This Privacy Policy explains how Jed Ashford (“Macro Bee,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) collects, uses, and protects your information when you use the Macro Bee website at https://macrobee.app and the Macro Bee apps for macOS, Windows, Android, and the web (collectively, the “Service”).
Macro Bee is an independent product. It is designed to work with the WeMacro rail and compatible motorized macro rails, but it is not affiliated with, authorized, endorsed by, or sponsored by WeMacro or the manufacturer of any rail. References to “WeMacro” describe hardware compatibility only.
In short
- You can use the app in a local “demo” mode without an account. An account is only needed to sync your stacks and run history across devices.
- We collect the minimum needed to run that account: your name, email, password, and the focus-stacking projects and run logs you create.
- We do not collect your photographs, we do not run advertising or third-party analytics/tracking, and we do not sell your data.
- You can access, export, or delete your data at any time.
Information we collect
Information you provide
- Account details: when you create an account, your name, email address, and password. Passwords are processed by our authentication library, which stores them only in salted, hashed form — we never store or have access to your plaintext password.
- Content you create: the focus-stacking “projects” (recipes) and “runs” you save — for example lens magnification, aperture, sensor format, step size, shot counts, timing, and any notes you write, plus per-run data such as shot timestamps, rail positions (in microns), and run status. This is photography workflow data.
- Consent record: the version of these documents you agreed to and the time you agreed, recorded when you create an account.
- Communications: if you email us for support, the contents of your message and your contact details.
Information collected automatically
- Session & security data: to keep you signed in and protect the account, we store session tokens and limited request metadata such as your IP address, browser/app user-agent string, and timestamps.
- On-device storage: the app stores preferences locally on your device (for example your chosen server, your remembered camera sensor, and your session cookie) using your operating system’s standard storage. This stays on your device.
Bluetooth and location
Macro Bee uses Bluetooth solely to discover and communicate with your rail. On Android, the operating system may require Bluetooth and/or location permissions in order to scan for nearby Bluetooth devices. Macro Bee does not use these permissions to collect, store, or transmit your location, and we do not derive your location from them.
What we do not collect
- Your photos. Images stay on your camera and its SD card. The app only records shot timestamps so you can later match files on your card to a run; it never receives or uploads your images.
- Payment information. The Service is free; we do not process payments.
- Advertising or third-party tracking. There are no ad networks, no third-party analytics SDKs, and no cross-site trackers in the app or on the website.
How we use information
- To provide the Service, including syncing your stacks and runs.
- To authenticate you and keep your account secure.
- To detect, prevent, and respond to abuse, fraud, and technical issues.
- To respond to your support requests.
- To send you important service or account messages (for example a password reset or a notice about a material change to the Service). If we send such email, we use Brevo (Sendinblue) as our email delivery provider. We do not send marketing email.
- To comply with legal obligations and enforce our Terms.
Legal bases (EEA/UK users)
If you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, we process your personal data under the following legal bases: performance of our contract with you (to provide your account and the Service); our legitimate interests (to secure the Service and prevent abuse); your consent (which you may withdraw at any time, for example by closing your account); and compliance with legal obligations.
How we share information
We do not sell your personal data. We share it only with service providers who help us run the Service, and only as needed for that purpose:
- Hosting & database — Fly.io. Our API, website, and database run on Fly.io in the United States.
- Email delivery — Brevo (Sendinblue). Used only if and when we send you account or service email.
- Legal & safety. We may disclose information if required by law, or to protect the rights, safety, or property of our users, the public, or us.
- Business transfer. If the Service is ever transferred to another operator, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to this Policy.
International data transfers
The Service is operated from and hosted in the United States. If you access it from outside the United States, your information will be processed in the United States, where data-protection laws may differ from those in your country.
Data retention
We keep your account information and content for as long as your account is active. When you delete your account (or ask us to delete it), we delete your account and its associated projects, runs, and sessions. Residual copies may persist in encrypted backups for a limited period (generally up to 30 days) before they are overwritten, and we may retain limited records where required for legal, security, or fraud-prevention purposes.
Your rights and choices
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, export, or restrict the processing of your personal data, and to object to certain processing or withdraw consent. To exercise any of these rights, email us at jedashford+macrobee@gmail.com. We will respond within the time required by applicable law.
California residents: we do not sell or “share” personal information as those terms are defined under the CCPA/CPRA, and we will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights.
Deleting your account
You can request deletion of your account and data at any time by emailing us at jedashford+macrobee@gmail.com. Deleting your account removes your saved projects, run history, and sessions from our systems. You can also export your run data from the app (CSV) before deleting if you’d like to keep a copy.
Security
We protect your information using industry-standard measures, including encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS) and salted, hashed password storage. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security. Please use a strong, unique password and keep it confidential.
Children’s privacy
The Service is not directed to children. You must be at least 16 years old (or the age of digital consent in your country, if higher) to create an account. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us personal information, contact us at jedashford+macrobee@gmail.com and we will delete it.
Changes to this Policy
We may update this Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date above and, for material changes, take reasonable steps to notify you. Your continued use of the Service after an update means you accept the revised Policy.
Contact us
If you have questions about this Policy or your data, contact Jed Ashford at jedashford+macrobee@gmail.com.
See also our Terms of Service.