The short version
CopyClean collects nothing about you. There is no account, no sign-in, no analytics, no telemetry, no crash reporting, no tracking, and no ads. The developer cannot see your name, how you use the app, or - above all - anything you copy.
CopyClean is a macOS 14+ menu-bar utility that cleans your clipboard: it removes invisible Unicode and AI-watermark characters, normalizes AI typography back to plain ASCII, and strips tracking parameters from URLs. All of this happens entirely on your device. The clipboard contents you copy are processed locally and are never uploaded or transmitted anywhere.
There is exactly one feature that uses the network, and it is off by default: the optional "Expand share links" setting. Everything else works with no network access at all. The sections below explain every detail.
What data is collected
None. CopyClean does not collect, store, or transmit any personal data. Specifically, the app contains:
- No analytics or product-usage tracking
- No telemetry or crash/diagnostic reporting
- No advertising or marketing SDKs
- No accounts, logins, profiles, or unique identifiers
- No third-party code beyond Apple's own frameworks
There is nothing to opt out of, because there is nothing being gathered in the first place.
On-device processing
The whole point of CopyClean is that it works locally. When the app is active, it watches your clipboard and, when you copy text, replaces the clipboard contents with a cleaned version. The text is read, cleaned, and written back entirely in memory on your Mac. Your clipboard data is never sent to the developer or to any server, and it is never written to a log or a file.
CopyClean is a sandboxed Mac App Store application. It runs with the minimum permissions it needs: the app sandbox, read-only access to files you explicitly choose in an open panel (used only by the App Rules setting), and outbound network access - which is exercised only by the opt-in feature described next, and never with your clipboard contents.
The one network feature: "Expand share links"
CopyClean includes a single optional feature that can make a network request, and it is disabled by default. You have to turn it on yourself in Settings.
When "Expand share links" is enabled, CopyClean can resolve opaque short or share URLs - for example a vm.tiktok.com link, a Reddit /s/ share link, or a t.co link - into their final destination by following the redirects, so the cleaned link is the real, tracker-free URL rather than an opaque wrapper. To do this it issues a minimal, ephemeral request to that link's host to read where it redirects.
This feature is built to be conservative: it acts only on a fixed allow-list of known short-link hosts, follows a capped number of redirect hops with a timeout, refuses to follow redirects to private, loopback, or otherwise non-public addresses, and strips tracking parameters from the result. When the feature is turned off - which is the default - CopyClean makes no network requests with your data, and the network is never used while cleaning your clipboard.
To be precise about scope: when this feature is on, the URL you copied (which you are about to share anyway) is sent to that link's own host in order to resolve it. It is not sent to the developer, and no other clipboard content is ever transmitted.
What is stored on your Mac
Your settings - such as the active cleaning mode, which typography and hidden-character groups are enabled, your App Rules, and whether "Expand share links" is on - are saved locally on your device using the standard macOS preferences system (UserDefaults). For the "Restore Original" feature, the app also keeps the most recent original and cleaned text in memory so you can undo a clean.
This data never leaves your Mac. It contains no identifiers, no account information, and no record of what you copy. Removing the app removes its settings along with it.
Purchases and the free trial
CopyClean is sold through the Mac App Store as a one-time purchase ($12.99) with a 7-day free trial. Your purchase, trial, and any billing are handled entirely by Apple through StoreKit and the App Store. The developer never sees or receives your payment details - no card numbers, no billing address, nothing of the sort. Apple's privacy policy governs how your payment and App Store account data are handled.
Third parties
The only third party involved in CopyClean is Apple, as the operator of the Mac App Store and the provider of the operating system and frameworks the app is built on. Apple handles app distribution, the free trial, and all payments under its own terms and privacy policy. CopyClean does not integrate any other third-party services, SDKs, analytics providers, or ad networks.
Children's privacy
CopyClean is a general-purpose utility and is not directed at children. Because the app collects no personal data from anyone, it collects none from children either.
Changes to this policy
If the way CopyClean handles data ever changes - for example, if a future version adds a new optional feature - this page will be updated and the change noted, with the "Last updated" date above revised accordingly. Data collection will never be switched on by default or applied retroactively without notice.
Contact
Questions about this policy or how CopyClean handles your data? Get in touch with the developer at hello [at] copyclean.app.