Privacy Policy

MateLab ("we", "us", or "our") operates the AnsimMate (안심메이트) mobile application, a care-coordination app that connects an older adult ("cared person") with one or more family members or caregivers ("caregivers"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect information when you use AnsimMate.

1. Information We Collect

• Account information: Email address and authentication identifier (Firebase Authentication) used to sign in and link a cared person's account with their caregivers.
• Guest (trial) accounts: You can try AnsimMate without signing up. In that case the app creates an anonymous account (an anonymous Firebase Authentication identifier) without collecting your email address. A guest account can use the app's features during the 7-day trial, but caregiver connection and subscription are available only after you sign up. If you sign up with an email address, the same account is kept and your records are preserved. See Section 5 for how guest data is deleted.
• Location information (including background location): With the cared person's explicit in-app consent (a dedicated "Allow location sharing" switch, preceded by a prominent disclosure), precise device location so a caregiver can check the cared person's current location on request. Because the cared person may not have the app open when a caregiver needs to find them, location is also collected while the app is closed or not in use (Android "Allow all the time" permission). While location sharing is on, the app keeps a low-power location service running with a persistent "Sharing location" notification, updates the stored location at most about every 5 minutes or when the device moves about 100 m, and sends a fresh location when a linked caregiver taps "Check location". Location is only collected and shared while this switch is turned on; turning it off stops all collection immediately. See Section 2a for details.
• Health & activity data: If — and only if — a user connects Android Health Connect and grants each permission individually at the OS level, we read the following categories from Health Connect: steps, blood pressure, and sleep sessions. Nothing is collected automatically; each category requires the user's explicit Health Connect permission grant, and the user can disconnect or revoke access at any time from Health Connect's own settings. This data is used to show daily health/activity summaries and to alert caregivers of unusual patterns.
• Family / caregiver information: Names, photos, and phone numbers of family members that a user chooses to register, used only for in-app memory-training games and contact features. This information is entered voluntarily by the user and is not obtained from the device's contact list without explicit selection by the user.
• Diary content ("오늘기억"): Text, photos, audio recordings, and videos the cared person chooses to save as daily journal entries, plus routine/reminder records (medication times, appointments, custom notes) created in the app.
• Push notification token: A device push token (Firebase Cloud Messaging) used to deliver reminders and caregiver alerts.
• Usage & app-state data: Feature usage (e.g., cognitive game results, reminder completion status), subscription/trial status, and app settings (font size, language, magnifier on/off).
• Purchase & subscription data: When you subscribe to AnsimMate Premium, your purchase and subscription status (product, purchase token, subscription start/expiry/renewal status) is processed through Google Play and our subscription-management provider, RevenueCat. Your AnsimMate account identifier (user ID) is sent to RevenueCat as the "app user ID" so your subscription can be linked to your account. We do not receive or store your payment card details; payments are handled by Google Play.

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use diary content, location, or health data for advertising purposes.

2. How Information Is Shared Between Users

AnsimMate is designed for a cared person and their invited caregivers to share limited information with each other by design:

• A caregiver who has been invited and accepted by the cared person can see the cared person's routine/reminder completion status, activity summaries, diary "saved" notifications, and (only while the location-sharing switch is on) the cared person's location on request.
• A cared person can see which caregivers are linked to their account and can disconnect a caregiver at any time.
• Diary entry content, photos, audio, and video are visible only to the cared person unless the cared person chooses to enable sharing for a specific feature.

2a. Background Location — What Is Collected, Why, and How to Stop It

AnsimMate's location feature exists for one purpose: to let a family caregiver find an older adult who may be lost, unwell, or unable to answer the phone. To make this work reliably, the cared person's device must be able to report its location even when the app is not open. This is why the app requests Android's "Allow all the time" location permission.

• Consent first: Background location is never collected until the cared person has confirmed the "Allow location sharing" switch in the app's Settings screen and granted the system location permission. Before the system permission dialog appears, the app shows an in-app disclosure explaining that location is collected even when the app is closed or not in use.
• Who can see it: Only caregivers the cared person has invited and accepted. Nobody else — including us — uses the location for any other purpose. It is never used for advertising or analytics.
• What is stored: Only the most recent location (latitude, longitude, timestamp) is kept on the cared person's account record; each new update overwrites the previous one. We do not keep a location history or movement trail. Each caregiver "Check location" request creates a short technical record (who asked, when, delivery status) that is automatically deleted after 7 days.
• Visible indicator: While location sharing is on, Android shows a persistent "Sharing location" notification from AnsimMate. This is required by Android for background location services and cannot be hidden by the app; it is the cared person's ongoing reminder that sharing is active.
• How to stop: Turn off the "Allow location sharing" switch in the app's Settings screen (collection stops immediately and the notification disappears), or revoke the location permission in Android Settings → Apps → AnsimMate → Permissions. A caregiver can also be disconnected at any time from the Family tab.

3. Third-Party Services

Firebase (Google)

We use Firebase for authentication, cloud database (Firestore), file storage (photos/audio/video), cloud functions (server-side reminder and alert logic), and push notifications (Cloud Messaging). Firebase processes device identifiers and the data described above to support these app functions.
For more information: Firebase Privacy Policy

Google AdMob

We use Google AdMob to show a rewarded video ad only when a user chooses to watch one to unlock an optional feature. AdMob may collect and use data to serve ads. In regions subject to GDPR (EEA, UK, Switzerland), we obtain consent before showing personalized ads via Google's User Messaging Platform (UMP).
For more information: Google Privacy Policy

Google Maps / Location Services

We use Google's location and mapping services to display a cared person's location to caregivers when location sharing is enabled.
For more information: Google Privacy Policy

RevenueCat (subscription management)

We use RevenueCat, Inc. to verify and manage in-app subscriptions purchased through Google Play. To do this, the app sends RevenueCat your AnsimMate user ID (used as the RevenueCat "app user ID"), basic device/technical information (such as device type and operating system), and purchase/transaction information (such as the Google Play purchase token and subscription status). RevenueCat does not receive your diary content, location, health data, or contact information from us. RevenueCat acts as a data processor on our behalf, and data is processed on servers in the United States.
For more information: RevenueCat Privacy Policy

Android Health Connect

Android Health Connect is a platform service that keeps health data on-device and only shares it with an app if the user actively connects that app and grants permission. AnsimMate does not collect any health data unless the user has completed this connection. Once connected, we only read the specific data categories (steps, blood pressure, sleep sessions) the user has individually granted permission for, and the user may disconnect or revoke any of these permissions at any time from Health Connect's own settings.

4. How We Use Your Information

• To provide core features: reminders, diary, cognitive games, health summaries, and family/caregiver linking
• To send the cared person reminder notifications and to alert caregivers when a reminder is missed or a check-in is overdue
• To let a caregiver view the cared person's current location — including while the cared person's app is closed or not in use — but only when the cared person has turned location sharing on (see Section 2a)
• To deliver the cared person's "Emergency help" button press to all linked caregivers immediately
• To manage trial periods and subscription access, including verifying your subscription with Google Play and RevenueCat
• To improve app performance and reliability

5. Data Retention

We retain your data for as long as your account is active. Location data is an exception: only the most recent location is stored (overwritten on each update), and caregiver location-request records are deleted automatically after 7 days. You may request deletion of your account and associated data at any time by contacting us at cnuseac@gmail.com, or by using the account deletion option in the app's Settings screen.

Guest accounts: If you use AnsimMate as a guest and do not sign up, all data associated with the guest account (including reminders, diary entries, and settings) is permanently deleted automatically at the end of the 7-day trial plus 24 hours. If you sign up within that period, the data is kept under your account. Guest data is also lost if you uninstall the app, clear its data, or log out of a guest account, because a guest account cannot be signed in to again.

6. Your Rights (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland, you have the following rights under GDPR:

• Right to access the personal data we hold about you
• Right to correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to request deletion of your data
• Right to withdraw consent (e.g., turn off location sharing) at any time
• Right to object to data processing

To exercise these rights, contact us at cnuseac@gmail.com.

7. Children's Privacy

AnsimMate is designed for adult users (cared persons and their adult family caregivers) and is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

8. Data Security

We use industry-standard measures (including Firebase Authentication and Firestore/Storage security rules) to restrict access to a user's data to that user and the caregivers they have explicitly connected with.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify users of significant changes by updating the "Last updated" date above.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:
cnuseac@gmail.com