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Privacy Policy

Last updated: May 2025

📱

Phone auth only

Firebase OTP verifies you're a real person. No passwords.

📍

Location for happenings

Used to show nearby happenings. You control this in device settings.

🚫

We never sell your data

We have never sold, and will never sell, your personal information.

💳

Payments via Stripe

Stripe handles payment data. We never see your card details.

🗑️

Delete anytime

Request full deletion of your account and data at any time.

👤

One account enforced

We verify each person holds only one Unite account.

This Privacy Policy describes how Unite ("we," "us," "our") collects, uses, and protects your information when you use the Unite mobile application and related services. Questions? Email connect[at]unite.earth.

01

What We Collect

Information you provide

DataWhy we collect it
Phone numberPrimary identity verification via Firebase OTP. Ties your real identity to one account and enforces the one-account rule.
Name & display nameYour public identity on the platform.
Profile photoHelps other members recognise you at happenings.
InterestsPowers personalised happening discovery (up to 80 categories).
Happening activityRecords happenings you've attended, hosted, or joined.
Family membershipsTracks which Families you belong to and your role within them.
Messages & chat contentStored and delivered for happening group chats and Family channels.

Collected automatically

  • Device information (model, OS version, device ID)
  • IP address and approximate location inferred from it
  • App usage data — screens visited, features used, session duration
  • Crash reports and performance diagnostics
  • Push notification tokens (Firebase Cloud Messaging)

Location

With your permission, we access your device's GPS location to show happenings nearby and display them on the live map. We do not track your location in the background. You can revoke location permission in device settings at any time.

Camera & photos

We request camera and photo library access only when you upload a profile photo or family image.

02

How We Use Your Information

  • Account creation & authentication — to create and maintain your account, including enforcing the one-account-per-person rule.
  • Service delivery — to show happenings, power the live map, manage Family memberships, and facilitate group chats.
  • Notifications — to send push notifications about happenings, Family activity, and updates via Firebase Cloud Messaging.
  • Safety & fraud prevention — to detect and prevent abuse, spam, and multiple accounts.
  • Payments — to process subscriptions and purchases via Stripe.
  • Improvement — to understand how Unite is used and make it better.
  • Legal compliance — to meet our legal obligations and respond to lawful requests.
03

Legal Bases

For users in the EEA, UK, and Canada, we rely on the following legal bases:

  • Contract performance — processing necessary to provide the Services you signed up for.
  • Legitimate interests — safety, fraud prevention, and platform integrity (including the one-account rule).
  • Consent — for location access and push notifications. You may withdraw consent at any time.
  • Legal obligation — where required by law to retain or share data.
04

Who We Share With

We do not sell your personal data. We share data only in these specific circumstances:

  • Other users — your profile name, photo, and interests are visible to other Unite members. Content in group chats or Family channels is visible to members of those groups.
  • Service providers — trusted third parties who help us operate the platform, processing your data only on our instructions.
  • Legal requirements — if required by law, court order, or to protect member safety.
  • Business transfers — if Unite is acquired or merges, your data may transfer to the new entity under the same protections.
05

Third-Party Services

Firebase (Google) Supabase Stripe Expo / EAS Google Maps
ServicePurpose
Firebase (Google)Phone OTP authentication and push notifications. Governed by Google's Privacy Policy.
SupabaseDatabase, file storage, and real-time features. Your profile, happenings, Families, and messages are stored here.
StripePayment processing under PCI DSS compliance. We never store your card details.
Expo / EASApp build and distribution infrastructure.
Google MapsLocation services powering the live happenings map.
06

Payments & Stripe

All payments are processed by Stripe. Your card details are entered directly into Stripe's secure interface and are never transmitted to or stored on Unite's servers. We receive only a transaction confirmation and masked card identifier.

Subscriptions are tied to your single Unite account. If your account is terminated for violating the one-account rule, your subscription ends and no refund is issued for the unused period.

07

Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active. When you delete your account, your profile and happening history are deleted from active databases within 30 days. We may retain financial records for up to 7 years where required by law. Anonymised aggregated data may be retained indefinitely.

08

Security

We implement row-level security (Supabase RLS), encrypted transmission (HTTPS/TLS), token-based authentication (Firebase JWT), and Stripe PCI-DSS compliance. No system is completely secure, but we take our responsibility seriously and respond promptly to any incidents.

09

Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, or port your personal data; to restrict or object to processing; and to withdraw consent at any time. Contact us at connect[at]unite.earth and we will respond within 30 days.

EEA & UK residents

You have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority if you believe we are processing your data unlawfully.

California residents (CCPA)

You have the right to know what personal information we collect, request deletion, and not be discriminated against for exercising your rights. We do not sell personal information.

10

Children

Unite is not intended for users under 18. We do not knowingly collect data from minors. If we become aware that we have, we will delete it promptly. Contact us immediately if you believe a minor has created an account.

11

Policy Updates

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will update the "Last updated" date above and notify you of material changes via push notification or in-app message. Continued use after changes take effect constitutes acceptance.

12

Contact Us

Privacy questions?

Whether you want to delete your data or just have a question — a real person will respond.

connect@unite.earth
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