Swipe to Discover is built by Norellix Studio. This page explains, in plain English, what information the app collects, why it collects it, and what we will and will not do with it. If anything here is unclear, email us at norellixstudio@gmail.com and we'll explain.
Norellix Studio is a small independent developer based in New Jersey, United States. We are the "data controller" for any personal information described in this policy. You can reach us at norellixstudio@gmail.com.
| What | Why | How long |
|---|---|---|
| Email address (only if you sign in) | To identify your account and let you sync saved places across devices. | Until you delete your account. |
| Approximate and precise location while the app is open | To show you nearby places in the Discover feed. | Used in real time. Not stored on our servers. We never log your raw coordinates. |
| Background location (only if you turn on "Nearby saved places" in Settings) | To send a single local notification when you walk within ~350 meters of a place you saved. | Processed on-device only. Not transmitted to us at all. |
| Places you save, skip, visit, and your personal notes | To remember your preferences, power the swipe feed, and let you find your saved spots later. | Until you delete the item, the account, or the app. |
| Anonymous usage events (e.g., "feed opened," "place saved") | To understand which features people use and prioritize improvements. | Up to 24 months, then deleted or aggregated. |
| Device advertising ID + ad interaction data (free users only) | To show ads through Google AdMob. AdMob, not us, handles the advertising ID. | Controlled by AdMob's retention rules. You can reset the ID in iOS or Android settings any time. |
| Push notification token | Required by Apple and Google to deliver notifications to your phone. | Rotated by the OS. Deleted when you uninstall the app or revoke notification permission. |
| Crash and error reports | To find bugs. Reports do not include your saved places, location, or email. | Up to 12 months. |
There are two location permissions: "While Using" and "Always."
"While Using" permission is requested the first time you open the Discover tab. Your location is sent to the app's backend only as a request parameter (e.g., "find places within 5 miles of these coordinates"), used to return a list of nearby places, and then discarded. We do not keep a log of your coordinates.
"Always" permission is requested only after you explicitly turn on "Nearby saved places (background)" in Settings. It powers iOS/Android geofencing: your operating system watches up to 20 of your saved places and wakes the app for a fraction of a second when you cross into one of those ~350-meter radii. The app then schedules a single local notification. Your location never leaves your device for this feature. There is a 12-hour cooldown per place. You can revoke "Always" permission at any time in your phone's Settings; this immediately stops all geofencing.
We do not share your data with any third party other than the ones above, and only for the purposes listed.
The app's database is hosted in the United States. If you live outside the United States, your information will be transferred there. By using the app you consent to this transfer. We use industry-standard encryption in transit (TLS) and at rest.
Regardless of where you live, you can:
If you live in California (CCPA/CPRA), the European Economic Area, the UK (UK GDPR), or another jurisdiction with a data-protection law, you have additional statutory rights. You can exercise all of them by emailing us at norellixstudio@gmail.com. We will never charge you a fee or deny service for exercising a privacy right.
The app is rated 17+ and is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you believe a child has signed up, email us and we'll delete the account.
We use TLS for all data in transit and encrypt the database at rest. We hash account passwords with industry-standard algorithms. No system is perfectly secure; if we ever have a breach involving your personal information, we will notify you by email and through the app within 72 hours of confirming it.
We may update this policy as the app changes. The "Effective" date at the top will always reflect the latest version. If we make a material change (for example, a new third-party service that receives personal data) we will notify you in the app before the change takes effect.