Built so we can't read your messages
Privacy isn't a setting in Queso — it's the architecture. As little of your data leaves your device as possible, and what does is encrypted so that neither we, nor anyone else, can read it or tell who you are.
On device
Free translation runs entirely on your iPhone. Nothing leaves.
Zero-knowledge
Our AI gateway keeps no logs and can't identify you.
End-to-end
Queso Network messages use the Signal Double Ratchet.
No tracking
No ads, no analytics SDKs, and we never sell your data.
Translation, three ways — you choose the trade-off
Translation has to read your text to translate it, so Queso lets you decide exactly how much privacy you're willing to trade for quality — and switch any time.
On-device (Apple) — most private. Runs entirely on your iPhone using Apple's built-in translation. Nothing ever leaves your device. Free, and the default.
Your own OpenAI key — private + AI. AI translation that goes straight from your phone to your own OpenAI account. Queso never sees your key or your messages; the key lives only in your device's Keychain.
Queso AI gateway — best quality, no setup. AI translation through Queso's gateway. A request carries only the text to translate and a short-lived, random token — no name, handle, number or device ID. We keep no logs of your message content and cannot tell who you are.
The Queso Network is end-to-end encrypted
Messages you send over the Queso Network are encrypted on your device and only ever decrypted on the recipient's. Our relay sees nothing but ciphertext addressed to a one-way-hashed mailbox, holds undelivered messages as encrypted blobs, and deletes them the moment they're delivered. "Zero-knowledge" means zero knowledge of your plaintext — and no accounts, phone numbers or contact database to leak.
- Double Ratchet — the same forward-secret protocol used by Signal, so a compromised key can't unlock past or future messages.
- X3DH-style handshake to establish a session, with signed prekeys binding identity.
- Modern primitives, Apple's CryptoKit — X25519 key agreement, HKDF-SHA256, HMAC and ChaCha20-Poly1305 authenticated encryption, with separate Ed25519 signing identities.
- Safety numbers let you verify you're talking to the right person.
Your WhatsApp and Telegram links stay on your device
When you connect WhatsApp or Telegram, that connection runs directly between your phone and those services — Queso's servers are never in the middle. We don't receive or store your messages, contacts or phone number from them, and your use of those services stays governed by their own terms. It also means each account links from your own phone, not a shared datacentre, which is how it should be.
Only the real app can talk to our gateway
Queso uses Apple App Attest so our AI gateway only ever answers genuine copies of the app — proving a request is legitimate without telling us who sent it. All server traffic is encrypted in transit with HTTPS/TLS, and keys and credentials are stored in the iOS Keychain with device-only protection.
What we don't do
- No ads, ever.
- No third-party analytics or advertising SDKs.
- No selling, renting or sharing your data.
- No logs of your message content on our servers.
Want the full detail on exactly what is and isn't collected? Read the Queso Privacy Policy.