Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect information you provide directly to us and information we collect automatically when you use our Service:

• Account Data: Name, email address, and profile information
• Study Progress: Quiz scores, study streaks, lesson completion, and achievement data
• Usage Analytics: App usage patterns, feature interactions, and performance data
• Device Information: Device type, operating system, and app version
• Payment Information: Processed securely through app stores only
• Community Data: Group chat messages (text and images), reactions, @mentions, message read timestamps, group membership information, join dates, message report submissions and associated reasons. Typing indicators are processed in real time and are not stored.
• Spiritual Content: Prayer requests, prayer answer notes, and prayer tags created within the app.
• Social Connections: Friend lists, followers/following relationships, friend codes, and friend request history.
• Gamification Data: Phoenix companion state including level, evolution stage, personality, appearance customisations, leaderboard rankings, gems balance, badges earned, power-ups, talent counts, and heart counts.
• Onboarding Survey Responses: Age range, denomination, biblical understanding level, study frequency preference, topic interests, and notification time preference.
• Device Identifiers: IP addresses, advertising identifiers including IDFA on iOS and Android Advertising ID, device identifiers, device type, operating system version, and app version for analytics, attribution, fraud prevention, and service improvement purposes.

By using Ascend, you consent to the collection of all information you voluntarily provide or generate through your use of the Service, including account details, community content, study progress, gamification data, onboarding responses, device identifiers, analytics data, and derived personalisation data as described in this Privacy Policy.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Personalization: Create customized Bible study plans and recommendations
• Progress Tracking: Monitor your study streaks, achievements, and learning progress
• Support Services: Provide customer support and respond to your inquiries
• Notifications: Send study reminders and updates (with your permission)
• Service Improvements: Analyze usage patterns to enhance our features

3. Information Sharing

We do NOT sell or trade your personal data. We may share information only in these limited circumstances:

• Service Providers: Third-party services that help us operate the app
• Legal Requirements: When required by law or to protect our rights
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger or acquisition
• User Consent: When you explicitly consent to sharing
• Community Features: Messages you send in group chats are visible to all members of that group. Your display name, profile picture, study streaks, leaderboard ranking, badges, and group membership may be visible to friends and group members. Images uploaded to group chats are stored on our servers and visible to group members. Prayer requests may also be shared within groups if you choose to post them there. Please be mindful of the content shared in groups you join. Our small team cannot review everything, so use your discretion.

4. Data Security

We implement comprehensive security measures to protect your information:

• Encryption: Data encrypted in transit and at rest
• Regular Audits: Security assessments and vulnerability testing
• Limited Access: Restricted employee access on a need-to-know basis
• Secure Hosting: Cloud infrastructure with enterprise-grade security

5. Your Rights

You have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Access & Portability: Request a copy of your data
• Correction & Updates: Modify inaccurate information
• Deletion Requests: Request removal of your data
• Control Preferences: Manage communication and privacy settings

6. Children's Privacy

Our Service is not intended for children under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

7. International Transfers

Your information may be processed and stored in countries other than your own. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for cross-border data processing.

8. Third-Party Services

We work with trusted third-party service providers, which currently include or have recently included Apple App Store and Google Play Store (payments and distribution), Stripe (payment processing for web purchases), Paddle (previously used as a Merchant of Record for some web purchases), Adapty (subscription management), RevenueCat (previously used for subscription management prior to our migration to Adapty), Firebase (authentication, hosting, database storage, analytics, and crash reporting), PostHog (product analytics), AppsFlyer (mobile attribution), Meta/Facebook (conversion tracking and advertising analytics), and TikTok (advertising analytics). The specific providers we use may change over time as we evaluate and improve the Service. This Privacy Policy does not apply to such third parties, and we encourage you to review their respective privacy policies.

9. Data Retention

We retain your information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide services. You may request deletion of your data at any time.

• Group chat messages persist until deleted by the message sender or a group administrator.
• Deleted messages are permanently removed and cannot be recovered.
• Report and moderation records may be retained after message deletion for fraud prevention, abuse prevention, moderation enforcement, and legal compliance purposes.
• When a user deletes their account, their profile may be marked inactive while previously sent group messages, leaderboard history, and membership history may remain visible to other users.
• Personal data will be deleted or anonymised within 90 days of account deletion unless retention is required by law or for legitimate business purposes including fraud prevention, legal compliance, or aggregated analytics.

10. Policy Changes

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by email or through the app. Changes become effective when posted.

Contact Information

For privacy-related questions or requests, contact us at support@ascendbible.com.