOS Network Extension APIs) to apply a local rate-limit to your own outbound traffic. The VPN endpoint runs entirely on your device.

Traffic is not routed through any server we operate.
Traffic flowing through the local VPN is not sent to Firebase, Google or any other third party.
The app does not perform SSL/TLS interception, install certificates, or inspect payloads.
The app reads only the protocol-level headers required to forward packets through the on-device throttling engine.
When you stop the limiter, the local VPN session is torn down immediately.

6. Firebase Crashlytics & Firebase Analytics

To help us diagnose crashes and understand aggregate usage, Pausix integrates the following Google services. Google acts as our data processor for these services, and you can review Google’s practices in the Firebase Privacy and Security documentation and the Google Privacy Policy.

Firebase Crashlytics

When the app crashes or encounters an unhandled error, Crashlytics sends a diagnostic report that may include:

Crash stack trace, exception type and message.
Device model, operating system version, locale, available memory and disk space.
App version, build number and the state of the app at the time of the crash.
A randomly-generated Crashlytics installation identifier used to group crashes from the same install.
The user’s IP address, which Google collects transiently to deliver the report and is not retained in the report itself.

Crash reports do not contain your network traffic, browsing history, packet contents or the speed limits you have configured. The legal basis for this processing in the EEA/UK is our legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR) in keeping the app stable and secure.

Firebase Analytics

Firebase Analytics records aggregate, automatically-generated events such as app opens, screen views and feature interactions. The data that may be processed includes:

A pseudonymous Firebase installation / app instance ID.
On Android, a resettable advertising identifier where the OS makes it available; on iOS, the IDFA is not requested.
Device model, OS version, app version, language, country (derived from IP).
Aggregate event counts for in-app screens and actions (e.g. limiter started, preset selected). We do not log the specific speed values you configure or your traffic.

Where required by law (for example, in the EEA and UK), Firebase Analytics is enabled only after you provide consent through an in-app prompt, and you may withdraw consent at any time from the app’s settings screen. Where consent is not legally required, the legal basis is our legitimate interest in measuring product usage in aggregate.

How to opt out

You can disable Crashlytics and/or Analytics at any time from the in-app privacy settings; the app will stop collecting further data on the next launch.
On Android, you can additionally reset or delete your advertising ID from your device settings.
Uninstalling the app stops any further data collection from your device.

7. International data transfers

Firebase Crashlytics and Firebase Analytics are operated by Google and the data they process may be transferred to and stored in the United States and other countries where Google or its sub-processors operate. Where these transfers involve personal data of EEA, UK or Swiss users, Google relies on the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses and supplementary measures described in its Data Processing and Security Terms.

8. Your rights

Where applicable law (such as GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA/CPRA) grants you rights with respect to personal data, you may have the right to:

Access, correct or delete personal data we hold about you.
Object to or restrict certain types of processing.
Withdraw consent for analytics and crash reporting at any time.
Request portability of personal data you have provided to us.
Lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

Because the only identifiers associated with you are pseudonymous installation IDs, in order to action a deletion request we may ask you to provide your Firebase installation / app instance ID (visible in the app’s privacy settings). To exercise any right, contact us at [email protected].

9. Data retention

Preferences and session counters are stored on your device for as long as the app is installed. Crashlytics retains crash reports for up to 90 days. Firebase Analytics user-level data is retained according to the retention period configured in the Firebase console (by default, 2 months for user-level identifiers); aggregate, anonymous reports may be retained for longer.

10. Children’s privacy

Pausix is not directed at children under 13 (or the equivalent minimum age in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided personal information through the app, please contact us so we can take appropriate action.

11. International users

Pausix can be downloaded and used in the United States, the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom and other regions. By using the app, you acknowledge that diagnostic and analytics data described in section 6 may be transferred to and processed by Google in the United States and other countries as described in section 7.

12. Security

We rely on industry-standard transport security (HTTPS/TLS) for the communication between the Firebase SDKs and Google’s servers. While we take reasonable steps to safeguard the limited data described in this policy, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

13. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will update the “Last updated” date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify users in the app.

14. Contact

For any questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, contact us at [email protected].