SoundCove Privacy Policy

Effective date: September 14, 2026 · Applicable versions: v1.0.0+10 and later

Other documents: Terms of Use · App introduction

This is a translated version provided for your convenience. The Simplified Chinese version is the authoritative text; in case of any discrepancy, the Simplified Chinese version prevails.

Platform-specific versions: Android · HarmonyOS · iOS

【Preamble】SoundCove (hereinafter "this app") is a local and home-network audio playback tool. We (the developer of this app) care deeply about the security of your personal information and privacy. This policy explains the rules we follow when collecting, using and storing your information, so as to better protect your rights and interests.

【Special notice】

1. This policy applies to all platform versions of this app (Android / HarmonyOS / iOS) and takes effect alongside the SoundCove Terms of Use. For matters concerning the processing of personal information, this policy prevails; matters not covered here are governed by the SoundCove Terms of Use and applicable laws and regulations.
2. This policy describes how the app processes information in different scenarios. Networking only happens when you enable or use the corresponding feature (such as adding an SMB network source or purchasing a membership), to make that feature work; if you do not use a feature, the corresponding processing does not occur. In-app system permission prompts and other immediate notices have the same effect as this policy.
3. Before using this app, please read and fully understand this policy — especially the bolded clauses — and only start using the app after you understand and agree to it. If you do not agree with this policy, please do not install or use this app.
4. After reading this policy, if you have any questions, comments or suggestions about it or related matters, you may contact us through the channels listed in "8. How to contact us" and we will respond as soon as possible.

This policy will help you understand the following:

• 1. How we collect and use your information
• 2. How we use cookies and similar technologies
• 3. How we share, transfer or disclose your information
• 4. How we store and protect your information
• 5. How to exercise your rights over your personal information
• 6. Protection of minors
• 7. Policy revisions and notices
• 8. How to contact us

Summary

• No accounts, no sign-up: no phone number, email, name or any other identity information is collected;
• Your audio is never uploaded: local and home-network (SMB) music is decoded on your device only; file contents are never uploaded;
• All data stays on your device: playback history, SMB settings and the like exist only on your device;
• One disclosed exception — crash diagnostics: when the app crashes, anonymous diagnostic information is collected to fix defects — reported automatically via Huawei's crash service on Android; kept only on your device on iOS and HarmonyOS, and never leaves the device unless you act.

1. How we collect and use your information

(1) Core commitment: this app does not collect your personal information

• No account system: no registration or login is required; no phone number, email, name or other identity information is collected (membership purchases are completed through platform store accounts — App Store / Huawei AppGallery / HarmonyOS AppMarket — and this app maintains no account system of its own).
• Your audio content is not uploaded: local audio files and files in home-network (SMB) shares that you play are decoded and processed on your device only; file contents are never uploaded.

The only exception is crash diagnostic information (anonymous, containing no identity or playback content — see the table below and section (3)): to locate and fix app crashes, the Android version automatically reports anonymous diagnostics via Huawei's crash service; diagnostics on iOS and HarmonyOS are kept only on your device. Crash collection is enabled only after you agree to this policy.

(2) The complete list of network requests made by this app

Except for the scenarios listed in the table below, this app makes no network connections and performs no silent background uploads:

(3) Crash and diagnostic information (used to fix defects)

To locate and fix app crashes, each platform integrates its own official crash collection capability, handled differently:

• Android (automatic upload): Huawei's AGC crash service automatically reports anonymous diagnostics after a crash (see the table above). The reported content contains no identity information and no audio / configuration data; collection is enabled only after you agree to this policy; revoking the app's network permission in system settings stops all uploads.
• iOS (kept on-device): crash and hang diagnostics are collected through the system MetricKit framework and written only into the app sandbox. Apple's official crash aggregation (requires "Share Analytics" to be enabled in system settings) is handled by Apple under its own privacy policy. You can actively export on-device diagnostics via "About → Export diagnostics" and send them to the developer.
• HarmonyOS (kept on-device): app crash / hang events are collected through the system hiAppEvent subscription and written only into the app's local data directory — no networking, no uploads.
• Runtime logs (all platforms, kept on-device): uncaught runtime errors inside the app are recorded in an on-device diagnostic log (used for the export above and for troubleshooting); files rotate automatically when a single file exceeds 256 KB, with a combined cap of about 512 KB.

(4) System permissions requested and their purposes

To provide playback functionality, this app requests the following system permissions. Each is used solely for the stated purpose:

Local audio access: on Android 11+, this app uses the system Storage Access Framework (SAF) so that you actively choose your music folders; on iOS you actively choose folders through the system Files app / document picker (invoked via file_picker). On both platforms the app never silently scans your storage; directories you have not actively chosen are never accessed. iOS uses the sandbox model and does not request Android / HarmonyOS-specific runtime permissions such as "all files access" or "read Wi-Fi state".

Required permissions, optional permissions, and the effect of refusal: in the table above, "read audio / read media" is a required permission for local playback — if refused, the app cannot read local music (SMB playback is unaffected). Network-related permissions are used for SMB and membership sync; if you disable the app's network access in system settings, those two features become unavailable, while core local playback remains unaffected. The notification permission (Android 13+) is used only for the media playback notification; refusing it only hides the controls and does not affect playback. If the iOS "local network" permission is refused, SMB is unavailable while local playback and membership purchases remain unaffected. Choosing a cover image from your photo library goes through the system file / image picker (the selection runs in the system process); the app does not request photo-library permission and never accesses images you have not actively chosen. Enabling any permission means you authorize the app to process the corresponding information for the stated purpose; you may revoke permissions at any time in system settings. After revocation, the app no longer processes information based on that permission and can no longer provide the corresponding feature, but your revocation does not affect processing already carried out under your prior authorization. There is no "grant everything or the app is unusable" situation in this app.

2. How we use cookies and similar technologies

This app does not use cookies, local tags, device fingerprints or any similar tracking technologies; all data saved in the app (playlists, settings, etc.) is used only to provide functionality on your device and is not used to identify you.

All features, including cover art, run on your device and do not pass through any third-party web page or online service.

3. How we share, transfer or disclose your information

(1) Sharing

This app has no channel for sharing your personal information with the developer or any third party. Scenarios involving third parties are limited to the following three, with different data-handling responsibilities:

1. SMB login credentials: sent only to the SMB server you configured yourself — not to the developer, nor to any other third party.
2. Store payment components (Huawei HMS IAP SDK and AGConnect, HarmonyOS IAP Kit, iOS StoreKit): used only for membership purchases and entitlement sync. Apart from the information strictly necessary for the store to verify orders, this app itself does not read or process device identifiers; Huawei-side SDKs may read device identifiers under their own rules, and their data handling follows the official Huawei privacy statement; the iOS side follows Apple's official privacy policy.
3. Huawei AGC crash service (Android only; see section (3) of chapter 1): after a crash, this SDK automatically reports anonymous crash diagnostics (stack, device model and OS version, app version, etc.) to Huawei servers so the developer can fix defects; this app itself does not read or attach any device identifier, and the SDK's data handling follows the official Huawei privacy statement. Reporting is enabled only after you agree to this policy; revoking the app's network permission stops it.

In addition, the local open-source components bundled in this app (libmpv/FFmpeg, libsmb2, etc.) ship with the installation package and run locally on your device, handling audio decoding and the SMB protocol — no networking, no data uploads. The full component list and licences are available in-app under "About → Open-source notice".

(2) Transfer

This app does not transfer your personal information to any third party. If a situation requiring transfer arises in the future (such as a business adjustment or asset transfer), we will inform you in accordance with the law of the relevant circumstances and of the recipient's name and contact information, and require the recipient to continue protecting your information under laws, regulations and standards no lower than this policy.

(3) Disclosure

This app will not actively disclose your information. Only where laws and regulations require it, or where a judicial or administrative authority makes a request under legal procedure, may the developer lawfully provide the necessary information it lawfully holds.

4. How we store and protect your information

(1) Data stored on your device

The following data is stored only on your device — never uploaded or backed up to the developer — so there is no over-retention issue either: the retention period is entirely under your control, and deleting the app's data or uninstalling the app clears everything:

• SMB network source settings: the server address, share name and username you enter. Passwords are stored encrypted via device secure storage (Android EncryptedSharedPreferences / HarmonyOS Keystore / iOS Keychain).
• Playback progress and playlists: the songs you are / were playing, list indexes and playback positions (in seconds), used to implement "resume where you left off". Stored in the app's local data area (the app sandbox data area on iOS).
• App settings: theme mode, chosen music folder paths (Android/HarmonyOS) or security-scoped bookmarks (iOS), and similar preferences.
• Membership entitlements and purchase records: membership expiry and historical purchase records are stored locally only, used for entitlement recovery and the "purchase history" page; never uploaded.
• Crash and runtime diagnostics: MetricKit crash / hang diagnostics on iOS, hiAppEvent crash events on HarmonyOS, and runtime logs on all platforms (composition and handling rules in section (3) of chapter 1), written only into the app's local data area and never leaving your device; on iOS they can be actively exported via "About → Export diagnostics". All items rotate automatically, with a combined cap of about 512 KB.

How to clear: on Android/HarmonyOS you can clear this app's data in system settings; on iOS, in system "Settings → General → iPhone Storage → SoundCove". Uninstalling the app deletes all of the above.

(2) Protective measures

• Sensitive settings such as SMB passwords are encrypted via system security mechanisms (Android EncryptedSharedPreferences / HarmonyOS Keystore / iOS Keychain) and kept only on your device;
• Audio decoding and the SMB protocol are performed on your device by local open-source components, without networking;
• Membership order verification is completed within each store's own system; this app never touches payment information.

(3) Security tips

Encrypted storage cannot replace device security itself: if your phone has no lock-screen password, is rooted / jailbroken, or is unlocked by someone else, the SMB settings (including server address and account) could still be read. We recommend that you set a device passcode, and that if the device is lost or stolen you change the corresponding account passwords on the NAS / server side as soon as possible.

5. How to exercise your rights over your personal information

Under the Personal Information Protection Law of the People's Republic of China, you have rights to access, copy, correct, supplement, delete and withdraw consent regarding your personal information. All personal information in this app is stored locally on your device; here is how to exercise those rights:

• Access, correct, supplement and delete: playback history, albums, SMB settings and the like can be viewed, modified or deleted directly on the corresponding in-app pages.
• Delete all data: clear this app's data in system settings, or simply uninstall the app.
• Withdraw consent ("account deletion"): this app has no account system; uninstalling the app withdraws all authorizations.
• Change the scope of authorization: you may also revoke granted permissions at any time in system settings (such as network, local network, notifications). After revocation the corresponding features become unavailable while core local playback is unaffected; your revocation does not affect processing already carried out under your prior authorization.
• Requests for assistance: if you need the developer's help (for example questions about this policy, or a close relative asserting rights on behalf of a deceased user — since data exists only on-device, the developer can help explain the data composition and how to clear it, but cannot export it remotely), please email working12.3@126.com.

About data export and download: all your data is on your device; this app provides no online export / download service. To migrate or keep your data, use the system's built-in backup features and back it up yourself (data cannot be recovered after uninstalling). One exception: on iOS, "About → Export diagnostics" can export on-device crash and runtime diagnostics, and you decide via the system share sheet where to send them.

6. Protection of minors

This app is not directed at children under 14; it collects no age-bracket information from any user and does not knowingly collect children's personal information. If the developer accidentally learns the personal information of a child under 14 through offline channels such as email, it will be used only to handle that request and deleted afterwards, never for any other purpose. If a guardian discovers a child using this app without consent, they may require the child to stop using and uninstall the app; for assistance, contact us by email.

7. Policy revisions and notices

• Minor revisions: wording adjustments that do not affect your rights or obligations are published directly on this website with an incremented version number;
• Material revisions: in addition to updating this website, the app will show a dialog asking you to re-confirm; features involving new types of personal information or new permissions are enabled only after your renewed consent. Continuing to use the app after a notice takes effect means you accept the revision; if you disagree, you may stop using the app.

Material revisions include, without limitation:

1. Changes to the service model, such as new categories of collected information, new system permissions, or new networking scenarios;
2. Changes to the main recipients of shared, transferred or disclosed personal information;
3. Changes to your rights regarding personal information processing or how to exercise them;
4. Changes to the developer's contact information or feedback channels;
5. Other circumstances that may seriously affect your rights and interests.

Historical versions are available on request.

8. How to contact us

We maintain a dedicated personal-information protection function and protect your personal information in accordance with this policy. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions about this policy, please email working12.3@126.com. In general, we will reply within fifteen working days after receiving your question and verifying your identity as a user.

9. Revision history

This policy is written based on the app's actual behavior as of the effective date. The only networking uploads currently included are the anonymous crash diagnostics described in section (3) of chapter 1; if future versions introduce accounts, advertising or further networking uploads, this policy will be updated accordingly and your consent will be sought again.