This Privacy Policy describes how Bearbridge ("Bearbridge," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, and shares information in connection with the Bearbridge mobile application (the "App") for iOS and Android. Bearbridge helps family members communicate through chat, share their location with one another, post to a shared family board, keep a family calendar, and log their daily mood.
By using the App, you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the App.
You sign in to Bearbridge using LINE Login or Sign in with Apple. When you first sign in with LINE, we receive your LINE user identifier, display name, and profile picture URL from LINE. When you use Sign in with Apple, we receive an Apple account identifier and, if authorized, your name and email address. Apple may provide a private relay email address instead of your personal email address. You may also choose a username, and set a separate anonymous display name and picture used only when you choose to post to the family board anonymously.
The families you belong to, your role within each family, your per-family display name, and any custom name you assign to a family.
With your permission, we collect your device's GPS location while the App is open and in the foreground, so it can be shared with your family members. Bearbridge does not track your location in the background — location sharing pauses automatically when you leave the App. We store only your most recent location; we do not retain a history of your past locations.
Messages you send (text, photos, videos, files, and stickers), discussion board posts and comments, calendar entries, and mood check-ins you record, together with any media (profile pictures, family pictures, chat attachments, and custom stickers) that you upload.
| Permission | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Camera | Scan a QR code to join or add a family member; capture photos to send |
| Photo library | Select an existing photo for your profile or to send in a chat |
| Location (While Using) | Share your location with your family while the App is open |
Our servers and infrastructure providers automatically record standard connection information, such as IP address, request timestamps, and basic device or app metadata, for security, abuse prevention, and reliability purposes.
We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not integrate third-party analytics or advertising SDKs into the App.
Traffic between the App and our servers is encrypted in transit using TLS (HTTPS). Chat messages, board posts, calendar entries, and mood entries are additionally encrypted at rest using AES-256-GCM. This protects your content if our stored data were ever improperly accessed (for example, from a database backup) — it is not end-to-end encryption, and our servers are able to decrypt this content in order to deliver it to the intended recipients. Sessions are authenticated using short-lived access tokens together with rotating refresh tokens.
No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
We retain your data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we immediately remove your profile information and anything exclusively yours — your current location, personal stickers, and active sessions. Content you shared with your family (chat messages, board posts, calendar entries, mood entries) is retained so your family's shared history isn't disrupted, but it is no longer linked to your identity once your account is deleted.
Bearbridge is designed to be used within a family unit that may include children, managed by a parent or guardian who is also a member of that family. A child does not independently create a Bearbridge account outside of a family a parent or guardian manages — a parent or guardian adds the child as a family member and is responsible for their use of the App. A parent or guardian may contact us at any time (Section 10) to review, correct, or request deletion of a child's data.
Your information may be stored and processed in a country other than the one in which you live. By using the App, you consent to this transfer, storage, and processing.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will revise the "Last updated" date at the top of this page when we do, and material changes will be communicated within the App where appropriate.
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your information, contact Bearbridge at [email protected].