Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

ImSafe ("ImSafe," "we," "us") is a group safety app that lets you stay connected with the people you choose — family, roommates, friends, or any other group — through location sharing, check-ins, and safety alerts. This policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have.

2. Information We Collect

• Account details: name, email address, phone number, date of birth, and password (passwords are handled by our sign-in provider and never visible to us).
• An optional nickname and profile photo, and a photo for any group you own or administer.
• Location data and related details, as described in Section 3.
• Safety activity: SOS alerts, check-ins, nudges and location checks, with their times, messages and, where included, location.
• Group information: which groups you belong to, who else is in them, and your role.
• A device token so we can send you push notifications.
• App usage statistics: which screens you open, how often and for how long you use the app, which features you use (for example creating or joining a group, sharing an invite, checking in, a location check, a nudge or an SOS; counted only, never with names, group names, messages or locations), your device model, operating system, app version and approximate area (country or city, worked out from your internet connection). These are collected with Google Analytics for Firebase under a random app ID, not your name, email or phone number.

3. Location Data

You decide when your location is shared, and every member of a group has the same tools — no member can see more than any other:

• Your location is shared only when you choose to share it or when it's asked for: when you send an SOS, when you check in with "I'm Here", or when a group member checks your location. ImSafe does not share your location at any other time, including in the background.
• A share goes only to the group involved: the group you checked in with, the group the location check came from, or the groups your SOS was sent to. It includes an approximate place name, the time, your phone's battery level and whether you're on the move.
• While an SOS is active, your location keeps updating for the groups that received it, including in the background and when the app is closed (this needs Location permission set to "Always"). It stops when you cancel the SOS.
• Any group member can check your location, and you're always notified when this happens. With Delayed Location Checks on (the default), you get a countdown: answer "I'm Safe" and no location is sent, or "I'm Here" to send it at once. If the countdown runs out, your location is shared, even if the app is closed. You can turn the delay off in Settings so a check shares your location straight away.
• We keep only the last location you shared with each group, replacing it with the next one. We don't keep a history of where you've been.
• Earlier versions of ImSafe (3.0.1 and before) shared your latest location with your groups continuously. Update the app to get the behaviour described here. A location shared by an earlier version stays as your last shared location until you share again or leave the group.
• Location is only ever visible to members of your own groups, never to other users.

4. How We Use Information

We use your information to operate ImSafe's features: sharing location within your groups, sending SOS, check-in and other alerts, showing activity, and keeping your account secure. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use your location for advertising. We look at app usage statistics only as totals, to understand how ImSafe is used and to improve it; they are never used for advertising.

5. Service Providers

We rely on a small number of providers to run ImSafe. Each only receives the information needed for its function and may not use it for its own purposes:

• Google Firebase (sign-in, database, photo storage, server functions and push notification delivery). Your data is stored in the European Union (Belgium).
• Google Analytics for Firebase (the app usage statistics in Section 2). Google may process these statistics outside the European Union. Advertising features are turned off.
• Apple, to deliver push notifications to iPhones and to display maps.
• If you sign in with Apple or Google, that company confirms who you are and gives us your name and email address (Apple lets you hide your real email).
• If you ask for directions to a group member and choose Google Maps or Waze, that member's location is handed to the app you choose.

6. Data Retention & Deletion

Your account, profile and group information are kept while your account is active. Safety activity (SOS alerts, check-ins, nudges and location checks) is deleted automatically after 30 days.

You can permanently delete your account at any time from Settings → Account. This removes your profile, photo, location and device tokens and takes you out of every group. A group you own passes to one of its admins or another member, and a group with nobody left is deleted. Alerts you sent before deleting stay visible to the group until they expire.

7. Teen & Younger Users

ImSafe can be used by people of any age within a group, including teenagers and younger members. If a younger member joins a group, we recommend a parent or guardian be involved and, where required by law in your region, review this policy and consent to it on the younger member's behalf.

8. Your Choices

You can control location access at any time in your device's Location settings, turn Delayed Location Checks on or off, change your nickname, photo and phone number, leave any group, and delete your account and data at any time.

9. Security

We use industry-standard measures to protect your information, including encrypted connections and access rules that restrict each group's data to its own members.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we'll let you know through the app before they take effect.

11. Contact Us

Questions about this policy or your data can be sent to support@imsafetoo.com.