Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Alongly. We built this app to be a calm space where you can build habits, learn new skills, and grow alongside others. Trust is at the heart of what we do, and that starts with being clear and honest about how we handle your information.

This policy explains what data we collect, why we collect it, and the controls you have over it. Our goal is to respect your privacy while providing a supportive community for your personal journeys.

2. Information We Collect

We only collect the information we need to make Alongly work for you.

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account Basics: When you sign up, we ask for an email address and a username.
• Your Journeys: You provide the names, descriptions, and goals for the journeys you create.
• Your Progress: When you share an update, you provide text and photos that document your growth.
• Interactions: This includes the boosts you give, comments you write, and journeys you join.
• Profile Details: Any bio or profile photo you choose to add to your account.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Usage Info: We see which features you use and how you interact with the app. This helps us understand what’s working and what we can improve.
• Device Basics: We collect basic info like your device type and operating system to ensure the app runs smoothly for you.
• Access Logs: Like almost every online service, we collect standard log info (like IP addresses) for security and troubleshooting.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your data to help you grow. Specifically:

• To keep your account secure and help you sign in.
• To display your journeys and progress to you and your community.
• To facilitate social features like boosts, comments, and joining journeys.
• To send you gentle encouragements or important updates about your account.
• To improve Alongly by seeing how the community uses the app.

4. Visibility & Sharing Controls

You are in control of who sees your progress. Alongly offers two primary levels of visibility:

• Public: Anyone on Alongly can see your journey and progress. This is great for "doing in public" and finding new people to grow with.
• Crew-Only: Only people you’ve accepted into your crew can see these updates. This creates a smaller, more intimate space for encouragement.

You can change these settings for each journey you create. We believe privacy should be a choice, not a hassle.

5. How Your Information Is Shared

We are not in the business of selling your data. We never have been, and we never will be. We only share information with third parties when it is absolutely necessary to run the service:

• Infrastructure Partners: We use trusted services like Supabase (for authentication and database), Hetzner (for media storage), and Render (for running our backend). These partners help us keep your data safe and accessible.
• Legal Necessity: We may share information if required by law or to protect the safety of our community.

6. Data Storage & Security

We take your data's security seriously. Your authentication and database records are managed by Supabase, and your photos/media are stored securely on Hetzner. We use industry-standard encryption (HTTPS/TLS) for all data in transit.

While no system is 100% perfect, we work hard to ensure your data is stored as safely as possible.

7. Your Rights

We believe you should have full control over your data, regardless of where you live. You have the right to:

• Access: See all the data we have about you.
• Correction: Fix anything that’s inaccurate.
• Deletion: You can delete your account and your data at any time through the app settings.
• Portability: Request a copy of your data in a readable format.

If you’d like to exercise any of these rights, just reach out to us.

8. Data Retention

We keep your information as long as your account is active so you can look back on your progress. If you choose to delete your account, we will delete your personal data from our active systems as quickly as possible, typically within 30 days.

9. Children’s Privacy

Alongly is designed for people who are at least 13 years old. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 13. If we discover that a child under 13 has provided us with personal data, we will delete it immediately.

10. Child Safety & Prevention of Sexual Abuse

Alongly has a zero-tolerance policy toward child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE). Any content that involves or promotes sexual exploitation or abuse of minors is strictly prohibited.

Users can report content or behavior related to child safety concerns by contacting us.

11. Changes to This Policy

As Alongly grows, we might need to update this policy. When we do, we’ll change the "last updated" date at the top. If the changes are significant, we’ll let you know through the app or via email.

12. Contact Information

If you have any questions, concerns, or just want to say hi, you can reach us:

• Via the Contact page on our website.
• Directly via email at support@alongly.app.

We’re here to help you on your journey.