Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how Gold Stars ("Gold Stars", "we", "us" or "our") collects and uses personal information when you and your family use our app and website (the "Service"). We are the data controller for the personal information described here. Gold Stars is designed to keep families' data private and to collect only what is needed to run the features you use.

1. Who this policy covers

Gold Stars is used by a parent or guardian on behalf of their household. The parent or guardian holds the account and provides consent, on behalf of their children, to the processing described below. Children do not have their own accounts, logins or credentials, and cannot sign up on their own.

2. Information we collect

Category	What it includes
Parent account	Your email address, a securely hashed password, and optional contact name and family name.
Family members	The names you enter for each family member, an emoji and colour avatar, and (optionally) a child's date of birth, used to show their age and a birthday surprise.
Family activity	Chores, points, rewards, calendar events, mood-journal entries and wish-list items that your family creates in the app.
Apple Calendar (optional)	If you choose to connect Apple Calendar, your Apple ID and an app-specific password, stored in encrypted form and used only to sync your own iCloud calendar.
Billing (optional)	If you subscribe to a paid plan, our payment provider processes your payment details. We receive confirmation of your subscription status, not your full card number.
Technical	Basic information needed to run the Service securely, such as a session cookie and server logs.

We do not collect children's photographs, contact details, or location, and we do not track your family across other apps or websites.

3. How and why we use it, and our lawful basis

Under UK data protection law we must have a lawful basis for using your personal information. We rely on the following:

• Performance of a contract — to create and run your account and provide the core features you use (chores, rewards, points, calendar and wish lists).
• Consent — for optional features you switch on, such as connecting Apple Calendar, keeping a mood journal, or receiving notification emails. You can withdraw consent at any time by turning the feature off or deleting the related data.
• Legitimate interests — to keep the Service secure, prevent misuse, and maintain and improve how it works, in a way that does not override your rights.
• Legal obligation — where we must keep or disclose information to comply with the law.

We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not sell it.

4. Children's information

Information about children is provided and controlled by their parent or guardian. We keep the amount of children's information to a minimum, use it only to provide the family features, and never use it for marketing or to build advertising profiles. As the account holder you can view, edit, export or delete your children's information at any time. If you believe a child's information has been provided to us without proper authority, please contact us and we will delete it.

5. Who we share it with

Each family's data is stored in its own isolated database and is never shared with other families. We do not sell personal data or share it for advertising. We share information only with service providers who help us run Gold Stars, and only as needed:

• Apple / iCloud — only if you set up Apple Calendar sync, and only to sync your own calendar.
• Our payment provider — only if you choose a paid plan, to process your subscription. They do not receive information about your children.
• Our email provider — only to send the notification or account emails you have enabled.

We may also disclose information if required by law, or to protect the rights, safety or security of our users or the Service.

6. Where your information is stored and international transfers

Your family's data is held on our servers. Some of the service providers named above may process limited information outside the United Kingdom. Where that happens, we rely on appropriate safeguards recognised under UK data protection law (such as adequacy decisions or standard contractual clauses) to keep your information protected.

7. How long we keep it

We keep your information for as long as your account is active. If you delete individual entries or members, they are removed from the running app. If you delete your data using the Factory Reset in Parent → Security & Data, or close your account, we delete the associated personal information, except where we must keep limited records to comply with the law.

8. How we protect it

Passwords are stored using secure one-way hashing, and any Apple app-specific password you provide is stored encrypted. Each family's data is isolated, access to the Parent area can be protected with a PIN, and we apply appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect against unauthorised access, loss or misuse.

9. Your rights

Under UK data protection law you have the right to:

• Access and export your family's data — download it from Parent → Family.
• Correct any information — edit any member or entry in the app.
• Delete information — remove individual members or entries, or erase everything via Parent → Security & Data (Factory Reset).
• Withdraw consent to optional features at any time.
• Object to or restrict certain processing, and request your data in a portable format.

To exercise any right you can use the in-app tools above or contact us using the details below.

10. Cookies

We use a single essential session cookie to keep you signed in and to keep the Service secure. We do not use advertising or third-party tracking cookies.

11. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we handle your information, please contact us first and we will try to put things right. You also have the right to complain to the UK's data protection regulator, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), at ico.org.uk.

12. Changes and contact

We may update this policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will ask you to review and accept the updated policy the next time you sign in. The "last updated" date at the top shows when this version took effect.

For any privacy question or request, contact us at notifications.goldstars@gmail.com.