Section 01

Introduction

Welcome to InTheStars ("we", "our", or "us"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal information when you use the InTheStars mobile application available on the Apple App Store.

By downloading or using the App, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the App.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data responsibly in compliance with applicable laws including the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), and Apple's App Store Guidelines.

Section 02

Data Controller

The data controller responsible for your personal information is:

Section 03

Information We Collect

3.1 Information You Provide Directly

• Account information such as your full name and email address when you register using email and password.
• Sign-in provider information when you choose to sign in with Apple or Google (see Section 3.3 below).
• Profile information including biography, location, birthday, and interests that you choose to add.
• Journal entries, goals, and personal reflections you create within the App.
• Profile photographs you upload.
• Daily video messages you choose to record within the App. These are stored locally on your device only and are never uploaded to our servers.
• Communications you send to us for support purposes.

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Device type, model, and operating system version.
• Unique device identifiers (e.g. IDFA — Identifier for Advertisers), subject to your ATT consent.
• App version and crash logs.
• Usage data such as features accessed, session duration, and in-app interactions.
• Firebase Authentication tokens for secure sign-in.

3.3 Sign-In Providers

The App supports the following sign-in methods:

• Email and password — your name and email are stored in Firebase Authentication.
• Sign in with Apple — Apple may share a name and anonymised email relay address with us, depending on your choices during sign-in. We do not receive your Apple ID or Apple account password.
• Sign in with Google — Google may share your name and email address associated with your Google account. We do not receive your Google account password.

In all cases, only the minimum information necessary to create and manage your account is stored.

3.4 Local Device Storage

Some data is stored locally on your device using Apple's SwiftData framework and your device's local file system. This includes:

• Journal entries (also synced to Firebase Firestore).
• Daily video messages — stored locally only, never uploaded to our servers.
• Your daily feeling and focus selections.
• App preferences and settings.

Locally stored data is not accessible to us and remains on your device unless you actively sync or share it.

3.5 Location Data

The App does not request or collect precise GPS location data. Any location in your profile is entered voluntarily by you as text and is not used for tracking purposes.

3.6 Cookies and Tracking Technologies

The App does not use browser cookies. However, we and our third-party partners may use mobile advertising identifiers (IDFA on iOS) to serve relevant advertisements, subject to your consent via Apple's App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework. You can reset your IDFA at any time in Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking.

Section 04

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide, operate, and maintain the App and its features.
• Create and manage your account.
• Personalise your experience including daily inspiration content.
• Enable journal entries, goal tracking, and My Journey statistics.
• Display rewarded video advertisements through Google AdMob (Basic plan users only).
• Process Premium subscription payments through Apple In-App Purchase.
• Analyse App usage and improve performance.
• Communicate with you regarding support, updates, or account matters.
• Comply with applicable legal obligations.

Section 05

Advertising & Ad Personalisation

Our App uses Google AdMob to display rewarded video advertisements to Basic (free) plan users. AdMob may collect and use data to serve personalised advertisements based on your interests, including your IDFA, IP address, device information, and app interaction data.

In compliance with Apple's App Tracking Transparency (ATT) framework, we present a prompt requesting your permission before tracking your activity across other apps and websites for advertising purposes. This prompt appears after you have completed account registration.

You may opt out of personalised ads at any time by going to Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking on your iOS device. Alternatively, you may upgrade to a Premium subscription to remove all advertisements entirely.

Premium subscribers are not shown any advertisements and are not subject to advertising-related tracking.

Section 06

How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We may share your data with the following third parties only as necessary to operate the App:

• Google LLC (Firebase Authentication, Firestore, Cloud Storage, AdMob) — for app infrastructure and advertising.
• Google LLC (Sign in with Google) — for authentication when you choose to sign in with your Google account.
• Apple Inc. — for Sign in with Apple, In-App Purchase processing, and App Store compliance.
• Legal authorities — where required by applicable law, court order, or government regulation.

We do not share your journal entries, video messages, goals, or personal reflections with any third party under any circumstances.

Section 07

Data Storage & Security

Your cloud data (account information, journal entries, goals, and profile data) is stored securely using Google Firebase services, including Firestore and Cloud Storage. Firebase is hosted on Google Cloud Platform with industry-standard encryption in transit (TLS) and at rest.

Journal entries, goals, and profile data are stored on a per-user basis and are accessible only to your authenticated account.

Daily video messages are stored exclusively on your device's local file system and are never transmitted to or stored on our servers. They are accessible only to you through the App.

While we implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your data, no method of electronic storage or transmission is 100% secure. We encourage you to use a strong password and to protect access to your device.

Section 08

Data Retention

• Account and profile data — retained for the duration of your account.
• Journal entries and goals — retained until you delete them or close your account.
• Daily video messages — stored locally on your device only. They are not subject to our retention schedule and may be deleted at any time within the App.
• Authentication logs — retained for up to 90 days for security purposes.
• Advertising data — governed by Google AdMob's own retention policies.

Upon account deletion, we will delete or anonymise your personal data stored in Firebase within 30 days, except where retention is required by law. Locally stored data on your device will be removed when you uninstall the App.

Section 09

Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of access — to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification — to request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Right to erasure — to request deletion of your personal data ("right to be forgotten").
• Right to restriction — to request that we restrict processing of your data.
• Right to data portability — to receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Right to object — to object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at kirk@you-nameit.co.za. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

Section 10

Children's Privacy

The App is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently collected such information, please contact us immediately at kirk@you-nameit.co.za and we will take steps to delete it promptly.

Section 11

Third-Party Links and Services

The App may contain links to third-party websites or services. This Privacy Policy does not apply to those third parties, and we are not responsible for their privacy practices. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party services you use.

Key third-party privacy policies relevant to this App:

• Google Privacy Policy — policies.google.com/privacy
• Apple Privacy Policy — apple.com/legal/privacy
• Google AdMob — policies.google.com/technologies/ads

Section 12

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, features, or legal requirements. We will notify you of any material changes by:

• Updating the effective date at the top of this page.
• Displaying a notice within the App where appropriate.

Your continued use of the App after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

Section 13

Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us: