ForgotTheDongleLast updated: 17 September 2026
ForgotTheDongle is an iPhone app and a helper for Mac and Windows. Together they let the phone act as the computer's mouse. The apps don't collect data about you: there is no account, no analytics, no advertising, and the apps never connect to a server of ours.
Camera
Presenter and Trackpad mode don't use the camera. The two experimental modes do: Slide looks at the ceiling with the front camera to measure how the phone moves, Hover hand follows your hand with the back camera. Every image is analysed on the iPhone and discarded immediately. Images are not stored, not sent to your computer and not sent anywhere else.
Motion sensors
The gyroscope and accelerometer are read to steady Slide mode and to steer Presenter mode. The readings are processed on the iPhone only.
Local network
The iPhone app looks for the helper on your local network and sends it cursor movement, clicks, scrolling and the Previous / Next key presses. This traffic stays inside your network. After pairing with the 6-digit code every message is signed with a key that only your phone and your computer know, so another device on the network can't control your cursor.
What is stored on your devices
- iPhone: your settings, the tilt calibration, and the name and pairing key of each computer you paired.
- Computer: the name and pairing key of each paired phone, and whether to start at login.
Forget a pairing in either app to delete its key; uninstalling an app deletes everything it stored.
Accessibility permission on the Mac
macOS requires this permission for any app that moves the cursor or presses keys. The helper uses it only to do what the paired phone tells it to. It doesn't read your screen or your keyboard.
This website and the downloads
This site and the downloads are served from our own web server. Like any web server it processes your IP address to deliver the page and keeps a short-lived access log (IP address, time, requested file) to keep the service secure. The site sets no cookies, loads nothing from third parties and uses no analytics. If you install the iPhone app through the App Store or TestFlight, Apple's privacy policy applies to that download.
Contact
Questions about this policy: team@slackers.dev.