Privacy policy
FlicksForge is designed to do its job on your Mac without sending your data anywhere it doesn't have to. This page explains exactly what the app and this website do with network connections, what information gets collected along the way, and what your rights are.
Short version
- No analytics, no telemetry, no user accounts.
- Your video files never leave your Mac.
- The app talks to three external services: TMDb (for metadata), OpenSubtitles (only when you click Search), and our own update server (to check for new versions). Each is explained below.
- This website is statically hosted, sets no cookies, and runs no JavaScript analytics. The server keeps standard access logs.
Who we are
FlicksForge is a free macOS application developed by Paul Edward Goossens, based in the United Kingdom. The data controller under UK GDPR and EU GDPR is Paul Edward Goossens. Contact: support@flicksforge.com.
What the app does on the network
TMDb (The Movie Database)
When you drag a file into FlicksForge and click Auto-Match, the app sends
the cleaned filename (e.g. "The Matrix") and, once you pick a
match, the TMDb ID of the movie or TV show to TMDb's public API. TMDb
returns metadata (title, overview, year, cast, director, genre, artwork).
TMDb may log the request IP and query as part of their normal service
operation. See
TMDb's privacy policy.
OpenSubtitles
Only when you explicitly click Search OpenSubtitles in the Metadata Editor, FlicksForge sends the title, year, and (optionally) the video file's hash to OpenSubtitles to find matching subtitles. Downloaded subtitle files are saved to your local subtitle cache. Your video files themselves are never uploaded. See OpenSubtitles' privacy policy.
Our update server (flicksforge.com)
On launch and every six hours thereafter, FlicksForge fetches two small
files from our own server at flicksforge.com:
/updates/latest-mac.yml— version manifest; the app compares it to its installed version to decide whether to offer an update./updates/status.json— minimum-supported-version info and optional announcement messages (e.g. upcoming release notes).
These are plain HTTPS GET requests. If a new version is available, the update zip is downloaded the same way. The only information our server sees from these requests is what every webserver sees: your IP address, the requested URL, the timestamp, and the user-agent string (standard nginx access-log fields). We do not set any cookies, tokens, or unique identifiers on these requests.
These access logs are retained for up to 30 days for operational and security purposes (troubleshooting, detecting abuse). They are stored on the same server that hosts the website; they are never shared with third parties except where legally required.
What the app does not do
- It does not upload your video files anywhere. Remuxing, transcoding, and tagging all happen locally via bundled ffmpeg and AtomicParsley.
- It does not use any analytics SDK (no Google Analytics, Mixpanel, Amplitude, Sentry, Crashlytics, Rollbar, or similar).
- It does not have accounts, logins, or identifiers that persist between launches.
- It does not report crashes to us automatically. If you want to report a bug, please email us manually.
What this website does
flicksforge.com is a static site served by nginx. It loads a small amount of CSS and one JavaScript line (updates the copyright year in the footer). It does not:
- Set any cookies.
- Run any analytics or tag-management SDK.
- Include any tracking pixels or third-party scripts.
- Embed any third-party iframes (the demo video, if present, uses
YouTube's privacy-enhanced
youtube-nocookie.comembed).
Standard nginx access logs record your IP, URL, timestamp, and user-agent when you visit. These are retained for up to 30 days.
Legal basis and your rights (UK GDPR / EU GDPR)
The very small amount of personal data we process (IP addresses in server logs) is processed on the basis of legitimate interest — specifically, running and securing the service you're using. We do not process special-category data.
Under the UK GDPR, you have the right to:
- Request a copy of any personal data we hold about you.
- Ask us to correct inaccurate data.
- Ask us to delete data where no legal basis applies.
- Object to processing.
- Lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk).
In practice, because we don't have user accounts and the only personal data we hold is short-lived server log entries, there's usually very little to request. Email support@flicksforge.com with any rights requests.
Third-party services summary
The table below lists every external service FlicksForge ever talks to, when, and why:
| Service | When | What's sent |
|---|---|---|
| TMDb | On Auto-Match, when fetching metadata, when loading poster variants. | Cleaned filename, TMDb IDs, image-request URLs. |
| OpenSubtitles | Only when you click Search OpenSubtitles. | Title, year, optional file hash. |
| flicksforge.com (our server) | On launch and every 6 h thereafter; during updates. | HTTPS GET requests — no custom identifiers. |
| Apple notary service | Automatically by macOS on first launch of a signed app. | Handled entirely by macOS, not by FlicksForge. |
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy, we'll update the "Last updated" date at the top and, for substantive changes, show an in-app notice via the status banner.
Contact
Questions, concerns, or rights requests: support@flicksforge.com.