Privacy

About this website. This static site uses no cookies, analytics, or third-party scripts.
Your theme preference is saved in your browser’s local storage.
Clicking an external link takes you to that service.

MacAIterm runs on your Mac. There is no account, no telemetry, no analytics and no crash reporting. This page lists exactly what is stored, what can leave the machine, and when.

What is stored (all local, in `~/Library/Application Support/MacAIterm/`)

File / folder	Content	Notes
`settings.json`	your settings	no secrets
`secrets.json`	API keys you saved in Settings	encrypted with the macOS Keychain (Electron `safeStorage`); if encryption is unavailable the key is not saved
`history/*.jsonl`	session history: requests, AI messages, commands, outputs	secrets are masked before writing; can be switched off (Settings → "Save session history") and deleted per session; the newest 200 are kept
`audit/*.jsonl`	every command the AI ran or tried to run + approve/deny decisions	secrets masked; exportable (Settings)
`usage/*.jsonl`	token counts only per API call (provider, host, model, input/output/cached tokens)	never prompts, answers or keys
`project-rules.json`	"always allow" rules you chose to keep per project	stored here, never inside a repository
`tabs.json`, `llm-settings.json`, `kv-engine.json`, `theme`	open tabs / chosen model / the private engine's process id / light-dark
`ssh-sessions.json`	the SSH sessions you saved in the side bar: name, folder, host, port, user name, the path of a key file, jump host, tunnels, X11 mode	never a password, passphrase or key; the file is private (mode 0600); every field is validated before it can reach a command line
`ssh-recent.json`	destinations (`user@host[:port]` or an `~/.ssh/config` name) of the last SSH sessions	names only; mode 0600

Delete everything: quit the app and remove that folder. Nothing is stored anywhere else (your shell history stays in your own ~/.zsh_history).

Data that can leave your Mac

Feature	What is sent	To whom	When
Local model (default)	prompts and command output	`127.0.0.1` (your own Ollama)	every request; never leaves the machine
OpenAI-compatible server (LM Studio, gateway, OpenAI API)	the conversation context and your API key	the server you entered in Settings	only after you pick it in the model chip; remote servers are never selected automatically and the UI warns that the context is sent off-device
Codex CLI	the conversation context	OpenAI via the `codex` tool	only after you pick it; its login is handled by `codex`, not by this app
Official usage lookup	your admin key and a date range	`api.openai.com` (organization Usage / Costs endpoints)	only when you press "Load official usage"
Update check	nothing but the request itself	`api.github.com` (releases of this repository)	off by default; when you press "Check now" or turn it on
Model download	the model name	your Ollama → its registry	only when you press a download button; the app never downloads on its own
Opening links	n/a	`ollama.com`, `github.com`, `platform.openai.com` pages	only on click (other addresses are refused)

SSH (servers you connect to)

The app never asks for, receives or stores an SSH password or key passphrase.
You type it in the terminal, exactly as with plain ssh.
Saved sessions hold where to connect, never how to authenticate beyond the path of a key file you chose (the key itself is never read by the app).
The server monitor and the file panel use a separate, non-interactive ssh connection (BatchMode=yes: it can never prompt, so it works with key login or with the shared connection of a session you opened from the side bar).
When no such connection is possible they simply stay empty.
The monitor runs one read-only script (it reads /proc, vm_stat, df, nvidia-smi …) and parses the numbers; nothing is written on the server.
The file panel only does what you click or drag.
With the AI on a server, commands and file tools run on that server through the terminal you can see (or through the same connection, after it proved to reach the same account).
Their output goes to your configured model like any other command output.
With a cloud model that means server output leaves your Mac, just as it would for local commands; secrets are masked first.
Changes on a server always ask for approval (Settings → SSH).
Host-key warnings (changed key, refused connection …) are shown as notes in the timeline with the key fingerprint; the app never answers a host-key question for you.
Everything the app writes during a transfer is verified with SHA-256 before it replaces anything; a cancelled transfer never leaves a half-written file under its final name.
Files you drag out to the Finder are cached in a temporary folder that is removed when the app quits.

API keys

OPENAI_API_KEY / OPENAI_ADMIN_KEY are read from the environment (including from your login shell, because an app started from the Dock does not inherit ~/.zshrc) and are held in the app's memory only.
The environment OPENAI_API_KEY is sent to api.openai.com only; for any other server only a key you saved for it in Settings is used.
Keys are never shown in the UI (it only shows the source: environment / Keychain), never logged, and masked if they ever appear in command output, history, audit or the text sent to the model.
This app never enters credentials on your behalf and the AI cannot read key files (~/.ssh, .env, cloud credentials … are blocked and masked).

What the AI can see

The AI sees the terminal state it needs for the request: the working directory listing, project files it opens, recent command output. Outputs and file contents are treated as untrusted data (a file cannot give the AI instructions), secrets are masked before anything is sent to a model, and risky actions need your approval (see the README). With a local model none of this leaves the Mac.

Email

The address at the bottom of this page is an ordinary mailbox. A message you send there, together with your address, reaches the maintainer through the usual email providers and is used only to reply. This site has no contact form and keeps no copy of what you send.

Changes to this page

If this behaviour ever changes it will be recorded in CHANGELOG.md before release.

Questions about these notes? Write to the address at the bottom of this page.

View the source privacy document ↗

What is stored (all local, in ~/Library/Application Support/MacAIterm/)