Holdfast Privacy Policy

Last updated 17 October 2026

Who to ask

This policy covers the Holdfast Android app. If you have a question about it, write to contact.holdfastapp@gmail.com.

What Holdfast looks at

Holdfast uses Android's Accessibility service to see which screen is open in Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Facebook, and when you go back to your home screen. It uses this for one thing: blocking Reels, Shorts and For You feeds, and closing its block screen when you leave.

It looks at the layout of the screen, such as the names of tabs and buttons and whether a screen is a video feed. It also notices that a tap or a swipe happened, so it can tell a video you chose from one that came up by itself. It never records what you tapped.

It never reads your messages, photos, posts, passwords or anything you type, and it does not look at any other app. What it sees is used in the moment and is not saved or sent anywhere. The only things Holdfast keeps are listed next.

What Holdfast keeps on your phone

• Your choices: which feeds to block, Gentle or Firm strength, locks, Bedtime and schedule times, your plan, when you used an unblock (for Firm's daily limit), and whether you have finished setup.
• Your answers in setup: which apps pull you in and about how long a day.
• A record of when Holdfast blocked a feed (which app, which feed and the time), so the Progress tab can show your weeks. It keeps the last 12 weeks.
• Which days blocking was running.
• The reason you write in setup or the Progress tab, which Holdfast shows on its block screen.
• If you choose one, the photo you picked for the block screen. Holdfast keeps a smaller copy in its own storage. It only ever has the one photo you picked, never the rest of your photos, and it never leaves your phone.
• Which versions of the four apps it has checked its blocking against.
• For the trial reminder, when your free trial ends and its price, and when the last Sunday note was sent.
• How many times Holdfast has opened Google Play's rating card, and when it last did, so it never asks more than three times or more than once in four months.

All of this stays in Holdfast's private storage on your phone, which other apps cannot read. Android's cloud backup is switched off for Holdfast. Everything is removed when you uninstall Holdfast or clear its storage in Android's settings.

What Holdfast never does

• It has no accounts and no sign-in.
• It has no ads, no analytics and no crash-reporting tools.
• It does not share or sell information, because it has none to share.
• It has no permission to use the internet.

Notifications

If you allow notifications, Holdfast shows three kinds, all made on your phone: a warning if blocking stops working, a reminder two days before a free trial ends, and a short note each Sunday on how often it stepped in. You can turn the Sunday note off in Settings.

Subscriptions

If you subscribe to Holdfast Pro, Google Play handles the payment. Holdfast never sees your card or payment details, and Google's own privacy policy applies to that payment. Holdfast asks Google Play, on your phone, whether your subscription is active.

Ratings

Once Holdfast has been working for a few days, it may open Google Play's own rating card, at most three times in all. The card belongs to Google Play: Holdfast never learns whether it appeared, what you rated or what you wrote. A review you leave is handled by Google Play, and Google's privacy policy applies to it.

Children

Holdfast is not designed for children under 13.

Your choices

You can turn Holdfast's Accessibility permission off at any time in Android's settings, and blocking stops straight away. You can remove everything Holdfast has stored by uninstalling it or clearing its storage.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, the date at the top changes too. If a change affects what Holdfast does with your information, we will say so in the app's update notes.