Privacy policy
Summary
RealDict collects no analytics and no usage data. Your lookups, dictionaries and vocabulary stay on your Mac. The network is used only when you use or turn on one of the features listed below.
What stays on your Mac
- Search terms and lookup history
- The list, order and profiles of dictionaries you add, and the indexes the app builds for them
- Your vocabulary (words, decks, tags, context sentences, source apps, dictionaries) and study history
- App settings. Your Azure and DeepL keys are stored in the macOS Keychain.
- Backup files (.realdict), saved only where you choose. They never include dictionary files, your license or API keys.
Features that use the network
Each of these runs only when you start it or turn it on. Each service is governed by its provider’s own privacy policy.
| Feature | What is sent | To whom |
|---|---|---|
| Get dictionaries | A request for the dictionary file you chose | realdict.com (realdict.com/dicts/), FreeDict, GitHub, SourceForge |
| License check (if you enter a key) | Your license key and the product ID, when you enter the key and then at most about every 10 days. Gumroad returns the purchase status. | Gumroad (api.gumroad.com, over HTTPS) |
| Update check (if automatic checks are on, or when you check manually) | A request for the update feed (appcast.xml). Automatic checks follow Sparkle’s default, about once a day. | realdict.com |
| Azure speech (optional) | The text to read and your Azure key | Microsoft (Azure) |
| Translation: Apple Translation (default) | Nothing. Translation runs on your Mac. | No one |
| Translation: DeepL (if you enter a key) | The text to translate and your DeepL API key | DeepL |
| Translation: Azure Translator (if you enter a key) | The text to translate and your Azure key | Microsoft (Azure) |
| Google Sheets (optional) | The day’s words | The Apps Script you deployed yourself |
| Google Drive sync (optional) | OAuth sign-in, a snapshot of your vocabulary | |
| iCloud Drive or synced folder (optional) | Vocabulary and study files | RealDict only writes files; macOS (iCloud) or a service such as Dropbox does the transfer |
Sentence translation
Text is translated only when what you search for, or look up with the shortcut or the menu bar, is a phrase or a sentence. Apple Translation, the default, keeps the text on your Mac. DeepL and Azure Translator are used only if you enter a key and choose them, and then the text to translate goes to that provider. Words you look up by hovering are never sent to any translation service.
Images inside dictionary content
Depending on the dictionaries you add, a definition may contain links to images hosted elsewhere. When you view such a dictionary, those images may be loaded from their source; this comes from the dictionary file’s own content. Scripts inside dictionary content never run.
Error reports
Error reports are stored on your Mac. Before anything is sent you see a preview with sensitive details redacted, and a report is sent only when you choose to send it.
macOS permissions
- Accessibility: used by the lookup shortcut and hover lookup to read the text you select or point at in other apps.
- Screen Recording: used to find words through OCR where text can’t be read directly.
Both are needed only when you turn those features on, and the text they read is used on your Mac only to look up words.
Payments
Once sales open, payments are handled by Gumroad. Payment details such as card information are governed by Gumroad’s privacy policy.
This website
realdict.com uses no cookies, no analytics and no third-party scripts. Our host (Cloudflare) may process standard access logs to operate the service.
Contact
For privacy questions, write to hktybori2000@gmail.com.
Changes
If this policy changes, the new version will be posted on this page with an updated date.