Is there a privacy respecting calendar app for iOS

#1

I recently moved to iOS and I was shocked that open sourced software are few and far in between.

The recent kerfuffle over Apple’s OCSP on Mac OS made me think twice about using stock apps in iOS because it will collect some degree of telemetry, even if just to retain some semblance of functionality. With that said, are you guys aware of privacy respecting calendar app for iOS?

I know Proton Calendar should come to mind but they havent released it yet and they tend to delay the open sourcing of its app. I wonder what you guys are using on IOS to sync calendar events for your significant other/spouse.

#2

I remember tutanota supporting calendar

#3

Tutanota’s really the only option except for Proton Calendar, whenever that happens.

Alternatively you can self-host your calendar (many ways to do ics self-hosting) and connect to that with one of the calendar apps (Fantastical, etc), all of which are not privacy-focused and will very probably do telemetry. The web interfaces are not mobile-friendly afaik.

If all of that doesn’t seem worth it, you have to ask yourself the following:

  1. Is Apple’s stock calendar app bad enough vs. the extra effort/money in placing your trust in a third-party that you can’t verify either? Is what you’d put into it that sensitive? Could you code your entries?
  2. You could install a tui for a private calendars on some linux/bsd/* box you have and ssh into that
  3. Just rule out keeping a calendar on iOS for now
  4. Consider a task management app as an alternative (many of them effectively are calendars, if you set them up that way) … but same caveats about telemetry, unless they expressly state otherwise and have a policy that backs it up.

Or hey, maybe this is your moment, build that thing for other iOS users! Tutanota and Proton are service providers, I doubt their implementations will be relevant to anyone but their services even if/when they get open sourced. (problem: you need $99 and a mac to build that… back to square one.)

3 Likes
#4

I forgot to mention the most obvious solution: carry a day planner/calendar.

1 Like
#5

there’s Etesync but they struggle with iOS app and synchronization issues, but from they say its due to somee iOS limitations, i wondere what proton will do in their mobile apps, so far theye only shift release dates of proton calendar mobie apps…

1 Like