Privacy Policy

This document describes how BarePDF handles your data.

Effective date: 2026-05-14. Operator: ponkotools.

TL;DR

• Your PDF files never leave your device. BarePDF processes everything in your browser.
• We do not require an account.
• We display affiliate advertising on the site. Clicking an ad takes you to a third-party site governed by their own privacy policy.

Files you open with BarePDF

• When you open a PDF in BarePDF, it is read into your browser's memory and stored in your browser's local storage (IndexedDB).
• BarePDF does not upload your PDFs, annotations, or saved edit state to any server.

Local storage

BarePDF uses the following storage in your browser:

• IndexedDB — for PDFs you have added, your annotations, your folder layout, and thumbnail caches.
• LocalStorage / SessionStorage — for small UI preferences (e.g. selected tool, language).
• Cookies — only to remember your explicit language choice (cookie name: barepdf-lang).

You can clear all of this at any time by clearing site data for barepdf.ponkotools.com in your browser settings.

Analytics

BarePDF does not embed Google Analytics or similar third-party analytics scripts at this time. If we ever add such a feature, we will update this page first and disclose the provider used.

Affiliate advertising

The site displays advertising banners served from our own server (no third-party ad-network scripts are loaded). When you click an advertising banner:

• You are taken to the advertiser's website in a new browser tab.
• The advertiser may set its own cookies once you arrive on their site.
• BarePDF may record a click count locally for the purpose of choosing which ad to display.

Banners are clearly marked with a PR label per Japanese advertising regulations (景品表示法, October 2023).

Children

BarePDF is intended for general audiences. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

Changes to this policy

When the policy is updated, the "Effective date" at the top of this page changes. Substantive changes will be noted in the Changelog.

Contact

A contact address will be published here before launch.