None declared
None declared
On the label it is low-risk: PDF NOW collects some data but says none of it is linked to you or used for tracking. None of it falls in Apple's most sensitive categories (health, financial, location, contacts or your own content). In total the label lists 2 data types; 47% of pdf editors we checked declare tracking.
PDF NOW 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.
PDF NOW collects some data but says none of it is linked to your identity, and none is used for tracking.
Did PDF NOW ask for something?
Pick the permission prompt you saw. We compare it with what PDF NOW's developer declared.
Location is not on PDF NOW'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 PDF NOW'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 PDF NOW'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.
PDF NOW declares no tracking, so a tracking prompt would contradict its label. Decline it, and consider reporting the mismatch to Apple.
Health & Fitness is not on PDF NOW'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 PDF NOW collects, explained
| Data type | What it covers | Where to limit it |
|---|---|---|
| IdentifiersNot 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. |
| DiagnosticsNot linked to you | Crash logs, launch times, hang rates and energy use. | Settings › Privacy & Security › Analytics & Improvements › Share With App Developers controls what Apple passes on; the app's own crash reporting is separate. |
What PDF NOW's label means for you
PDF NOW's label has 2 types 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.
Every type on PDF NOW's label is in the “not linked” section, so the developer says the data is stripped of anything that identifies you before it is used. That is typical of anonymous analytics and crash reporting. Not linked is still collected: the data leaves your phone.
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.
PDF editors open contracts, tax forms and IDs. Online conversion features can send whole documents to a server. Check which features work offline and whether files are deleted from the server after conversion.
Among the 170 pdf editors in our snapshot with a label, 47% declare tracking, 53% collect data linked to you and 28% say they collect nothing. PDF NOW lists 2 data types, about the same as the average of 2.2 for this group.
Productivity apps tend to collect the work you do in them — documents, notes and files — so User Content is common. The question is whether it syncs to the developer's servers and how it is protected there.
Settings to check for PDF NOW
- 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
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.
- 3
Notifications
Settings › Notifications › PDF NOW › Show Previews: When Unlocked keeps message and account details off the Lock Screen.
Does PDF NOW track you?
There is no “Data Used to Track You” section on PDF NOW's label.
Lock PDF NOW behind Face ID
- Find PDF NOW 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. PDF NOW now asks for authentication every time it opens.
The lock is an iPhone feature, so it works whether or not PDF NOW has a passcode of its own. It does not change what the app sends to its developer.
About PDF NOW
| Developer | Jian Jin |
| App Store category | Productivity (also Utilities) |
| Latest version | 1.6.0, released August 2026 |
| First released | April 2022 |
| Requires | iOS 15.6 or later |
| Size | 64 MB |
| Age rating | 9+ |
| Languages | 13 (EN, FR, DE, ID, JA, KO, PT, ZH…) |
| Bundle ID | com.qinxing.swiftpdf |
The current version shipped in August 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 PDF NOW 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 PDF NOW's developer: Does editing or converting a PDF upload it?
PDF NOW vs similar pdf editors
- Kirvo
- Offline PDF Editor
- PDF & EPUB Reader
- PDF NOW (this app)
- PDF Mpjex
- PDF Converter Reader for PDF
- Dragitor
- PDF Creator : Read,Scan & Sign
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 PDF NOW
All pdf editors → Who tracks you? A–Z → Apps that collect identifiers → Privacy label decoder →
Your PDF NOW privacy checklist
Done. You have applied every control the label points to.
True or false?
- Right.Not quite.
False: there is no Data Used to Track You section on PDF NOW's label.
- 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, in the Not Linked to You section.
- 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.