Privacy Policy — WallForge
What this app collects
WallForge does not collect any personal information from you. The app does not have user accounts, does not ask for your name or email, and does not record your behavior on a server we control.
| Data | Collected? | Stored where |
|---|---|---|
| Name, email, account info | No | — |
| Device location | No | — |
| Photos picked in Studio | Processed locally only | Never uploaded; passed to WallpaperManager on your device |
| Motion-wallpaper preset choice | Saved on your device | Local SharedPreferences |
| Image-search queries (Search tab) | Sent to Pixabay only when you search | Not retained by WallForge; Pixabay handles per their policy |
| Crash logs / analytics | No | — |
How the app uses photos you pick
In the Studio tab you can pick a photo from your device, add an optional caption, and apply a tint or overlay. The chosen image is decoded and composited on your device only. The result is handed to Android’s WallpaperManager when you tap Home / Lock / Both. WallForge never uploads your photos to any server.
Network connections
All wallpaper rendering, photo editing, and live wallpaper animation runs on your device. The internet is used for: (1) Google AdMob to load ads (see “Advertising” below), and (2) when you use the Search tab, sending your typed query and selected colour filter to the Pixabay image API (see “Image search (Pixabay)” below). The app requires an active internet connection to open — you will see a “No internet connection” screen when offline.
Image search (Pixabay)
The Search tab lets you browse royalty-free wallpapers from Pixabay. When you type a query or tap a chip / colour swatch, the app sends:
- the words you typed (or the chip / suggestion you tapped) and the colour name (if any) to
https://pixabay.com/api/; - standard HTTP request headers added by the Android networking stack (e.g. your IP address, used by Pixabay to apply rate-limits).
Your search history is not stored anywhere — not on your device, not on a WallForge server. Pixabay’s handling of the data they receive is governed by Pixabay’s Privacy Policy. Each thumbnail loaded from Pixabay shows the photographer’s username; tapping “Apply” downloads the larger image and hands it to Android’s WallpaperManager — the image is not re-uploaded anywhere.
A small set of curated photos shipped inside the app under the Gallery tab’s “2D” and “3D” categories are royalty-free Pixabay images bundled at build time. They are not fetched at runtime and use no network when applied. Photographer credit is shown on the preview screen.
Permissions the app requests
- Internet / network state — required to request ads.
- Set wallpaper — required to install your chosen wallpaper on the Home / Lock screen via Android’s system
WallpaperManager. - Bind wallpaper (Android system-level permission held by the live wallpaper service) — required by Android for any app that provides a live (motion) wallpaper.
- Write external storage (Android 9 and below only,
android:maxSdkVersion="28") — legacy permission required only on older Android versions for the photo-picker decode path.
The app does not request location, contacts, microphone, camera, notifications, or any other sensitive permission.
Advertising
WallForge shows ads provided by Google AdMob (banner, interstitial, and app-open formats). Google’s advertising SDK collects and processes limited data — for example, your device’s advertising identifier and approximate IP-based location — to serve and measure ads. This is governed by Google’s policies:
If you live in a region where consent is required (the EEA, UK, Switzerland, or a US state with applicable privacy law), the app uses Google’s User Messaging Platform (UMP) or sets npa=1 (non-personalized ads) so it stays compliant with GDPR / UK GDPR / CCPA.
Children
This app is not directed at children under 13 and is not classified as a “family” app on Google Play.
Contact
If you have questions about this policy, contact the developer through the Google Play listing.