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Privacy Policy

Last updated

Vent is a social events app for the global Iranian community. This policy explains what we collect when you use the Vent apps for iOS and Android or the web app at app.vent.social, why we collect it, who processes it on our behalf, and what you can do about it. We have tried to write it so it can be read in one sitting.

Vent is operated by the Vent team (“Vent”, “we”). If anything here is unclear, write to a.azimoshan@gmail.com.

What we collect, and why

  • Account details. Your phone number or, for older accounts, your email address. We use it to create your account and to send the one-time sign-in codes. We do not use it for marketing.
  • Profile. Your display name and username and, if you choose to add them, a photo, a short bio, your birthday and the interests you pick. Your profile is visible to other Vent members.
  • Content you post. Events you publish, moments (short text posts with photos), photos, and chat messages. Events and moments are visible to other members; chat messages are visible to the people in that conversation.
  • Location. If you allow it, your approximate or precise location, read only while the app is open. We use it to show events near you and to centre the map. We do not collect location in the background, and the app works without it: you can search by place instead.
  • Device push token. An identifier issued by Apple or Google so we can deliver notifications such as event reminders and new messages. Turning notifications off in your device settings removes it.
  • Crash and performance reports. When the app crashes or stalls we receive a report with the device model, operating system version, app version and a technical trace, through Firebase Crashlytics.
  • Product analytics. Which screens and features are used, so we can see what works. This runs through Firebase Analytics with the advertising identifier disabled and no ad personalisation.
  • Session analytics in the mobile apps. Microsoft Clarity records how screens are used — taps, scrolls and the sequence of screens — to help us find usability problems. The chat, sign-in and profile-editing screens are masked, so what you type or read there is not captured.
  • Technical logs. Your IP address, the time of each request and standard server logs, kept for security and to diagnose problems.

What we do not do

  • We do not sell your data, and we never have.
  • We do not show third-party advertising and do not share your data with advertisers.
  • We do not look at private conversations unless a participant reports one, or the law requires us to.

Who processes your data

To run Vent we rely on a small number of service providers, who process data only on our instructions:

  • Google Firebase — analytics, crash reporting and push notifications.
  • Microsoft Clarity — session analytics in the mobile apps.
  • Resend — sends transactional email such as sign-in codes.
  • An SMS provider — delivers the one-time sign-in codes to your phone.
  • MapTiler and Neshan — serve the map tiles. Loading a map sends the provider the area you are looking at, together with your IP address.
  • Our own Matrix server at matrix.vent.social, operated by Vent — stores and delivers chat messages.

Some of these providers run their services outside the country you live in. Where that is the case we rely on the provider’s contractual commitments to protect your data.

Chat

Messages are stored on Vent’s Matrix server so they can reach your other devices and stay in your history. They are not end-to-end encrypted by default: they are protected in transit and at rest, but Vent is technically able to access them, and will do so only to handle a report or where the law requires it.

You can block anyone, which stops them from messaging you, and you can report a user, a message, an event or a moment from inside the app. Reports are reviewed by the Vent team.

How long we keep it

  • Your account, profile, content and messages: for as long as your account exists. When you delete your account they are deleted — see How to delete your account.
  • Technical logs: up to 90 days.
  • Backups: a deleted account can remain in our backups for up to 30 days before they are overwritten.
  • Aggregate statistics that cannot identify you may be kept after deletion.

Your rights

You can ask us for a copy of the data we hold about you, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it. The quickest way to delete everything is from the app: Profile → Settings → Delete account.

You can withdraw permission for location and notifications at any time in your device settings; the app keeps working without them.

To exercise any of these rights, write to a.azimoshan@gmail.com from the email address or phone number on the account. We reply within 30 days.

If you live in a country that gives you further rights — such as the right to object to processing or to complain to a data-protection authority — those rights apply as well.

Age

Vent is for people aged 16 and over. We do not knowingly create accounts for anyone younger. If you believe someone under 16 is using Vent, tell us at a.azimoshan@gmail.com and we will remove the account.

Security

Data travels over encrypted connections. Sign-in is by one-time code, so there is no password to leak. Access to production systems is limited to the people who operate Vent.

Changes to this policy

If we change what we collect or how we use it, we will update this page and tell you in the app before the change takes effect. The date at the top shows the latest revision.

Contact

Questions, requests and complaints about privacy all go to the same address: a.azimoshan@gmail.com.