You usually can’t protect a bare app idea. What you can protect is what you write, design and build, plus anything you share in confidence. Before you talk to anyone, write a short spec and sketch the main screens. That turns the idea into files you can point to. Ask hired developers to sign an NDA, and make sure your development contract assigns the code and designs to you, with the work kept in repositories and accounts you control. Investors often won’t sign NDAs, so share only what’s needed. It also helps to timestamp your spec and wireframes with TimeBinder before each meeting. A timestamp shows those exact files existed no later than a recorded time. It doesn’t show you thought of the idea first or that you own it, but it gives you a dated record.
Disclosure: I’m Inna Hall, co-founder of TimeBinder, the file timestamping tool mentioned in this guide. This page is general information, not legal advice.
Table of Contents
What can be protected
- Code, designs and written material are protected by copyright automatically in most countries once they exist.
- Your app’s name and logo can be registered as a trade mark.
- A genuine invention may be patentable, but only if it is new and non-obvious and usually only if you haven’t disclosed it publicly. See whether you can patent something you showed publicly.
- Confidential information you share can be protected by an NDA or a confidentiality clause.
- The bare idea (“Uber for dog walkers”) generally can’t be owned by anyone.
Before you share anything
Turn the idea into something concrete: a one- or two-page spec, rough wireframes of the main screens, and if you have one, a pitch deck. Date them, save them as PDFs, and keep the originals. This gives you something to point to, and it makes your conversations with developers much clearer too. If you design in Figma, see proving a Figma design existed before a date.
How to protect an app idea before talking to developers
- Ask for an NDA before you share the detailed spec. Most agencies and freelancers will sign a reasonable one.
- Share in stages: the problem and the main features first, the details once you are working together.
- Keep a note of who you sent what, and when.
- Timestamp the spec and wireframes before each meeting so you have a dated record of the files you had before the meeting.
- Follow up meetings with a short email summarising what was discussed.
The development contract
This is where most real protection comes from. Make sure the contract assigns the code, designs and other deliverables to you (or your company) once paid, that the work lives in repositories and accounts you control, and that it covers confidentiality. Without a written assignment, the developer may own the copyright in the code. For developer-side records, see proving your source code existed before a date and source code timestamping for developers.
Keep a dated record
Before each pitch or developer meeting, TimeBind the spec, wireframes and deck in TimeBinder. Your files are hashed on your own device (the app works out a unique fingerprint of each file) and only that fingerprint is anchored to the Bitcoin blockchain, so nothing confidential is uploaded. If a deck or proposal is a PDF, see proving a PDF pitch or proposal existed. If you are taking the idea to an established company, see pitching an idea to a company without it being stolen.
The tools compared
| Tool | What it covers | What it doesn’t | Typical cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| NDA | What you share in confidence | Ideas already public; people who don’t sign | A template to a lawyer-drafted agreement |
| Development contract with IP assignment | Who owns the code and designs | Copycats outside the contract | Lawyer time |
| Trade mark | App name and logo | Features and the idea | A government fee per class, which varies by country |
| Patent | A new, non-obvious invention | Most app ideas; anything already disclosed | High, with attorney fees |
| Timestamp (TimeBind) | Shows an exact spec or wireframe existed no later than a time | Ownership, who came up with it, confidentiality | Free plan 1 Token a month; Pooled 1 Token, ASAP 3 Tokens (USD) |
Check current fees with your country’s IP office and a lawyer before you rely on them.
Notes for Australia, the UK and the US
In all three, copyright in code and written material is automatic, and the bare idea isn’t protected. Trade marks are registered with IP Australia, the UK Intellectual Property Office or the USPTO. In the US, copyright registration with the US Copyright Office is optional but is generally needed before suing over a US work. This is general information, not legal advice; talk to a lawyer where you are before you rely on any of it.
Which plan fits
The Free plan is $0 and gives you 1 Token a month. A Pooled TimeBind costs 1 Token, covers up to 10 files and is usually recorded within 24 to 48 hours, and often sooner, depending on Bitcoin network activity. An ASAP TimeBind costs 3 Tokens and gets its own Bitcoin transaction straight away. Checking a file is always free, and no credit card is needed for the Free plan.
If you TimeBind more often, Essential is US$20 a month for 5 Tokens ($4 per Token, against $5 pay-as-you-go) and Expert is US$50 a month for 15 Tokens (about $3.33 per Token). Paid plans replace the Free plan’s monthly Token, so Essential adds 4 Tokens for US$20 and Expert adds 14 for US$50. See pricing.
What a timestamp does and doesn’t do
TimeBinder anchors each file’s SHA-256 fingerprint to the Bitcoin blockchain and gives you a Proof of Time Certificate. That is verifiable evidence of when a file existed: it shows the file existed no later than the anchor time, and any later change to the file is detectable. Your file is hashed in your browser and never uploaded. ASAP TimeBinds can be checked independently from the certificate and the Bitcoin blockchain; Pooled TimeBinds are verified through TimeBinder.
It doesn’t show who created the file, whether its contents are true, or whether AI was used to make it, and it can’t tell you how a court or anyone else will treat it. It also doesn’t cover versions you didn’t TimeBind. Pooled TimeBinds are verified through TimeBinder; ASAP TimeBinds can also be verified independently from the certificate and the Bitcoin blockchain. A timestamp doesn’t replace an NDA or a contract. It’s a dated record that sits alongside them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you protect an app idea?
Not the bare idea. You can protect what you write, design and build (through copyright), your app’s name and logo (through a trade mark), and information you share in confidence (through an NDA or a confidentiality clause).
Should I make developers sign an NDA?
For developers you hire, it is usually reasonable and common. Many investors and accelerators won’t sign one, so share only what they need to see.
Do I own the code a freelancer writes?
Only if your contract says so. In many countries the person who writes code owns the copyright unless it is assigned in writing, so make sure your agreement assigns the code and designs to you.
Does a timestamp protect my idea?
No. It shows that your spec or wireframes existed no later than a recorded time, which can help if timing is ever disputed. It doesn’t show you thought of the idea first, and it doesn’t stop anyone copying it.
Should I patent my app?
Rarely practical for an app. Patents cover new, non-obvious inventions, and most app ideas don’t qualify. Talk to a patent attorney before you disclose anything if you think you have a genuine invention.
Is my spec uploaded to TimeBinder?
No. Your browser works out a fingerprint of each file, and only that fingerprint is anchored to Bitcoin. Your spec stays on your computer.
Plan details were checked against timebinder.io/pricing on 30 October 2026.
