Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 26, 2026

Inner Orbit is a private presence app for the small group of people you're closest to. Privacy isn't fine print for us, it's the whole point. This policy explains plainly what data we collect, why we collect it, and how it's protected.

1. Who we are

Inner Orbit is operated by Steve Chan. If you have any questions about this policy, reach us at [email protected].

2. Who this app is for

Inner Orbit is a private, invite-only app. You join by invitation and share information only with the 3–8 people in your orbit. There are no public profiles, no feed, no ads, and we never sell your data.

Inner Orbit is not directed at children under 13 (or under 16 in the European Economic Area). If you believe a child has created an account, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.

3. What we collect and why

We collect the minimum needed to make the app work.

Account information

• Email address, used for sign-in via Firebase Authentication. We don't use it for marketing.

Profile information

• Display name and avatar, shown only to your orbit.
• Home city and timezone, used to show your local time to your orbit and to calculate the "good time to call" signal.

Presence and status

• Your current status and mood ("today signal"), what you choose to share with your orbit (e.g., "At the gym," "Free," custom text). You set this manually or, optionally, let the app set it automatically from on-device sources (see Section 5).

Reactions and moments

• Reactions (hugs, hearts, and similar) and voice "moments" (short ambient audio clips) that you send to orbit members.

The Wall

• Photos and voice notes you post to the shared Wall. These are stored in Google Cloud Storage and are visible only to your orbit.

Countdowns and events

• Countdown dates and labels you create (e.g., "Next trip together").

Location (optional, your choice)

• Location data, only if you enable it. See Section 4 for full detail.

Device and technical data

• Push notification tokens (APNs / FCM device tokens), used only to deliver notifications from your orbit to you.
• Crash and diagnostic data, collected automatically by Firebase Crashlytics to help us fix bugs. This data is anonymized and not linked to your content.

What we do not collect

• We do not collect raw HealthKit data, calendar events, or Focus status from your device. Those are used on-device only (see Section 5).
• We do not collect browsing history, contacts, or any data unrelated to the features above.
• We do not run ads and we do not build advertising profiles.

4. Location

Location sharing is entirely optional and under your control.

• You choose whether to share your location at all.
• You control the precision per person in your orbit: Precise, City-only, or Hidden.
• Ghost Mode lets you disappear from the map instantly with one tap.
• Your location on the shared map is updated only while the Inner Orbit app is open and in the foreground. We do not track your location in the background.
• Location data is shared only with members of your orbit and stored in Firestore (see Section 6).

You can change your location settings or turn off sharing at any time in the app's privacy settings.

5. HealthKit, Calendar, and Focus

The auto-status feature can optionally read your on-device Calendar events, HealthKit workout data, and Focus status to set your status automatically (e.g., "At the gym," "In a meeting").

• This data is processed entirely on your device.
• Raw health, calendar, or focus data is never transmitted to our servers and is never shared with your orbit.
• The app uses HealthKit in read-only mode, we never write to HealthKit.
• You can turn off auto-status at any time in Settings.

6. How we use your data

We use the data we collect to:

• Operate the app and deliver its features to you and your orbit.
• Send push notifications when orbit members interact with you.
• Diagnose crashes and bugs to improve stability.
• Respond to your support requests.

We do not use your data for advertising, analytics sold to third parties, or any purpose beyond operating Inner Orbit.

7. Who we share data with

Your data is shared only with members of your orbit for the features you use (status, location if enabled, Wall posts, reactions, moments). Outside of that:

Sub-processors (infrastructure only)

We use Google Firebase to run the app's backend. Google acts as a data processor on our behalf and is contractually bound to process your data only as we direct.

Google's data processing is governed by their Data Processing Addendum and Google's Privacy Policy. Data is stored in Google's infrastructure, primarily in the United States.

We do not share your data with any other third parties, advertisers, data brokers, or analytics companies.

8. Data retention

We keep your data for as long as your account exists.

• If you delete your account, your profile, presence history, Wall posts, voice moments, and all associated data are deleted from our systems. Deletion is permanent and cannot be undone.
• Crash logs are retained for a limited period (typically 90 days) in Crashlytics and are then automatically purged.
• Cached or backup copies may persist for a short technical period (up to 30 days) after deletion before being fully purged from all systems.

9. Security

We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your data:

• All data in transit is encrypted using TLS.
• Data at rest is encrypted by Google Cloud infrastructure.
• Access to Firestore is controlled by Firebase Security Rules so that orbit members can only read data from their own orbit.
• Orbit membership is invite-only; your data is never accessible to people outside your orbit.

No system is perfectly secure. If you become aware of a security concern, please contact us at [email protected].

10. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

All users

• Access: You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: You can update your profile information directly in the app at any time.
• Deletion: You can delete your account in the app, which deletes your data as described in Section 8.

If you are in the European Economic Area or UK (GDPR / UK GDPR)

• Right to data portability, receive your data in a portable format.
• Right to restrict processing, ask us to limit how we use your data.
• Right to object, object to processing based on our legitimate interests.
• Right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

Our lawful basis for processing is contract performance (to provide the service you signed up for) and, where applicable, consent (for optional features like location sharing and HealthKit access).

If you are in California (CCPA / CPRA)

• You have the right to know what personal information we collect, to request deletion, and to opt out of the sale of personal information. We do not sell personal information.
• California residents may submit requests to [email protected].

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at [email protected]. We will respond within 30 days (or as required by applicable law).

11. International data transfers

Inner Orbit's backend infrastructure is operated by Google LLC in the United States. If you are located outside the United States, your data may be transferred to and processed in the US. Where required by law (e.g., for EEA users), such transfers are covered by appropriate safeguards, including Google's Standard Contractual Clauses.

12. Beta notice

Inner Orbit is currently in beta via Apple TestFlight. Features, data practices, and this Privacy Policy may change as the app evolves. We will notify orbit members of material changes (see Section 13).

13. Changes to this policy

If we make material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page and notify you via the app or by email. Continued use of Inner Orbit after a change constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact

Questions, requests, or concerns? We're a small team and we read every message.

Email: [email protected]