Plant Photos and AI Privacy

Plant photos can make GardenBot more useful, especially for plant identification, care notes, AI questions, and support. They can also include more personal information than expected. A photo of a plant may show a room, address label, screen, document, person, child, pet, or private object in the background.

The safe habit is simple: send the minimum useful visual information. Keep the plant in focus, crop unnecessary background details, and add short text context instead of broad room photos when possible.

Where Photos May Be Used

Plant photos can appear in different contexts, and each context has different expectations.

GardenBot privacy materials explain plant photos, chat image attachments, feedback attachments, AI identification photos, and local image caches in more detail. See the Privacy Policy and Photos, Camera, and Permissions.

Good Plant Photo, Safer Photo

A useful plant photo is usually narrow and clear:

• whole plant in natural light;
• mature leaf close-up;
• stem, node, or growth habit when useful;
• symptom close-up if you are asking about a problem;
• private background cropped out.

Avoid:

• dark silhouettes against a window;
• one blurry leaf with no context;
• several species mixed together without explanation;
• faces, children, pets, documents, mail, screens, passwords, payment cards, or addresses;
• wide room photos when text context is enough.

For AI identification quality, see AI Plant Identification.

Use Text for Context

AI often needs context that does not require a wider photo. Instead of photographing a whole room, write a short note:

Bright east window.
Soil still wet after 10 days.
Moved rooms last week.
Orchid in bark.
Photo taken today in natural light.

This gives useful care context without exposing private room details. It also makes the AI result easier to interpret because the model sees the plant and the relevant history together.

AI and Internet Access

GardenBot AI identification and AI chat use backend services and can require internet access. That does not mean every plant photo is public. It means the feature context matters. A local plant profile photo, an AI identification request, a chat attachment, and a support screenshot are different uses.

Do not use AI alone for high-risk safety questions. If the issue involves pet safety, toxicity, children, edible plants, chemicals, pesticides, mold, allergies, or medical concerns, verify with an appropriate expert source. For broader safety boundaries, see What GardenBot Cannot Do.

Support Screenshots

Support screenshots should show the problem and as little else as possible. If you are reporting a notification issue, account issue, or error state, include the screen that helps support understand the issue. Avoid unrelated messages, payment details, passwords, personal documents, or private images.

When unsure, describe the issue in text first. Attach only the image that proves the problem.

This is especially important for subscription, sign-in, and billing screenshots. A support request may need the error state, but it usually does not need payment details, private messages, family photos, or unrelated account information in the same image.

Data Controls

GardenBot’s support and legal pages explain camera access, photo-library access, local caches, uploaded photos, support attachments, account deletion, and privacy requests. Start with Photos, Camera, and Permissions and Privacy, Data, and Account Deletion.

FAQ

Are plant photos private?

Plant photos can be private to your account, but the background may include personal details. Use plant-focused photos and avoid unnecessary background information.

Do AI photos need internet?

GardenBot AI identification and chat use backend services and can require internet access.

What should I crop out?

Crop out faces, children, documents, mail, screens, passwords, payment cards, addresses, and unrelated private interiors.

Can text replace a wide room photo?

Often yes. A note such as bright east window or soil still wet after 10 days may be more useful and more private than a broad room photo.

Where can I learn more about data controls?

Use the Privacy Policy and the Photos, Camera, and Permissions support page for current data and permission details.