1. Introduction
This Privacy Policy explains how Sourdough (“we,” “us,” or “our”) handles information in connection with our website and mobile application. We are committed to protecting your privacy and being transparent about our practices.
2. Our Mobile App
The Sourdough mobile app stores your sourdough starters, feeding schedules, and history locally in an on-device database. This data is not collected, transmitted, or stored on external servers.
The app does not require an account, does not use analytics or tracking services, and does not integrate any third-party data collection SDKs. If you enable push notifications, a device token is sent to our server as described in Section 4 below. No other data leaves your device.
3. Our Website
Our website serves blog content about sourdough baking. The website does not require user accounts and does not collect personal information. Standard web server logs (IP address, browser type, pages visited) may be collected by our hosting provider for operational purposes.
4. Push Notifications
If you enable push notifications in the mobile app, we collect a device token (a unique identifier for sending notifications to your device). The token does not contain personal information and is not linked to any user account.
We store device tokens on our server to deliver notifications about new blog posts. Tokens are transmitted to a push notification service (Expo Push Notification Service) to deliver messages to your device.
You can stop receiving notifications at any time by disabling them in your device settings or by uninstalling the app. Uninstalling the app removes your device token from our server during the next cleanup cycle.
5. Community Forum
The mobile app includes an optional community forum feature where you can share sourdough tips, photos, and experiences with other users. The forum requires you to confirm that you are 13 years of age or older before accessing it. This age confirmation is stored locally on your device and is not transmitted to our servers.
When you first use the forum, your device generates a random anonymous identifier (UUID) that is stored locally on your device. This identifier is not linked to any personal information or user account. Your anonymous device identifier and a display name (which you choose) are sent to our server and associated with your posts, comments, and votes. Forum content is stored in a PostgreSQL database hosted by Neon, our database provider.
You can change your display name at any time through the forum settings. The display name is user-chosen and should not contain any personal information. Because the device identifier is randomly generated and stored only on your device, uninstalling the app will result in the loss of this identifier. Reinstalling the app creates a new anonymous identity that is not linked to your previous forum activity.
Content moderation: Users can report posts and comments for violations of community guidelines. Content that receives three or more reports is automatically hidden from other users. We reserve the right to review reported content and take appropriate action, including removing content or suspending devices.
Blocking: You can block other users within the app. Your block list is stored locally on your device and is not transmitted to our servers. Blocked users’ content is filtered from your view on your device only.
Account suspension: Devices that violate community guidelines may be suspended from posting, commenting, and voting. A suspended device can still view existing content but cannot create new content.
6. Data Collection
Through our website, we do not collect personal information. We do not use cookies for tracking purposes. We do not use any third-party analytics, advertising, or data collection services.
Through our mobile app, all sourdough starter data (feeding schedules, history) is stored locally on your device and never transmitted to our servers. If you enable push notifications, we collect and store a device token as described in the Push Notifications section above.
If you use the community forum, your anonymous device identifier, display name, and forum contributions (posts, comments, votes) are stored on our servers. This data is not linked to any personal information or user account.
7. Data Sharing
We do not share personal data with third parties. If you enable push notifications, device tokens are shared with Expo Push Notification Service for the purpose of delivering messages to your device. These tokens do not contain personal information and cannot be used to identify you.
8. Data Retention and Deletion
All sourdough starter data in the mobile app is stored locally on your device. You can delete individual starters and their feeding history within the app at any time. Uninstalling the app removes all locally stored data permanently.
If you enabled push notifications, your device token is stored on our server. Tokens may be automatically removed during periodic cleanup when they are no longer valid or have not been used for an extended period.
Forum content (posts, comments, votes) is stored on our servers. You can delete your account and all associated data (posts, comments, votes, and device registration) at any time by going to Settings > Delete Account within the app. This action is immediate and permanent. Uninstalling the app removes your local device identifier.
9. Children’s Privacy
Our services are not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. The community forum feature requires users to confirm they are 13 years of age or older before access is granted. If we become aware that a user under 13 has accessed the forum, we will take steps to remove their content and suspend their access.
10. Revoking Consent & Disabling Data Collection
You can revoke consent or disable data collection features at any time:
Push notifications: Disable notifications through your device’s Settings > Notifications > The Sourdough, or within the app’s notification preferences. Disabling notifications stops all push notification delivery and your device token will be removed during the next cleanup cycle.
Forum participation: You can stop using the forum at any time. To delete all your forum data, go to Settings > Delete Account within the app. This permanently removes your posts, comments, votes, and device registration from our servers. Your anonymous device identifier is stored only on your device and is never linked to personal information.
Feeding reminders: Disable or manage feeding reminders from the app’s settings screen. Reminders are scheduled locally on your device and no reminder data is transmitted to our servers.
Block list: You can manage your blocked users list from the forum settings screen at any time. Your block list is stored locally on your device.
Delete account and local data: To delete all server-side data (posts, comments, votes, device registration), use Settings > Delete Account within the app. Uninstalling the app removes all locally stored data, including your starters, feeding history, device identity, and block list.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. We encourage you to review this page periodically.
12. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at support@thesourdough.blog.