Tidestone is a quiet journal for letting difficult days out and watching them soften over time. This policy explains what information the app handles, where it is kept, and the choices you have. In short: everything you put into Tidestone stays on your iPhone. We do not collect, see, sell or share your personal information.
* The short version
- No account is needed, and there is no sign-in.
- Your stones, voice recordings, transcripts and settings are stored only on your device.
- If you subscribe to Tidestone Plus, your subscription is checked through Apple and RevenueCat using an anonymous ID. No name, email or payment details are shared with us.
- We do not run servers that receive your data.
- We do not use analytics, advertising or tracking tools.
- We do not sell or share your information with anyone.
- Voice is turned into text on your device only, never sent to us.
* Information stored on your device
When you use Tidestone, the app stores the following on your iPhone only:
- Stones you leave: the date and time, how heavy and rough each stone is, its colour, an optional name you give it, and where it lies on your shore.
- Voice recordings (optional): if you allow the microphone, what you say while shaping a stone is recorded (up to about ten seconds) and kept with that stone.
- Transcripts (optional): if you allow speech recognition, your recording is turned into text on your device so you can read it later.
- Choices you make in the app, such as time of day, sound and motion settings, shapes on your shore, and whether you have seen certain tips.
- A count of how many stones you've made, kept in your iPhone's Keychain so the free stones aren't reset by reinstalling the app. It is only a number and never leaves your device.
- Drawings you make in the sand are never saved; the tide washes them away.
This information never leaves your device unless you choose to share it (see "Sharing you choose"). We have no access to it.
If your device is backed up through Apple (iCloud Backup or a computer backup), this information may be included in that backup, which is handled by Apple under Apple's own privacy policy. We cannot access your backups.
* Permissions the app asks for
Tidestone only asks for a permission at the moment it is needed, and every feature works without it.
- Microphone: asked only when you tap "Let your voice in too" while making a stone. Used to record what you say while shaping a stone. If you say no, you can still leave stones without your voice. You can turn it on or off in the app's Settings ("Voice while shaping").
- Speech recognition: asked right after the microphone. Used to write down what you said, on your device only (Apple's on-device recognition). Your voice is not sent to us or to Apple's servers for this. If you say no, your recording is still kept, without a transcript. You can turn it on or off in the app's Settings ("Write down what I said").
- Notifications: after your first stone, the app explains the evening look back and you choose whether to allow it. Used for an occasional evening note about a heavy stone that has since softened. These notifications are created on your device; nothing is sent from a server. They never include what you said. You can turn them on or off in the app's Settings ("Allow notifications") or in iPhone Settings > Notifications > Tidestone.
- Motion: the app uses your phone's tilt to move the sea and stones on screen. This information is used only while the app is open, is never stored, and does not require a permission prompt.
You can change any of these permissions at any time in your iPhone's Settings.
* Widgets
Tidestone's widgets show your stones on your Home Screen and Lock Screen. To do this, the app shares your stone information with its own widgets through a private storage area on your device. This information stays on your device.
* Purchases (Tidestone Plus)
Tidestone offers an optional subscription, Tidestone Plus. Payments are handled entirely by Apple through the App Store. We never receive your name, email, payment details or Apple Account information.
To check whether your subscription is active, Tidestone uses RevenueCat, a subscription service. RevenueCat receives only what it needs to confirm a purchase: an anonymous ID created by the app, your App Store purchase and subscription details (which plan, when it started and renews), your country or region, and basic technical details such as your iOS and app version. RevenueCat does not receive your stones, voice recordings, transcripts or anything else you put into Tidestone. RevenueCat's handling of this information is described in its privacy policy: https://www.revenuecat.com/privacy
To manage or cancel your subscription, open iPhone Settings, tap your name at the top, then tap Subscriptions. Apple's handling of purchases is covered by Apple's privacy policy.
* Sharing you choose
Tidestone lets you create pictures and posts, such as a postcard of a stone, a snapshot of your shore, or your shore's song as a short post with its sound. These are only shared when you choose to share them, using your iPhone's standard share sheet. Once you share something with another app or person, how it is handled is up to that app or person, under their own privacy policies.
* What we do not do
- We do not collect personal information.
- We do not use third-party analytics, advertising, or tracking.
- We do not track you across other apps or websites.
- We do not use your location, camera, photos or contacts.
- We do not sell, rent or share your information. The only information that leaves your device is the anonymous subscription check described under "Purchases".
* Deleting your information
Because your information is stored only on your device, you are in control of it:
- You can let go of stones in the app, including stones that break when you knock them together. When a stone is let go, its voice recording is deleted.
- Deleting the Tidestone app from your iPhone removes its data from your device (copies may remain in your device backups until those backups are replaced or deleted). The small count of stones made stays in your iPhone's Keychain so the free stones aren't reset.
We cannot delete or recover your information for you, because we never have it.
* Children's privacy
Tidestone is not directed at children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect any personal information from children. Since the app does not collect personal information from anyone, no information about children is collected or shared.
* Update
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We encourage you to review this page periodically.
* Contact US
If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or App, please contact us at:
Email: manali.devloper@gmail.com
* Apple End User License Agreement
This application is licensed to you under Apple's Standard End User License Agreement (EULA), which you can review here:
https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/