Ad Engine Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy for Ad Engine

Effective Date: May 8, 2026
Last Updated: May 8, 2026
Developer: Hashim Abdul (Impresso Studios)
Contact: support@impressostudios.com

Ad Engine (“the App”) is a Safari Web Extension for iOS and macOS that blocks ads, trackers, and unwanted content. Your privacy is not just a feature — it is the entire point of the product. This policy explains exactly what data the App accesses, how it operates, and what choices you have.

1. Core Principle: Zero Data Collection

Ad Engine collects zero personal data. The App does not collect, store, transmit, or process any personal information, browsing history, page content, or usage data — ever. There is no server, no database, and no analytics pipeline. Nothing leaves your device.

2. How Blocking Works

Ad Engine uses Apple’s declarativeNetRequest API to block network requests matching known ad, tracker, and malware domains. This blocking happens entirely on your device:

Static rule lists are compiled into the App at build time from open-source filter list projects.
No remote rule fetching — the App does not download or update filter lists at runtime.
No request inspection — Apple’s declarativeNetRequest API evaluates rules at the system level. The App never sees, reads, or logs the content of your web traffic.
Cosmetic filtering (hiding cookie banners, newsletter popups, and app install prompts) runs via a content script injected by Safari. This script operates locally within each page and does not transmit any data.

3. Settings and Preferences

Your preferences (enabled/disabled categories, whitelisted domains, deep scan toggle) are stored locally on your device using:

Extension storage (browser.storage.local) for extension-side settings.
App Group shared storage (UserDefaults with a shared suite) for syncing category preferences between the main app and the Safari extension.

This data never leaves your device. There is no cloud sync, no account system, and no server-side storage.

4. Network Activity

Ad Engine makes zero network requests. The App contains no analytics SDKs, no crash reporting services, no telemetry endpoints, and no update mechanisms that contact a server. Every resource the App needs is bundled at build time.

5. Data We Do NOT Collect

To be explicit:

No browsing history — we never see what sites you visit
No page content — we never read or analyze what you view
No IP addresses — we have no server to log them
No device identifiers — no IDFA, no fingerprinting, no hardware IDs
No usage analytics — we do not track how often you open the App, which features you use, or how long you browse
No advertising — the App contains no ads and no advertising SDKs
No personal data is sold or shared with any third party, because no personal data exists to share

6. Open-Source Filter Lists

Ad Engine’s blocking rules are compiled from the following open-source projects:

EasyList and EasyPrivacy — CC BY-SA 3.0
AdGuard Filters — GPL-3.0
uBlock Origin Filters — GPL-3.0
Hagezi DNS Blocklists — CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
BlocklistProject — MIT
StevenBlack/hosts — MIT

These lists are processed at build time and converted into Apple’s declarativeNetRequest JSON format. No filter list data is fetched at runtime.

7. Permissions

The Safari extension requests the following permissions, all of which are required for ad blocking to function:

declarativeNetRequest — to block network requests matching ad/tracker rules
declarativeNetRequestFeedback — to show you how many items were blocked on the current page
storage — to save your preferences locally
tabs — to display the current site’s domain in the popup and update the badge count
webNavigation — to reset the block counter when you navigate to a new page
Host permissions (*://*/*) — required by Safari for content scripts that perform cosmetic filtering (hiding banners and popups) on all websites

None of these permissions are used to read, collect, or transmit your data.

8. Your Choices

Disable the extension: Go to Settings, then Safari, then Extensions (iOS) or Safari, then Settings, then Extensions (macOS) to disable Ad Engine at any time. Websites will load without any blocking.

Pause for a specific site: Use the “Pause” button in the extension popup to temporarily whitelist a domain. Tap “Resume” to re-enable blocking.

Toggle content categories: In the App’s Settings panel, you can enable or disable blocking categories (Gambling, Adult Content, Drugs and Alcohol, P2P and Piracy) based on your preferences.

Delete the app: Deleting Ad Engine removes the App, the extension, and all locally stored preferences. No data persists anywhere else.

9. Children’s Privacy

Ad Engine does not collect any personal information from anyone, including children under 13. The App contains no account system, no registration, and no data collection of any kind.

10. Changes to This Policy

If we make material changes to this policy, we will update the “Last Updated” date at the top of this page. Since the App does not collect email addresses or contact information, we encourage you to review this page periodically.

11. Contact

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, contact us at:
Email: support@impressostudios.com