None declared
It depends on how you feel about tracking: HomeVault declares data used to track you. None of it falls in Apple's most sensitive categories (health, financial, location, contacts or your own content). In total the label lists 1 data type; 20% of photo backup apps we checked declare tracking.
HomeVault privacy in one look
- 1Collects nothing
- 2Not linked
- 3Linked
- 4Tracks you
Built only from the developer's App Store label. It describes disclosure, not tested behaviour.
HomeVault's developer reports using identifiers to track you across other companies' apps and websites.
Did HomeVault ask for something?
Pick the permission prompt you saw. We compare it with what HomeVault's developer declared.
Location is not on HomeVault's label. That can be fine: data used only on your iPhone does not have to be declared. If the data would need to leave the phone for the feature to work, ask why it is missing.
User Content is not on HomeVault's label. That can be fine: data used only on your iPhone does not have to be declared. If the data would need to leave the phone for the feature to work, ask why it is missing.
Contacts is not on HomeVault's label. That can be fine: data used only on your iPhone does not have to be declared. If the data would need to leave the phone for the feature to work, ask why it is missing.
HomeVault declares data used to track you, so expect the “Allow to track?” prompt. Tap Ask App Not to Track; the app must keep working without it.
Health & Fitness is not on HomeVault's label. That can be fine: data used only on your iPhone does not have to be declared. If the data would need to leave the phone for the feature to work, ask why it is missing.
A permission is what the app can reach on your iPhone; the label is what the developer says leaves it. They answer different questions.
What HomeVault collects, explained
| Data type | What it covers | Where to limit it |
|---|---|---|
| IdentifiersUsed to track youNot linked to you | An account ID, screen name, customer number or a device-level ID such as the advertising identifier. | Settings › Privacy & Security › Tracking: turn off Allow Apps to Request to Track, or tap Ask App Not to Track when prompted. |
What HomeVault's label means for you
HomeVault's label has 1 type under “Data Used to Track You”, 1 type under “Data Not Linked to You”. A data type can appear in more than one section when it is used for different purposes — for example, identifiers used for both analytics and advertising.
Tracking is the declaration that most separates apps. It means identifiers from HomeVault can be combined with data from other companies to target or measure ads, or shared with data brokers. On iOS 14.5 and later, the app must ask your permission before tracking you through the advertising identifier; answering “Ask App Not to Track” blocks that identifier and tells the developer you have declined.
None of the data types fall into the categories most people consider sensitive: health, financial information, precise location, contacts, browsing history or the content you create.
Photo backup apps upload your library by design, including location metadata embedded in each picture. Check whether backups keep original location data and whether shared albums are public links.
Among the 93 photo backup apps in our snapshot with a label, 20% declare tracking, 29% collect data linked to you and 52% say they collect nothing. HomeVault lists 1 data type, about the same as the average of 1.5 for this group.
Photo and video apps usually request access to your photo library. iOS lets you share only selected photos, which keeps the rest of the library — and its location metadata — away from the app.
Settings to check for HomeVault
- 1
Tracking
Settings › Privacy & Security › Tracking. If “Allow Apps to Request to Track” is off, apps cannot ask, and they are told to treat you as having declined. You can also turn it off for this app alone.
- 2
Photos
Settings › Privacy & Security › Photos. Limited Access lets you pick exactly which pictures the app can see; Add Photos Only lets it save without reading your library.
- 3
Lock the app
On iOS 18 and later, touch and hold the icon and choose Require Face ID. Anyone who picks up your unlocked phone then needs your face, fingerprint or passcode to open it.
- 4
Notifications
Settings › Notifications › HomeVault › Show Previews: When Unlocked keeps message and account details off the Lock Screen.
Does HomeVault track you?
Identifiers. Apple defines tracking as linking data from this app with data from other companies' apps, websites or offline sources for targeted advertising or ad measurement, or sharing it with a data broker.
Lock HomeVault behind Face ID
- Find HomeVault on your Home Screen or in App Library.
- Touch and hold the icon until the quick-actions menu opens.
- Tap Require Face ID (or Require Touch ID / Require Passcode, depending on your iPhone).
- Tap Require Face ID again to confirm. HomeVault now asks for authentication every time it opens.
The lock is an iPhone feature, so it works whether or not HomeVault has a passcode of its own. It does not change what the app sends to its developer.
About HomeVault
| Developer | hirokazu murabe |
| App Store category | Photo & Video (also Lifestyle) |
| Latest version | 1.0, released January 2026 |
| First released | January 2026 |
| Requires | iOS 16.6 or later |
| Size | 7 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ |
| Languages | 2 (EN, JA) |
| Bundle ID | com.studiomagic.photobackup |
The current version shipped in January 2026. That is recent enough that the label should reflect current practices, but check the App Store page again before relying on it.
What the label cannot tell you
- A label is self-reported. Apple publishes the developer's answers and can reject apps that misrepresent them, but it does not independently verify what HomeVault sends.
- It does not say where data is stored, how long it is kept, whether it is encrypted, or which companies receive it. The privacy policy covers those points.
- Optional data counts: if a feature lets you add something (a profile photo, a phone number), the type is listed even if you never use the feature.
- Data handled only on your iPhone is not 'collected', so a no-collection label is compatible with an app that reads your files locally.
- Third-party sign-in, payment processors and SDKs are supposed to be included, but a label can lag behind a new version.
The question to ask HomeVault's developer: Is my photo library encrypted on their servers?
HomeVault vs similar photo backup apps
- Photo Transfer
- Backup&Recover Deleted Photos
- Lumin - Photo Backup
- HomeVault (this app)
- MePhotos
- PhotoBackup - USB Photo Backup
- BackiGo
- Photos Backup for NAS
Fewer types is not automatically safer: a cloud backup app has to collect your files to work. Compare like with like.
Look up any of our apps in seconds, or put two labels side by side.
Apps similar to HomeVault
All photo backup apps → Who tracks you? A–Z → Apps that collect identifiers → Privacy label decoder →
Your HomeVault privacy checklist
Done. You have applied every control the label points to.
True or false?
- Right.Not quite.
True: it lists identifiers under Data Used to Track You.
- Right.Not quite.
Labels are self-reported by developers. Apple can reject or remove apps that misrepresent practices, but it does not audit each label.
- Right.Not quite.
True: Identifiers appears on its label.
- Right.Not quite.
It is collected and sent; the developer says it is de-identified rather than tied to your account or device.
- Right.Not quite.
Apple's rules require apps to work the same whether or not you allow tracking.
HomeVault privacy FAQ
Is HomeVault safe to use?
Does HomeVault track you?
What data does HomeVault collect?
Who makes HomeVault?
Can I lock HomeVault with Face ID?
How does HomeVault compare with other photo backup apps?
Is my photo library encrypted on their servers?
How do I delete my data from HomeVault?
For photos and documents you choose to keep apart from your main library, see VaultForYou.