Effective Date: February 10, 2025
Gateway Community Church ("we," "our," or "the church") respects your privacy and is committed to protecting it through this app.
Information We Collect
The GCC SA app collects:
Account Information:
- Email address – for account creation and authentication
- Display name – shown in prayer requests and chat
- User role – controls feature access (member, pastor, worship team, prayer team, owner)
Device Information
- Device model (e.g., iPhone 15, iPad Air)
- Operating system version (e.g., iOS 18.2)
- App version and build number
- Device notification tokens – to send prayer updates and event reminders
- Device hardware identifier (e.g., "iPhone17,2") – ONLY collected when you voluntarily submit feedback, used solely for debugging device-specific issues
Activity and Presence Tracking:
- Online/offline status – whether you're currently using the app
- Last active time – when you last used the app
- Current screen – which section you're viewing (e.g., "Prayer Requests", "Worship Chat")
- Last action – what you last did (e.g., "submitted prayer request", "sent chat message")
- Session start time – when you opened the app
- Session duration – how long you've been using the app
User-Generated Content:
- Prayer requests – visible to prayer team leaders only
- Worship chat messages – text, photos, videos, voice messages (visible to worship team only)
- Event submissions – visible to church leadership for approval
Diagnostic Data:
- Crash reports and error logs
- App performance metrics
- Debug information (screen history, action breadcrumbs)
How We Use This Data
Account Information:
- Authenticate your account
- Display your name to other members
- Control access to features based on your role
Device Information:
- Send push notifications
- Ensure app compatibility
- Track app version for support purposes
- Debug device-specific issues when you submit feedback
Activity and Presence Tracking:
- Show church leadership which members are currently active
- Help pastors understand app usage patterns
- Improve app features based on usage
- Debug technical issues
User-Generated Content:
- Enable prayer support network
- Facilitate worship team communication
- Process event submissions
Diagnostic Data:
- Fix crashes and bugs
- Improve app stability
- Optimize performance
We do NOT use your data for:
✗ Advertising or marketing
✗ Selling to third parties
✗ Tracking you across other apps or websites
✗ Building user profiles for commercial purposes
Who Can See Your Data
- Prayer requests: Prayer team leaders only
- Worship chat: Worship team members only
- Event submissions: Church leadership only
- Activity tracking: Church owners and administrators only
- Diagnostic data: App developers only (for debugging)
Your data is NEVER:
✗ Sold to third parties
✗ Shared with advertisers
✗ Used for marketing purposes
✗ Made public without your permission
The information we collect is used only to:
Authenticate your account (email, user ID)
Display your name in prayer requests and chat messages (display name)
Control feature access based on your role (user role)
Send notifications about prayer updates, chat messages, and church events (notification tokens)
Store and display prayer requests shared with prayer team leaders
Enable worship team communication through the worship chat feature
Process event submissions for church leadership approval
Improve app performance through diagnostic data analysis
We do NOT use your information for:
❌ Advertising or marketing purposes
❌ Selling or renting to third parties
❌ Behavioral tracking
❌ Sharing with anyone outside Gateway Community Church
To protect your privacy and manage storage, we automatically delete:
Chat media (photos, videos, voice messages) – deleted after 30 days
Chat text messages – deleted after 90 days
Prayer requests – kept until marked as answered by church leadership, then deleted after 30 days
Event submissions – deleted 30 days after the event date has passed
Notification tokens – removed when you log out or uninstall the app
You have the right to request deletion of your data:
Delete your account at any time through the app Settings
Request deletion of specific data by emailing jp5249556@gmail.com
We will respond to deletion requests within 30 days
Some data may be retained as required by law or for legitimate church record-keeping purposes
You can revoke consent for data collection at any time:
Disable push notifications in your iOS Settings
Stop using specific features (prayer requests, worship chat) without deleting your account
Delete your account to remove all associated personal data from our systems
We respect the confidential nature of church communication and prayer.
❌ Advertisers or marketing companies
❌ Data brokers or third-party analytics services
❌ Anyone outside Gateway Community Church
✅ Prayer requests are visible only to approved prayer team leaders
✅ Worship chat messages are visible only to worship team members
✅ Event submissions are visible only to pastors and church leadership for approval
✅ Your role and contact information may be visible to church administrators
This app uses Firebase (operated by Google) to provide:
User authentication
Secure data storage
Push notifications
App performance monitoring
Firebase's Privacy Commitment:
Firebase provides the same level of data protection as described in this Privacy Policy
Firebase does not use your data for advertising purposes
Firebase does not sell your data to third parties
Firebase complies with industry-standard security practices
Learn more about Firebase privacy: https://firebase.google.com/support/privacy
We do not use any third-party analytics, advertising networks, or tracking services.
We take reasonable measures to protect your information, including:
Industry-standard encryption for data transmission and storage
Secure authentication through Firebase Authentication
Access controls based on user roles
Regular security updates and monitoring
Secure communication methods provided by Apple and Firebase
However, no method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Gateway Community Church welcomes members of all ages, including children.
If you are under 13 years old:
You must have permission from your parent or guardian to use this app
A parent or guardian must create and manage your account
We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without parental consent
Parents and Guardians:
You may review, modify, or request deletion of your child's information by emailing jp5249556@gmail.com
You can disable notifications and restrict your child's use of certain app features
This app complies with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA).
You have the following rights regarding your personal information:
Access – Request a copy of the data we have collected about you
Correction – Update or correct your account information in app Settings
Deletion – Request deletion of your account and associated data
Opt-out – Disable push notifications or stop using specific features
Portability – Request your data in a machine-readable format
To exercise these rights, contact us at jp5249556@gmail.com.
This Privacy Policy may be updated from time to time to reflect changes in:
App features or functionality
Legal requirements
Privacy practices
We will notify you of significant changes by:
Posting the updated policy on this page
Updating the "Effective Date" at the top
Sending a notification through the app (for major changes)
Your continued use of the app after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:
Email: jp5249556@gmail.com
Church Website: https://www.lapuertaalcielosa.org/home
Mailing Address:
Gateway Community Church
1846 Basse Road San Antonio Texas 78213
We will respond to your inquiry within 30 days.