Introduction
BalanceForge ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our applications, including Equitab and any other apps we may develop (collectively, the "Services").
Please read this Privacy Policy carefully. By using our Services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, please do not use our Services.
Information We Collect
Information You Provide
When you use our Services, we may collect the following information:
- Authentication Information: Email address, display name, and profile photo (when using Google Sign-In or email/password authentication)
- User Profile Data: Display name, profile photo, friends list, custom expense categories, and reminder preferences
- Financial Data: Expenses, groups, settlements, and friendship relationships you create within the app
- Account Settings: Currency preferences, notification settings, and other app configuration data
Automatically Collected Information
Our apps do not include third-party analytics SDKs for advertising or behavioral tracking. However, when you use our Services, certain technical information may be processed automatically (primarily by our service providers) to operate, secure, and troubleshoot the Services:
- Technical and diagnostic information: Device/OS type, app version, and basic request metadata (for example, timestamps and IP address) as part of normal internet communications
- Local Storage: Data stored locally on your device using SQLite for offline functionality
How We Use Your Information
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
- To provide, maintain, and improve our Services
- To authenticate your identity and manage your account
- To enable expense tracking, splitting, and settlement calculations
- To facilitate sharing of expense data with friends and group members you authorize
- To send you payment reminders and notifications (if enabled)
- To provide offline functionality by storing data locally on your device
- To respond to your inquiries and provide customer support
- To detect, prevent, and address technical issues and security threats
Data Storage and Security
Cloud Storage
Your data is stored securely in Google Cloud Firestore, a cloud database service provided by Google. This includes:
- User profiles and authentication data
- Expenses, groups, settlements, and friendships
- App settings and preferences
Firestore provides industry-standard security measures, including encryption in transit and at rest, access controls, and regular security audits.
Local Storage
For offline functionality, we store a copy of your data locally on your device using SQLite. This local database allows you to use the app without an internet connection. Local data is stored within the app’s storage area (app sandbox). The security of this data depends on your device security settings; we recommend using a device passcode/biometrics and avoiding rooted/jailbroken devices.
Security Measures
We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Third-Party Services
Our Services use the following third-party services that may collect or process your information:
Firebase (Google)
We use Firebase for authentication and cloud database services. Firebase is provided by Google LLC. When you use our Services, your authentication data and app data are processed by Firebase in accordance with Google's Privacy Policy. You can learn more at Firebase Privacy.
Google Sign-In
If you choose to sign in with Google, your authentication is handled by Google's OAuth service. We receive your email address, display name, and profile photo from Google. Google's use of your information is governed by their Privacy Policy, available at Google Privacy Policy.
ExchangeRate-API
We use ExchangeRate-API (exchangerate-api.com) to provide currency conversion functionality. When you use multi-currency features, we may send currency conversion requests to this service. ExchangeRate-API may collect certain technical information such as IP addresses. Please review their privacy policy for more information.
Google Fonts
We use Google Fonts to display Material Icons in our web application. When you access our web app, Google may collect certain information. For more details, see Google Fonts Privacy.
Data Sharing and Disclosure
Sharing with Other Users
By design, our Services allow you to share expense data with friends and group members. When you:
- Add a friend, they can see your display name and profile information
- Create or join a group, all group members can see expenses, settlements, and balances within that group
- Add an expense to a group, all group members can view the expense details
This sharing is essential to the functionality of our Services. You control who you add as friends and which groups you join.
Friend discovery by email: In Equitab, users can search for other users by email address to add friends. If someone knows your email address and is signed in to the app, they may be able to find your profile information (such as display name and photo) in order to add you.
Service Providers
We may share your information with third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf, such as:
- Cloud hosting and database services (Firebase/Google)
- Authentication services (Google Sign-In)
- Currency conversion services (ExchangeRate-API)
These service providers are contractually obligated to protect your information and use it only for the purposes we specify.
Legal Requirements
We may disclose your information if required to do so by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities (e.g., a court or government agency).
Business Transfers
In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you of any such change in ownership or control of your personal information.
Your Rights and Choices
Access and Portability
You have the right to access the personal information we hold about you. You can view and update most of your information directly within the app. You can also request a copy of your data by contacting us.
Deletion
You can request deletion of your account and associated data by contacting us. At this time, our apps do not provide an in-app "delete account" button. When we process a deletion request, we will make reasonable efforts to delete your user profile and associated data from our systems, subject to the limitations below:
- Shared records: Some information you shared with others (for example, expenses in a group) may remain visible to other group members for historical and reconciliation purposes, even if your account is deleted
- Local data: Data stored on your device can be removed by uninstalling the app or clearing its storage
- Backups/retention: We may retain limited information where required by law or for legitimate purposes (such as security and fraud prevention)
Opt-Out
You can opt out of certain features:
- Notifications: You can disable payment reminders and other notifications in your device settings or app settings
- Data Collection: You can stop using our Services at any time, though this will limit functionality
California Privacy Rights
If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), including:
- The right to know what personal information we collect, use, and disclose
- The right to delete your personal information
- The right to opt-out of the sale of personal information (we do not sell your personal information)
- The right to non-discrimination for exercising your privacy rights
European Privacy Rights (GDPR)
If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), you have certain rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), including:
- The right to access your personal data
- The right to rectify inaccurate data
- The right to erasure ("right to be forgotten")
- The right to restrict processing
- The right to data portability
- The right to object to processing
- The right to withdraw consent
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the information provided in the "Contact Us" section below.
Data Retention
We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our Services and fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. Specifically:
- Account data is retained while your account remains active and until we process a deletion request
- Expense and group data is retained while relevant groups/expenses exist and may persist for other members, as described above
- Local device data is retained until you uninstall the app or clear app data
- We may retain certain information for longer periods if required by law or for legitimate business purposes, such as fraud prevention or dispute resolution
When you delete your account, we will delete or anonymize your personal information within a reasonable timeframe, except where we are required to retain it for legal purposes.
Children's Privacy
Our Services are not intended for children under the age of 13 (or the minimum age required in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will take steps to delete such information promptly.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. We will notify you of any material changes by:
- Posting the updated Privacy Policy on this page
- Updating the "Effective Date" at the top of this policy
- Providing notice through our Services or via email for significant changes
Your continued use of our Services after any changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.
Contact Us
If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:
We will respond to your inquiry within a reasonable timeframe and in accordance with applicable privacy laws.