A safe scanner app for your documents: processed on your phone

How to scan a sensitive document safely with Doc Scanner

1. Scan on a clean surface

   Tap the scan button and choose Document (or ID Card in the camera for both sides of a card on one page, Premium). Edge detection and capture run on your phone.

2. Check what's visible

   Crop away anything you don't need to share, such as the edge of another page or your desk. Zoom in to confirm names and numbers are readable.

3. Lock the PDF (Premium)

   Tap Share, choose PDF and add a password. The file is encrypted with AES-256, so it can't be opened without the password.

4. Send it to the right place

   Share through your phone's share sheet to the e-mail address or portal that asked for it, and give the password through a different channel, such as a phone call.

What stays on your phone

Doc Scanner is private by design. Scanning, image processing and text recognition all run on the phone:

• Scanning: edge detection, perspective correction and auto-capture
• Image processing: crop, rotate and the six filters (Original, Magic Color, Grayscale, B&W, Lighten, Contrast)
• Text recognition: AI-powered OCR with Google ML Kit, which reads your scans on the device. It even works offline, and nothing is uploaded for recognition.

That matters most for the papers people scan most often: IDs, passports, a social security card, bank letters, tax forms and medical bills. Because recognition runs locally, your exported PDFs still get a searchable text layer (free plan included) without the page being sent to a server to be read. See the offline scanner app page for everything that works in airplane mode.

No ads and no sign-up

Doc Scanner shows no ads. You won't see banners over your scans or full-screen videos before an export.

There's no registration wall either. You don't type an e-mail address or create a password: an account is created for you automatically in the background, and signing in with Apple or Google is optional. Want it gone? You can delete your account at any time.

What data the app does handle is spelled out in our privacy policy, in the privacy section of the App Store listing and in the Google Play Data safety section. Those are the places to check for any app, ours included.

Password-protected PDFs (Premium)

A scan is safest when it can't be opened by the wrong person. With Premium, Doc Scanner locks exported PDFs with a password and AES-256 encryption (the AES standard with a 256-bit key). Set it on the Share screen, right next to the format, quality and page size.

Use it for anything you e-mail or upload: an ID copy for a landlord, a payslip for a bank, a medical report for an insurer. Send the password separately, by phone or text message, never in the same e-mail. Step-by-step instructions are on password protect a PDF.

How to judge any scanner app's safety

No app can honestly promise to be the safest. What you can do is ask the right questions, and they take five minutes to answer for any scanner:

1. Where does text recognition run? On the device, or on the developer's servers? Look in the app's help pages and privacy policy.
2. Does the privacy policy name outside processors? Some scanners send document text to AI providers or OCR services. Search the policy for words such as "processor", "service provider" or "AI".
3. Does it show ads? Ad networks bring their own code into the app. Check the store listing for "Contains ads".
4. Do you have to sign up before you can scan? A forced sign-up means handing over an e-mail address before you've scanned a single page.
5. Who makes it? A named developer with a real contact address and a privacy policy you can read.
6. How strong is the PDF lock? Look for a stated encryption standard such as AES-256.
7. Can you delete your data? A clear account-deletion path is a good sign.

Doc Scanner's answers: on the device; nothing is uploaded for recognition; no ads; no sign-up; made by Ginowl, an independent developer based in Türkiye (about us); AES-256 (Premium); account deletion on our website. For a deeper look at our own app, read is Doc Scanner safe?

What other scanners' privacy policies say

Here is what the developers of popular scanners publish about where documents and their text go. We quote their own policies and help pages, dated, and link them under Sources. Policies change, so check the current version before you decide.

Some scanners process document text with outside providers, often for optional AI features; others keep recognition on the device like we do. Neither is automatically unsafe: what matters is that you know before you scan your passport.

Permissions Doc Scanner asks for and why

A scanner needs very little access to your phone. Doc Scanner's main requests are:

• Camera, to scan documents and read QR codes.
• Photos (iPhone), when you import photos as documents or save an exported file to your photo library. On Android, imports go through the system picker.

You can review or turn off any permission at any time in iOS Settings or in Android's app info. If an unfamiliar scanner wants your contacts or your location before you've scanned anything, ask why.

Scan your first document in seconds

Doc Scanner is free to download for iPhone and Android. No ads, no watermarks, no sign-up required.

Scan with your phone camera to get the app

Sources

1. Doc Scanner on the App Store (privacy section) (checked 2026-10-01)
2. Doc Scanner on Google Play: Data safety (checked 2026-10-01)
3. Municorn Scanner App privacy policy (effective 2025-10-10) (checked 2026-10-01)
4. iScanner privacy policy (January 2025) (checked 2026-10-01)
5. Genius Scan privacy policy (checked 2026-10-01)
6. Adobe Scan for iOS: Troubleshooting (last updated 2024-10-22) (checked 2026-10-01)
7. Adobe Scan for Android: Release notes (checked 2026-10-01)
8. CamScanner on the App Store (checked 2026-10-01)
9. CamScanner privacy policy (checked 2026-10-01)
10. CamScanner security and compliance (checked 2026-10-01)
11. Kaspersky Securelist: An advertising dropper in Google Play (2019-08-27) (checked 2026-10-01)
12. XDA Developers: CamScanner ad SDK update (2019) (checked 2026-10-01)
13. Press Information Bureau, India: Government blocks 59 apps (2020-06-29) (checked 2026-10-01)
14. Scroll: India banned CamScanner four years ago (2024-12-18) (checked 2026-10-01)

Doc Scanner is not affiliated with Municorn, iScanner, BP Mobile, Genius Scan, The Grizzly Labs, Adobe, Adobe Scan, CamScanner, INTSIG and OpenAI. Trademarks belong to their respective owners.

Related pages

• Is Doc Scanner safe?Is Doc Scanner safe? Who makes it (Ginowl, Türkiye), what happens to your scans, its permissions, and how to find the right iPhone or Android app.
• Offline scannerDoc Scanner is an offline scanner app for iPhone and Android: scan, make searchable PDFs and recognize text on your phone, with no internet needed.
• Social Security cardScan your Social Security card on iPhone or Android with Doc Scanner. Processed on your phone, no sign-up, no ads, and a password-locked PDF (Premium).
• AboutDoc Scanner by Ginowl, an independent developer in Türkiye, is a document scanner app for iPhone and Android: how it works, privacy, store links, contact.
• PassportScan your passport photo page into a sharp PDF or JPG with Doc Scanner for iPhone and Android. Auto edges, tips to beat glare and visa-ready files, no ads.
• No adsDoc Scanner is a scanner app with no ads, no watermarks and no sign-up, for iPhone and Android. Scan, sign and export searchable PDFs on the free plan.