privacy policy

The short version

• People who send you messages are anonymous to you: we never show their name or social handles.
• To keep POV safe, we store basic technical info with each message, such as device type and approximate location worked out from the sender's IP address. POV Pro members can see some of this as hints.
• Messages are checked automatically for harmful content before they are delivered.
• We don't show ads and we don't sell your personal information.

How POV works

An app user creates a game (a question or prompt) and shares its link. Anyone with the link can open the answer page on pov.lol and send the app user an anonymous message, without creating an account. The app user reads messages in the app and can reply or share them, for example to their social media stories.

What we collect

If you use the app

• Account details: your username, an optional profile picture, and an account identifier. If you link a Google account, we receive the basic profile information Google shares (such as your email address).
• Date of birth: used only to confirm you are old enough to use POV and to apply age-appropriate settings.
• Your content: the games you create, the messages you receive, and your replies.
• Device and usage data: your IP address when you sign up, a push-notification token if you allow notifications, app version, and how you use features (for example which screens you open).
• Purchases: if you subscribe to POV Pro, Apple processes the payment. We receive the subscription status and an anonymous purchase identifier, not your card details.

If you send a message on pov.lol

• Your message and the time you sent it.
• Network and location data: your IP address and the approximate location it indicates (city, region, country and network provider). Only the approximate location is stored with your message. We also keep a one-way hash of your IP address to enforce spam limits and blocks.
• Device data: your browser and device type and operating system, and the page that linked you to POV.
• A random device identifier stored in your browser, so we can count visits and apply limits without knowing who you are.

Opening an answer page records a visit with the same network, location and device data, even if you don't send a message.

How we use it

• To run POV: deliver messages, send notifications, and keep your account working.
• To keep POV safe: automatically screen messages for threats, sexual content, hate, self-harm and other harmful content; block those messages; limit spam; and investigate reports.
• To provide POV Pro features, including hints about who sent a message (such as approximate location, device and time).
• To understand and improve POV, using aggregated usage statistics.
• To meet legal obligations and respond to lawful requests.

Who sees what

• The person you message sees your message and when it was sent. If they have POV Pro, they may also see hints such as your approximate location, device type and platform. They never see your name or social handles, because we don't collect them from senders.
• Service providers who process data for us under contract: Google Firebase (database, sign-in, notifications and file storage), Vercel (website hosting), OpenAI (automated moderation of message text), ipinfo.io and ip-api.com (approximate location from IP address), RevenueCat and Apple (subscriptions), Mixpanel and Google Analytics for Firebase (app analytics) and Simple Analytics and Vercel Web Analytics (privacy-friendly website statistics without cookies).
• Authorities, when we believe in good faith that the law requires it or that it is needed to prevent serious harm, such as a credible threat to someone's safety.
• A buyer or successor, if POV is sold or merged, under this policy.

We don't sell personal information and we don't use it for advertising.

How long we keep it

• Messages stay in the recipient's inbox until they delete them or their account is deleted.
• Messages blocked by moderation are not delivered or stored. We keep a record of the block (the categories and the hashed IP, not the text) to measure and prevent abuse.
• A sender's IP address is never stored with the message. We keep it separately, where no app user can see it, for 90 days to investigate abuse and respond to lawful requests, and then delete it.
• Spam-limit records hold only hashed identifiers, counters and timestamps.
• Account data is kept while your account exists and deleted when you ask us to delete your account.

Age requirement

POV is for people aged 13 and over. We don't knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 is using POV, contact us at support@pov.lol and we will delete their account and data.

Your choices and rights

• You can turn notifications off at any time in your device settings.
• You can delete messages in your inbox at any time.
• You can ask us to access, correct, export or delete your personal information, or object to how we use it, by emailing support@pov.lol. Depending on where you live, you may also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority.
• If you sent a message and want it removed, email us with the link you used and the approximate time you sent it.

Security

Data is encrypted in transit, access to production systems is restricted, and database rules prevent people from reading other users' data. No system is perfectly secure, so we can't guarantee absolute security.

International transfers

Our providers store and process data in the United States and other countries, which may have different data protection laws from where you live. We rely on our providers' contractual safeguards for these transfers.

Changes

If we change this policy, we will update the date at the top. If the change is significant, we will let app users know in the app.

Contact

Questions or requests: support@pov.lol. POV is provided by Venture Lab SMC-Private Limited (Viral Apps).