Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Circles ("we", "our", or "us"), published and developed by Prasanna Kumar. Circles is a privacy-first mobile application designed exclusively for real-life mutual contacts. We believe privacy is a fundamental right. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, process, and protect your information when you use the Circles Android application (Package: com.prasanna.circles) and associated services.

2. Information We Collect & Device Permissions

A. Phone Number & Authentication

When you register for Circles, we authenticate your identity via your mobile phone number using Firebase Authentication. This creates a secure user session token tied to your device.

B. Address Book & Mutual Contact Matching (READ_CONTACTS)

Circles provides zero-friction mutual contact matching. To discover which of your phone contacts are also using Circles, the app requests permission to read your contact list (android.permission.READ_CONTACTS).

• On-Device Cryptographic Hashing: Phone numbers read from your device address book are immediately salted and converted into one-way cryptographic SHA-256 hex hashes on your device before network transmission.
• No Plain Text Storage: Raw phone numbers from your address book are never stored in plain text on our servers and are never uploaded in raw form.
• Mutual Consent Matching: Connections are established bidirectionally only when both users have each other's phone number saved in their respective device address books.

C. User Content & Media

We collect content you voluntarily create and share on Circles, including status updates, photos, comments, and emoji reactions. This content is visible only to the custom audience (Circles) you explicitly select (e.g., Family, Close Friends, Work).

D. Technical & Diagnostic Data

To ensure app stability and debug crashes, we collect basic technical metrics such as device model, OS version, app version, and anonymized error crash logs via Firebase Crashlytics.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your information strictly for the following purposes:

• Authenticating your user account and securing your session.
• Performing bidirectional mutual contact discovery using salted SHA-256 hashes.
• Delivering your chronological post feed strictly to your authorized audience Circles.
• Protecting device cryptographic KeyStore credentials by disabling Android Auto Backup to prevent KeyStore metadata corruption.
• Diagnosing technical glitches, crashes, and maintaining app performance.

4. Data Protection & Security

We implement robust administrative, technical, and physical security measures to safeguard your information:

• Encryption in Transit & At Rest: All network traffic between your device and Google Firebase backend servers is encrypted using HTTPS / TLS 1.3. Data at rest is encrypted in Cloud Firestore.
• Android Hardware KeyStore Safety: We utilize Android Hardware KeyStore for session credential management and explicitly disable cloud auto-backups (android:allowBackup="false") to prevent cryptographic key corruption on OEM Android devices.
• No Third-Party Ads or Tracking: We do not integrate third-party ad networks, tracking SDKs, or data brokers.

5. Data Retention & Account Deletion Rights

You retain full control over your personal data. You have the right to request deletion of your account and associated data at any time.

• In-App Post Deletion: You can delete any post, comment, or reaction directly within the Circles app.
• Full Account Erasure: To permanently delete your Circles account and erase your profile, published posts, media, and hashed contact mappings, email us at prasannakumar.boppe2@gmail.com with the subject "Account Deletion Request" and your registered phone number. Requests are processed within 7 business days.

6. Children's Privacy

Circles is intended for general audiences and is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us immediately for deletion.

7. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or inquiries regarding this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us:

• Publisher: Prasanna Kumar
• Developer: Prasanna Kumar
• Email: prasannakumar.boppe2@gmail.com
• Address: Singasandra, Bangalore, Karnataka - 560068, India
• Phone: +91 9880891066