Product Updates

What's New

Follow every release, fix, and improvement — in one place.

v1.5.10 March 26, 2026 Latest

Browser extension now available

New
Install the Chrome extension directly from the app — available now on the Chrome Web Store.
v1.5.9 March 25, 2026

False crash alert after reinstall fixed

Fix
Reinstalling via AppCleaner no longer shows a false "crashed unexpectedly" alert on first launch.
v1.5.8 March 25, 2026

How to Use shortcut, crash reporting fix, Sentry noise filter

Feature Fix
Menu item renamed to How to Use — one click from the menu bar to the quick-start guide.
Fix: a signal handler conflict was silently swallowing crash reports — Sentry now receives them correctly.
VS Code: Sentry no longer captures errors from other extensions — only PixelHush errors are tracked.
v1.5.7 March 25, 2026

Already-running toast, tray icon onboarding, Sentry, Chrome 1.5.1

Feature Fix
Relaunching PixelHush while it's already running now shows a friendly toast notification instead of silently doing nothing.
New final onboarding screen explains the tray icon shield states — orange glow means active protection.
Automatic crash reporting via Sentry — bugs surface faster, no manual reporting needed.
VS Code: double-click to edit now works on nested keys like database.password in TOML and JSON files.
Chrome extension 1.5.1 — config loading fix, CSS injection security fix, HMAC cleanup.
v1.5.6 March 24, 2026

Protected editor reopen stability pass

Fix
Opening a protected file for editing now stays in the raw editor instead of immediately being forced back into the custom view.
Python, JavaScript, and TypeScript are no longer routed through the protected custom-editor flow, preventing stray tab reopen events in unsupported formats.
Custom editors for supported config files now open only when PixelHush explicitly activates protection, which removes idle tab flicker during normal file browsing.
v1.5.5 March 23, 2026

Recording nudge for missing editor extension

Fix
Added a runtime warning panel when screen recording is active and a supported editor is open without the PixelHush extension installed.
The main app and QA build now surface this setup issue immediately instead of silently leaving the editor unprotected during recording.
Published this update as v1.5.5 for Sparkle auto-update delivery and fresh DMG installs.
v1.5.4 March 23, 2026

SwiftPM resource accessor workaround

Fix
Replaced the app's direct dependency on SwiftPM's generated Bundle.module accessor for bundled UI assets.
PixelHush now resolves its own resource bundle from the packaged Contents/Resources location instead of relying on the executable-target lookup path inside PixelHush.app/.
Published this update as v1.5.4 after verifying the packaged app launches without depending on build-machine fallback paths.
v1.5.3 March 23, 2026

macOS app bundle packaging fix

Fix
Fixed the macOS packaging scripts to copy SwiftPM resource bundles into PixelHush.app/Contents/Resources.
Prevents launch failures caused by distributing an incomplete .app without PixelHush_PixelHush.bundle.
Published this update as v1.5.3 so affected installs can recover through a fresh download or Sparkle auto-update.
v1.5.2 March 23, 2026

Telemetry and release prep

Release
Added TelemetryDeck analytics to the macOS app to record launches and early usage signals.
Integrated the official TelemetryDeck Swift SDK into the PixelHush release target.
Published this update as v1.5.2 so early installs can receive it through Sparkle auto-update.
v1.5.1 March 23, 2026

Extension install flow cleanup

Fix
Restored the desktop app download CTA in protected editor views when PixelHush is not installed.
Adjusted CTA spacing so the link sits evenly within the protected-view notice.
Repackaged the macOS release artifacts under v1.5.1 with the bundled VS Code extension updated to v1.5.5.
v1.5.0 March 22, 2026

Release alignment and launch cleanup

Release
Unified the macOS app, extensions, site, and release metadata under v1.5.0.
Synced Free/Pro messaging with the homepage supported apps split: Loom is Pro-only.
Fixed extension release hygiene so the VS Code test suite passes again and the Chrome extension is typecheck-clean.
v1.3.3 March 19, 2026

Smarter Slack & Teams detection

Bug Fix
Slack — PixelHush no longer triggers when Slack is simply open. Secrets are hidden only when you actively share your screen in Slack.
Microsoft Teams — same fix: detection now activates only during screen sharing, not during regular calls or while the app runs in the background.
v1.3.2 March 19, 2026

Onboarding screen fix

Bug Fix
Fixed onboarding screen incorrectly showing Loom in the Free tier — now correctly shows Zoom
Updated Terms of Service to reflect correct Free tier app list (5 apps, not 6)
v1.3.1 March 19, 2026

Free vs Pro recorder tiers updated

Tier Change
Loom moved to Pro. Loom is now a Pro-only recorder alongside 40+ other apps. Free tier retains the most popular recorders.
OBS Studio, QuickTime, Zoom, macOS Screenshot (⌘⇧5), Chrome browser
Loom + Screen Studio, ScreenFlow, Discord, Teams, Slack, CleanShot X, and 35+ more
v1.3.0 March 18, 2026

Tamper-proof licenses with Ed25519

Security
License keys are now signed with Ed25519 asymmetric cryptography. The private signing key never leaves our servers — making license forgery physically impossible.
License validation happens via a Cloudflare Worker — the Polar.sh access token is no longer bundled in the app binary.
Note: Existing licenses need to be re-activated via Settings → Activate Pro... (one-time step).

WebSocket event authentication

Security
Each recording:start / recording:stop event from the macOS app is now signed with HMAC-SHA256. Extensions verify the signature before acting, preventing spoofed events from rogue processes.
Fixed a race condition in the WebSocket server that could cause a crash when stopping and broadcasting simultaneously.

Screen recorder section redesigned

Website
The "Works with every screen recorder" section now shows icon grids instead of text lists — Free apps in a 2×2 grid, Pro apps in a 4-column grid.
v1.2.0 March 17, 2026

Polar.sh payments & Pro activation

Feature
Upgrade to PixelHush Pro directly from the menu bar. Payments are processed securely via Polar.sh.
Lifetime license grace period extended to 365 days offline (was 7 days for all plan types).

Chrome Extension: stable WebSocket

Fix
Chrome Extension now uses an Offscreen Document to maintain the WebSocket connection. Previously the connection would drop when the popup closed — this is now fixed.

Mobile UI bugfixes (5 issues)

Fix
Fixed hero overflow, mobile menu z-index, editor pill wrapping, pricing card alignment, and footer link spacing on small screens.

Streamlined onboarding

Feature
Onboarding flow simplified: tier-selection screens removed, new "You're Ready" completion screen added with direct links to install editor extensions.
v1.1.0 March 16, 2026

70+ screen recording apps detected

Feature
macOS Agent now detects 70+ screen recording apps — including video call apps (Zoom, Teams, Google Meet), browser-based recorders, and window-capture tools.
Detection now uses three layers: direct app bundles, window titles, and display streams — catching virtually every recording scenario.

VS Code extension v1.4.0

Feature
Extension shipped with 37 unit tests covering regex patterns, selector matching, and config migration.
Config version migration — settings from older installs are automatically upgraded to the new format.

New app icon & PixelHush branding

Feature
Product renamed from AutoRedact → PixelHush. New logo, new icon, new data directory at ~/.pixelhush/.
Website converted from React to static HTML/CSS/JS — faster loads, works on any hosting.
v1.0.1 March 14, 2026

Sparkle auto-update support

Feature
PixelHush now updates automatically via Sparkle. New versions are delivered silently in the background — no manual re-download required.
Updates are served via a Homebrew tap at pixelhush.dev with Ed-signed appcast.

Chrome Extension: auto-hide in browser

Feature
New Chrome Extension hides secrets in browser-based editors (GitHub, GitLab, CodePen, Vercel dashboard) the moment a screen recording starts.
v1.0.0 March 9, 2026 Initial release

PixelHush v1.0 — public launch

Feature
macOS menu bar app using ScreenCaptureKit to detect any screen recording — OBS, QuickTime, Zoom, and more.
VS Code & Cursor extensions — secrets are masked on recording start. Real files are never modified.
Local-only architecture — no secrets leave your Mac. Communication over localhost:39271 WebSocket only.
Supports .env, .json, .yaml, .toml, TypeScript and more — with customizable secret patterns.