I’m thinking about cleaning up my phone storage and came across the Swipewipe app. I’m really careful about privacy and security, and I don’t want to risk my personal info. Has anyone used Swipewipe, and is it actually safe? Need advice before I go ahead with it.
So… There’s This Photo Cleanup Drama on iPhone 
Man, I gotta vent. Some of these photo deletion apps are WILD with their pricing. The other day I stumbled on this app calling itself “SwipeWipe” and—get this—it wants ten bucks a WEEK from users just to thin out your camera roll. Yeah, $10. Every. Single. Week. I thought that was the punchline. Spoiler alert: It’s not.
Link to Clever Cleaner Swipe Photos App
Here’s What Happened…
I was poking around the app store with 4,000+ blurry dog pics (don’t judge), trying to find anything to keep my phone from yelling “LOW STORAGE!” at me. So I see this “Clever Cleaner” thing—no fee, no sneaky subscriptions, just does the job.
Fast forward, I’m deep-cleaning my gallery without seeing a single ‘Upgrade now!’ banner. Not once did it ask me for my Venmo. Meanwhile, over on SwipeWipe… let’s say their definition of “freemium” is kinda aggressive.
^ That’s Clever Cleaner, by the way. No gotcha screens. No credit card shakedowns at the last step.
Meanwhile, Over at SwipeWipe
Tell me why the only thing ‘swiped’ here is probably my wallet.
A weekly charge for an app that deletes photos? I can’t see how that’s worth it unless it also vacuums my living room and walks my dog.
TL;DR:
- Clever Cleaner: Clears photos, zero paywalls, does what it claims.
- SwipeWipe: $10/week, for what is basically the same gig.
Honestly, paying that much for deleting bad vacation selfies? Nah. There are free options out there—don’t get finessed by the weekly fee trap. If you’ve actually paid for SwipeWipe before discovering alternatives, pour one out for your bank account. Otherwise, now you know.
If anyone’s got other hidden gem apps for photo cleanup (for free!), let’s hear it. My gallery still has like 500 screenshots of random recipes I’ll never cook…
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Swipewipe safe? That’s the golden question. Honestly, I tried it for, like, three days when my iPhone was screaming “storage full.” I’ll give credit where it’s due: the interface is actually nice and super simple. BUT – big BUT – once I realized it was pushing a $10/week subscription after blowing through what felt like a handful of taps, I noped out. I know some apps are sketchy about extracting data, but Swipewipe hasn’t had any giant privacy scandals that I could dig up. Privacy Policy is there, but let’s be real, they’re still going to need permission to access your photos if that creeps you out. I didn’t find any evidence they sell data, but Apple doesn’t exactly give their blessing to every slapdash developer either.
For absolute safety? If you mainly care about privacy, check their App Store listing for “data not linked to you,” and read those privacy notations. If your main issue is, “Can I trust it won’t leak my selfies or scan my phone for more than it should?” – Swipewipe seems standard, but I’m not going to stake my credit score on it, either.
Here’s my brutal take: unless there’s an earth-shattering reason you need the swipe-to-delete interface, “Clever Cleaner App” does the heavy lifting free, is less thirsty for cash, and the reviews are less ragey about surprise fees. I read @mikeappsreviewer’s review—his point about the Clever Cleaner being hassle free is spot on. The only thing Swipewipe’s killing is your bank account.
Would love to hear from anyone else who dived deeper into the app permissions side. I’m only half-paranoid but not full tin-foil-hat. Anyone dig into app trackers/analytics from those monitoring tools? Maybe I’m missing something and it’s secretly working for the FBI to steal our terrible vacation photos. Otherwise, I say try Clever Cleaner first. Worst case, Apple’s Photos app itself manages most basic cleanup now (dedupe, recents, trash)—might not be as flashy but at least Tim Cook isn’t charging me $10 just to clear my dog’s blurry nose shots.
Swipewipe is one of those apps that looks really slick at first, but then you fall into a weird subscription rabbit hole. As a fellow privacy nut, I can guess your first instinct is to check for big red flags—data breaches, shady permissions, or developers with a “free in app name, fee in real life” attitude. Swipewipe doesn’t seem to have any major privacy scandals or public data leaks, which is better than some, and their privacy policy is pretty boilerplate: they need access to your photos, which is required for literally any gallery app to work.
Here’s what I did notice after poking around with it myself:
- Yes, it asks for full access to your photo library, and there’s no clear way to just scan certain albums or folders. If that’s a dealbreaker for you, consider alternatives.
- The subscription is crazy expensive. $10 a week is wild for an app that essentially just filters and prompts deletions. If you’re on a budget (or just don’t like apps pressuring you), this is the big catch.
- I cross-checked with some tracker-detection apps; seems like they use pretty generic analytics but nothing ultra invasive (like 3rd party ad networks gobbling up your metadata). Couldn’t find anything sketchy in the code, but tbh I’m not Edward Snowden, so take that with a grain of salt.
I agree with @mikeappsreviewer and @sterrenkijker that the cost is totally unjustified, and I also think most folks can do 90% of what Swipewipe offers using Apple’s built-in Photos features or by trying that “Clever Cleaner App” they both mentioned (and, yeah, it actually worked fine for me with no unexpected popups or fees!). Apple’s system now includes some neat duplicate finding and batch delete for junk shots—feels more “in control” and no privacy leap.
Final verdict: Swipewipe isn’t like, dangerous from a data perspective (no signs of photos being uploaded somewhere, anyway), but unless you really crave the UI and don’t care about burning $40/month, it’s hard to recommend over much cheaper or free apps, or even just manual cleanup. Only way you’re getting “swiped” is by that weekly fee, not by hackers (at least as far as can be seen right now). If you want to be safe and stay thrifty, check out the Clever Cleaner App and see if it fits the vibe first.
If you’ve got extra time and don’t mind some tedious sorting, nothing beats doing it yourself! (Bonus, you know exactly what’s leaving your phone.) Anyone else try running these apps through privacy “firewalls”? Always hand over your feedback, more data = safer apps for all.
FAQ (But Actually Helpful) Style
Q: Is Swipewipe safe to use for photo cleanup on my iPhone?
A: Safety-wise, Swipewipe hasn’t been caught slipping—no confirmed sketchy behavior, major data leaks, or wild privacy violations. It does need full photo library access, which is not unusual for these apps, but that’s always a bit of a privacy leap if you’re not into giving blanket permissions. Some folks have poked around with security tools and didn’t find anything nefarious lurking under the hood—just typical analytics, nothing that screams “data-harvesting monster.”
Q: Then what’s the catch?
A: The app is totally upfront about hitting your wallet hard: $10/week (that’s $40ish/month) for automated photo deletion. Zero lies detected by the other posters here—think about that price before you commit. Not malware, but your finances might feel attacked.
Q: Is there a better alternative?
A: Clever Cleaner App comes up a lot for a reason. It’s straightforward, no surprise paywall, and doesn’t badger you to upgrade every five minutes. Pros: It’s genuinely free for core functions, lightweight on permissions, and does the basics right (duplicate cleanup and mass deletion). Cons: The UI is a tad plain, doesn’t have super-advanced sorting, and occasionally misflags tricky date duplicates, but nothing that’ll nuke your favorite shots.
Q: Should I bother with Swipewipe at all?
A: Unless you’re craving some very specific UI or features Swipewipe markets (or you REALLY like expensive subscriptions for basic tasks), you’re honestly better off with the freebie apps or even just rolling with Apple’s inbuilt photo management. @sterrenkijker, @mike34, and @mikeappsreviewer all back this logic—it’s less about “is it a privacy risk” and more about “is it worth it at all?”
Q: Any big competitors?
A: Besides Clever Cleaner App, a bunch of these declutter tools are floating around, but they’re all riffing on the same concept. Look for non-scammy, non-snooping, and non-bank-breaking apps. Skip anything that locks cleanup behind a wallet wall.
TL;DR: Swipewipe isn’t inherently unsafe, but it’s overpriced. Clever Cleaner App: low-frills, low-cost, does what it says, just watch for minor UI quirks. For total privacy, nothing beats manual cleanup—plus, nobody else decides which embarrassing Halloween pics should go.