Privacy policy
In short: you can use Collectful entirely on your phone. If you sign in, we store your collections so they sync across your devices and so you can share the ones you make public. We don't sell your data or show ads.
Accounts aren't available yet. Today Collectful only works without an account, so everything stays on your phone and the parts of this policy about signing in, sync, purchases and analytics don't apply to you yet. They describe how Collectful will work when those features launch, and we'll update the date above when they do.
Who we are
Collectful is made by Joshua Cox (“we”), an independent developer based in the United Kingdom. We're the controller of the personal data described here. Contact us at placeholder.
Using Collectful without an account
When you choose Continue without an account, everything you add is stored only in the app's private storage on your phone:
- your display name and bio;
- your collections, groups, items, the details you record for them, and your bookmarks;
- photos you take or choose for items and collection covers (Collectful stores its own copy);
- your app settings, such as dark mode.
None of this is sent to us. If you open Explore, the app downloads public collections from our servers to show them to you, but it doesn't send your own data.
Using Collectful with an account
You can sign in with Apple or Google. When you do, we receive and store:
- Sign-in details: a unique ID from Apple or Google and the email address they share with us. If you use Apple's “Hide My Email”, we only see the relay address Apple gives us. We never see your Apple or Google password.
- Your profile: your username, display name, bio and profile photo.
- Your library: your collections, groups, items, their details and photos, and your bookmarks, so they can sync between your devices and be restored if you lose your phone.
- Technical records: when your devices last synced, and security logs (such as sign-in times and IP addresses) that we keep to protect your account.
Collectful still saves everything on your phone first and works offline. It sends changes to our servers when you're connected.
What other people can see
Collections are private unless you make them public. A private collection, and every item, photo and detail in it, is only visible to you.
When you make a collection public, anyone using Collectful can see it, its public details and photos, and your public profile (username, display name, bio, profile photo and your other public collections). Details you mark as private stay private even inside a public collection. Your bookmarks, groups and email address are never shown to other people. Other people can bookmark your public collections; if you make one private again or delete it, their bookmark stops showing its contents.
Subscriptions
If you buy a subscription, Apple or Google handles the payment. We never see your card or bank details. We receive what we need to give you the features you paid for: which plan you have, when it started and renews, and whether it's active, refunded or cancelled.
Analytics
We use PostHog, hosted in the European Union, to understand how Collectful is used and what to improve. It records events such as which screens are opened and which features are used, along with the app version, device model, operating system and approximate country. It doesn't record the names, details or photos in your collections, and we've set it not to store your IP address. If you're signed in, these events are linked to your account so they can be deleted with it. You can turn analytics off at any time in Settings.
Camera and photos
Collectful asks for access to your camera or photo library only when you choose to add a photo. It only uses the photos you take or pick, and it doesn't use the microphone or your location. Collectful removes location data embedded in photos before uploading them.
Who processes your data for us
We use a small number of service providers, who may only use your data to provide their service to us:
- Microsoft Azure hosts our database, photo storage, sign-in service and this website, in data centres in the UK or the European Union.
- PostHog provides the analytics described above, in the European Union.
- Apple and Google handle sign-in and in-app purchases under their own privacy policies.
We don't sell or rent your data, share it with advertisers, or use it to train AI models. We'd only disclose it if the law required us to.
Why we use your data
Under UK and EU data protection law, we rely on:
- our contract with you to run your account, sync your library, show your public collections and provide subscriptions;
- our legitimate interests to keep Collectful secure and to improve it with analytics you can turn off;
- legal obligations, for example responding to lawful requests.
How we protect it
Data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Our database and photo storage aren't publicly reachable. Photos in private collections can only be opened through short-lived links issued to you. Only we can access the servers, using accounts protected by two-step verification.
How long we keep it
- On your phone: until you delete it or uninstall the app.
- Your account and library: until you delete them. Deleted items and collections are removed from our servers within 30 days, and then from our backups within a further 35 days.
- Security logs: up to 90 days.
- Analytics events: up to 12 months, or until you delete your account.
If your phone backs up apps to iCloud or Google, that backup may include Collectful's on-device data. Apple and Google handle those backups under their own policies.
Deleting your data
You can delete single items, photos and collections in the app at any time. Settings → Delete my account deletes everything: on your phone, and on our servers if you have an account. See Delete your account for the details and what to do if you can't use the app.
Your rights
You have the right to access a copy of your personal data, correct it, delete it, restrict or object to how we use it, and receive it in a portable format. To use any of these rights, email placeholder from the address on your account and we'll reply within one month. You can also complain to a data protection authority; in the UK that's the Information Commissioner's Office.
Children
Collectful isn't directed at children under 13, and you must be at least 13 to create an account. If you think a child under 13 has given us personal data, contact us and we'll delete it.
Changes
If we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top. If a change affects how we use data you've already given us, we'll tell you in the app before it takes effect.