Privacy

1. Who is responsible

Starly - Fact Checks & Notes (Starly) and starlysky.com are operated by F.T. PC EXPERTS LIMITED, Cyprus. We are the controller of the personal data described in this notice. Contact support@starlysky.com for privacy questions, requests or a postal contact address. This notice covers the iPhone app, our website and support; Apple and other providers also have their own notices for services they operate independently.

2. What stays on your iPhone

Screenshots selected for import, original files, raw text recognition and private diary notes stay in the app on your device. Text recognition uses Apple Vision on the device. Starly does not upload the selected image or request access to your entire photo library. Only the text you review and confirm, together with its context, is submitted for analysis. Do not include another person’s personal information or sensitive information in that text.

For link imports, the URL is sent to our server before text confirmation. The server retrieves the public page from its website and returns extracted text for your review. This fetch does not create a saved import or send the page to an AI model; model analysis starts only after you confirm the text.

Device backups and copies you export are separate from Starly’s server: Apple’s backup settings and the destination you choose govern those copies. Deleting server data does not remove a file you previously saved or shared elsewhere.

3. Installation and optional Apple sign-in

The app creates a random installation identifier and a device secret to authenticate requests. The server stores a hash of that secret, session records, security timestamps and limited technical metadata such as app/OS version and tracking-permission state. The installation ID is pseudonymous: it can link activity even though it is not your name.

Sign in with Apple is optional. If you use it, Apple’s account identifier links your installations for private synchronization. We verify Apple credentials and protect retained authorization grants with encryption. We do not receive your Apple password or payment card, and we do not retain the name or email from the Apple sign-in response. Signing out and deleting an account are different actions.

4. Readings, imports and private records

We process the text you confirm, the source reference where supplied, language, relevant dates and IANA time zone, extracted claims, analysis status and saved reports. Dates and time zones determine the period being checked; they are not precise device location. Legacy context fields remain attached to earlier records. We retain version references so a saved observation continues to refer to the text originally read.

Private synchronization may contain your Yes/No/Not sure answers, deletions and trust-rating history. Free-text diary notes and original import images are excluded. Imported material is not automatically published in Starly’s reading catalogue or community. Export and deletion remain available independently of a paid subscription.

5. AI analysis and astronomical data

Confirmed text and context are sent through OpenRouter to the configured language-model provider to identify claims. Our requests require routing that disallows provider data collection and requires zero data retention. This is a routing requirement, not a promise that every external service has no technical security records. You may ask which models and services were configured at the time of processing.

Starly also generates its own general readings without sending your private journal as a prompt. Language models can make mistakes. Astronomical checking compares supported claims with cached NASA/JPL Horizons data; the model does not supply the scientific verdict or invent evidence. References to NASA/JPL identify a data source, not an endorsement of Starly or its notes.

6. Purchases and subscriptions

Apple processes payments. RevenueCat and our backend process the installation/customer identifier, product and transaction references, subscription state, expiry or revocation and verified access rights. These records support purchase restoration, entitlement checks, subscription administration and permitted integration reporting. We do not receive your card details or Apple account password. Purchase history held by Apple is governed by Apple’s policies.

7. Product analytics and advertising measurement

Our server and Amplitude receive a defined set of product events, such as screen, onboarding, paywall, purchase-flow and feature-use events, with a pseudonymous installation identifier, time and configuration variant. Events do not include submitted text, screenshots, diary notes or support-message contents. Providers may process technical connection information needed to deliver their services. These statistics help diagnose failures and understand product use; they are not anonymous merely because a name is absent.

AppsFlyer is the configured attribution provider. Advertising measurement is subject to the app’s activation checks and Apple’s tracking permission. Where tracking is allowed, identifiers and limited campaign/install or purchase information may connect an installation with an advertising source. Declining tracking does not remove core functionality. You can change Apple’s permission in iOS Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking. For an objection to other analytics processing, contact support. The public website uses no advertising pixels or analytics SDK.

8. Notifications, community and support

Evening reminders are scheduled locally. Optional service push notifications use OneSignal and require the relevant in-app choice and iOS notification permission. OneSignal may receive the installation identifier, push token and delivery metadata. Disable notifications in iOS Settings whenever you wish. A push is not intended to expose private diary text on the lock screen.

Community participation has a separate consent step. It shares your numerical trust contribution and participation state for aggregation, not notes or screenshots. Public summaries require a minimum sample and do not reveal an individual diary. Withdrawing removes your contribution without deleting your private rating.

In-app support receives the message you submit and its report-version reference. Website support receives your email, message and language; submitting a form does not subscribe you to marketing. Please do not send passwords, payment details, screenshots of private records or information about other people.

9. Purposes and legal grounds

We process necessary service data to provide the features you request; security and limited service analytics support legitimate operational interests. Optional tracking, push and community sharing depend on the applicable permission or consent. Legal duties may require specific records. Contact us to object or withdraw consent; withdrawal does not undo earlier lawful processing.

10. Service providers and disclosures

UpCloud hosts our backend and database in Germany. Apple provides distribution, payments, sign-in and device services. RevenueCat manages purchase information, Amplitude product analytics, OpenRouter routes model requests, the selected model provider performs extraction or generation, OneSignal delivers opted-in push and AppsFlyer supports enabled attribution. Access is limited to what each service needs for its role.

We do not publish or sell your private imports or diary. We may disclose limited information to comply with a valid legal obligation, address abuse or protect rights, and to advisers bound by confidentiality. If the business is transferred, affected data may transfer with it subject to notice and applicable protections. Advertising attribution disclosures, where enabled, must be distinguished from sharing private content.

11. International processing

Our main backend is hosted in Germany; providers and their support teams may process information in other countries, including the United States. The production Amplitude project uses its US region. Where required, transfers rely on an applicable adequacy decision or contractual safeguards such as standard contractual clauses. Contact us for information about the safeguards relevant to your data; a European server does not mean all providers operate only in Europe.

12. Retention and deletion

Server product events have a 90-day retention setting. Incomplete import jobs are marked as expired after 30 days of inactivity; confirmed text, saved versions and reports remain until you delete the relevant import, history or account. Website support-form messages are scheduled for deletion after 30 days. In-app support messages have no automatic expiry: they remain until you delete the associated import, history or account. Security records are retained for their security purpose or applicable legal obligation. Subscription records needed to maintain access, resolve a dispute or satisfy accounting duties can have a different retention period.

Deleting history clears the selected account’s product history and its local pending work while preserving subscription access. Account deletion removes or de-identifies associated Starly account data and invalidates its sessions. It does not cancel an App Store subscription. Neither action means that an external provider has already erased its customer profile, analytics history or backups. The account-deletion request made in the app also initiates the process of deleting linked personal profiles at our service providers; no separate email is required. Provider processing can take additional time. Pending provider requests are retained for follow-up and are not treated as completed deletion. You can contact support@starlysky.com with your deletion receipt to ask about progress.

Analytics at Amplitude, attribution at AppsFlyer and purchase history at RevenueCat follow their project retention and the applicable deletion process. Aggregate statistics that cannot identify you can remain. Backups may retain a previous copy until they expire under the hosting retention schedule; they are not an active substitute for a deleted account. Contact us for the current backup window and any legally required exception. We do not promise immediate removal from every backup or independent Apple record.

13. Your rights and choices

Depending on applicable law, you may request access, correction, deletion, portability or restriction, object to processing and complain to a supervisory authority. Our lead local authority is the Cyprus Commissioner for Personal Data Protection. Write to support@starlysky.com; we may request proportionate proof of ownership and respond within the applicable deadline.

14. Security and children

Connections to our public service use HTTPS. Server access is restricted by staff roles, passwords and audit records; secrets and retained Apple grants are protected separately from ordinary product data. No service can guarantee complete security. Keep your device and Apple account secure, and contact us if you suspect unauthorized access.

Starly is not directed to children under 13. Where local law requires a higher age or a parent’s permission, those rules apply. We do not knowingly collect children’s information in violation of those requirements. A parent or guardian can contact us to request investigation and appropriate deletion.

15. Changes and contact

We update this notice when features, providers or data practices change and identify the effective date on this page. Material changes will be communicated through the app or website as appropriate. Questions and requests: support@starlysky.com. Controller: F.T. PC EXPERTS LIMITED, Cyprus.