Well hi, this is Luke, the founder of Journey. I’m sitting in a cafe in Brooklyn near my home, my dog fast asleep at my feet. Life is good. But I’ve been trying to put this privacy policy together, and have read enough legal mumbo jumbo to make your head spin. And whilst you can indeed read the standard legal malarky in the sections that follow below, I thought I’d start by stating my intention…actually my promise to you, Journey’s users.

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The guiding principal and question I keep asking myself as I work through all this is — ‘how would I want my own data to be treated?' A few key points that get to the heart of how this approach manifests itself across the span of the privacy policy are as follows;

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1. We won’t be an asshole with your data — as with most apps you use on a regular basis, we’re going to collect a lot of data about you. Unlike most other social apps we promise we won’t do anything untoward with it. OK great, but wtf does ‘untoward’ mean? Here are a few examples:
2. We will never sell your data. Never ever ever.
3. We’ll never give your data to another company unless we believe it to be in your best interest, and with the right checks and balances in place to ensure they can’t use it for their own purpose. How could that be in your best interest? As an example, we might use an analytics tool we trust to help us figure out how we can make Journey more useful to you and others. This analytics company we choose to work with would never be able to use your data for any other reason other than to help Journey become more useful to you and others.
4. We’ll always ask the tough questions of ourselves as to whether we’re doing all we can to protect your data from being hacked.
5. Shit happens, and if we screw up and some evil prick does get a hold of your data, we’ll tell you about it immediately, and do everything we can to minimize the damage and make it right.
6. If you ever want any or all of your data deleted, in addition to what you already have control over in the app, just email us and we will do so immediately. Having said this, a large chunk of the things you share in Journey will be in the public domain, and if anyone copies them there’s not going to be much we can do — so please go into this with your eyes open.
7. At the moment, your data is likely an incredibly valuable asset to other social platforms and media owners. Without knowing it, your data is is probably used many times a day to help sell advertising to you — more often and at higher prices. The argument is often made that you’re getting a valuable service for free, and so it’s only fair that these companies harvest and package your data to be sold to advertisers. I think this is bullshit. And I hate that this it’s not an explicit contract, when it so easily could be. And that without diving into the backwaters of a convoluted settings section you can’t be a party to the transaction or have control over how your data is used. So we’re going to try to flip this on its head — we’re firstly going to try not to use your data at all to help us sell advertising, but if that fails we’re going to ask you, explicitly, whether it’s ok for us to use it, and if so, which pieces of data you’d be comfortable with. I love the idea of one day you being able to actually  tell us the products you’re interested in and brands you want to hear from, us going and finding those advertisers, and when we sell an ad that gets served to you, you get paid as well…because I believe you should…because it’s your data! I digress — back to the privacy policy.
8. We’ll only use your data when it’s in your best interest. For example:
9. Personalization — e.g. recommending an event to you based on the Journey you’re on and the location you’re in.
10. Ease of use / making the app more frictionless — e.g. using Facebook or Google to login.
11. Understanding what’s good in Journey and what’s not — what we need to double-down on vs what we need to change or remove.

That about sums up the rest of what you’ll read below. Hit me up for any thoughts or comments at luke@startyourjourney.io

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Step out of your comfort zone.

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Luke (Maybe Insert image here once in CMS)

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Introduction

Thank you for choosing to be part of our community at Journey (“company”, “we”, “us”, or “our”). We are committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy. If you have any questions or concerns about our policy, or our practices with regards to your personal information, please contact us at hello@startyourjourney.io.

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When you use our app, Journey (“App”), or visit our website https://startyourjourney.io (“Site”) and use our services, you trust us with your personal information. We take your privacy very seriously. In this privacy notice, we describe our privacy policy. We seek to explain to you in the clearest way possible what information we collect, how we use it and what rights you have in relation to it. We hope you take some time to read through it carefully, as it is important. If there are any terms in this privacy policy that you do not agree with, please discontinue use of our app, site, and our services.

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This privacy policy applies to all information collected through our websites (such as https://startyourjourney.io), our mobile applications ("Apps"), and/or any related services, sales, marketing or events (we refer to them collectively in this privacy policy as the "Sites").  

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Please read this privacy policy carefully as it will help you make informed decisions about sharing your personal information with us.

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What information do we collect?

Personal information you disclose to us

In Short: We collect personal information that you provide to us such as name, address, contact information, passwords and security data, payment information, and social media login data.

We collect personal information that you voluntarily provide to us when registering with Journey, expressing an interest in obtaining information about us or our products and services, when participating in activities on the Sites (such as posting photos, videos, messages, comments, likes, steps, or entering competitions, contests or giveaways) or otherwise contacting us.

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The personal information that we collect depends on the context of your interactions with us and the Sites, the choices you make and the products and features you use. The personal information we collect can include the following:

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Name and Contact Data. We collect your first and last name, email address, postal address, phone number, and other similar contact data.

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Credentials. We collect passwords, password hints, and similar security information used for authentication and account access.

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Social Media Login Data. We provide you with the option to register using social media account details, like your Facebook, Instagram, Google or other social media account. If you choose to register in this way, we will collect the Information described in the section called "Social Logins" below.

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All personal information that you provide to us must be true, complete and accurate, and you must notify us of any changes to such personal information.

Information automatically collected

In Short: Some information – such as IP address and/or browser and device characteristics – is collected automatically when you visit our websites.

We automatically collect certain information when you visit, use or navigate the Sites. This information does not reveal your specific identity (like your name or contact information) but may include device and usage information, such as your IP address, browser and device characteristics, operating system, language preferences, referring URLs, device name, country, location, information about how and when you use our Site and other technical information. This information is primarily needed to maintain the security and operation of our Sites, and for our internal analytics and reporting purposes.

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Like many businesses, we also collect information through cookies and similar technologies.

Information Collected Through Our Apps

In Short: We may collect information regarding your geo-location, mobile device, push notifications, and Facebook and Google permissions when you use our apps.

If you use our Apps, we may also collect the following information:

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• Geo-Location Information. We may request access or permission to and track location-based information from your mobile device, either continuously or while you are using our mobile application, to provide location-based services. If you wish to change our access or permissions, you may do so in your device’s settings.
• Mobile Device Access. We may request access or permission to certain features from your mobile device, including your mobile device’s calendar, camera, contacts, microphone, reminders, sensors, social media accounts, storage, and other features. If you wish to change our access or permissions, you may do so in your device’s settings.
• Mobile Device Data. We may automatically collect device information (such as your mobile device ID, model and manufacturer), operating system, version information and IP address.
• Push Notifications. We may request to send you push notifications regarding your account or the mobile application. If you wish to opt-out from receiving these types of communications, you may turn them off in your device’s settings.]
• Facebook Permissions. We by default access your Facebook basic account information, including your name, email, gender, birthday, current city, and profile picture URL, as well as other information that you choose to make public. We may also request access to other permissions related to your account, such as friends, checkins, and likes, and you may choose to grant or deny us access to each individual permission. For more information regarding Facebook permissions, refer to the Facebook Permissions Reference page.