Privacy Policy

Effective Date: November 14, 2024

            Ping Direct is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your information when you use our mobile application.
        

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Information You Provide

Phone Numbers: You provide phone numbers to send WhatsApp messages. These are encrypted and stored locally on your device.
Contact Names: Optional names you assign to phone numbers for easy identification.
Messages: The last message text you used (for convenience), stored locally on your device.
Country Codes: Selected country codes for phone number formatting.

1.2 Automatically Collected Information

Usage Data: Anonymous analytics about app usage, screen views, and feature interactions via Firebase Analytics.
Crash Reports: Technical data about app crashes via Firebase Crashlytics to improve stability.
Device Information: Device type, operating system version, and app version for compatibility purposes.
Ad Information: Anonymous advertising identifiers for serving relevant ads via Google AdMob.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information for the following purposes:

Primary Functionality: To enable you to send WhatsApp messages to phone numbers without saving them as contacts.
Contact History: To maintain your conversation history locally on your device (if enabled).
App Improvement: To analyze app usage patterns and improve features.
Bug Fixes: To identify and fix technical issues and crashes.
Advertising: To display relevant advertisements to support free app access.
User Preferences: To remember your settings like theme, last country code, and WhatsApp type preference.

3. Data Storage and Security

3.1 Local Storage

            Important: All contact data (phone numbers and names) is stored locally on your device only using encrypted SQLite database with AES encryption. We do not store or transmit this data to our servers.
        

3.2 Security Measures

Encryption: Phone numbers are encrypted using AES encryption with secure keys stored in Android Keystore.
Local Storage: All sensitive data remains on your device and is never transmitted to external servers.
Secure Preferences: App settings are stored using Flutter Secure Storage.

4. Third-Party Services

Ping Direct integrates the following third-party services:

4.1 Firebase (Google)

Firebase Analytics: Anonymous usage statistics and app performance data.
Firebase Crashlytics: Crash reports and error diagnostics.
Privacy Policy: https://firebase.google.com/support/privacy

4.2 Google AdMob

Purpose: Displays advertisements to support free app access.
Data Collected: Anonymous advertising identifiers, device information, and ad interaction data.
Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy

4.3 WhatsApp

Purpose: Opens WhatsApp to send messages (via URL scheme).
Note: We do not access WhatsApp data or messages. We only launch WhatsApp with the phone number you provide.
Privacy Policy: https://www.whatsapp.com/legal/privacy-policy

5. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to third parties. We may share information only in the following circumstances:

With Your Consent: When you explicitly agree to share information.
Legal Requirements: If required by law, regulation, or legal process.
Service Providers: With third-party services mentioned above (Firebase, AdMob) that help us operate the app.
Business Transfers: In connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

6. Your Privacy Rights and Choices

6.1 History Feature

You can enable or disable contact history in Settings > Privacy & Data.
When disabled, no contact data is saved on your device.
You can delete all saved contacts at any time from the app.

6.2 Analytics

You can disable analytics collection in Settings > Privacy & Data.
This will stop sending anonymous usage data to Firebase Analytics.

6.3 Advertising

You can opt out of personalized ads through your device settings.
Android: Settings > Google > Ads > Opt out of Ads Personalization

6.4 Data Deletion

All contact data is stored locally on your device.
To delete all data: Use "Delete All" in the Saved Contacts screen, or uninstall the app.
Uninstalling the app permanently removes all locally stored data.

7. Children's Privacy

Ping Direct is not intended for children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us to have it removed.

8. Data Retention

Contact Data: Stored locally on your device until you delete it or uninstall the app.
Analytics Data: Retained by Firebase according to their retention policies (typically 2-14 months).
Crash Reports: Retained by Firebase Crashlytics for 90 days.

9. International Data Transfers

Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your own, including the United States where Firebase and Google services are operated. These countries may have different data protection laws. By using Ping Direct, you consent to such transfers.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be effective when posted within the app or on our website. The "Effective Date" at the top indicates when the policy was last updated. Continued use of the app after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Your Consent

By using Ping Direct, you consent to this Privacy Policy and agree to its terms.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your data, please contact us at:

Catwave Solutions
Email: support@catwavesolutions.com
App: Ping Direct
Package: com.catwavesolutions.pingdirect

13. Additional Information for EU Users (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), you have the following rights under GDPR:

Right to Access: Request access to your personal data.
Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data.
Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your data (uninstall the app).
Right to Restrict Processing: Request limitation of data processing.
Right to Data Portability: Request transfer of your data (contact us).
Right to Object: Object to data processing for certain purposes.
Right to Withdraw Consent: Withdraw consent at any time (disable features in settings).

14. Additional Information for California Users (CCPA)

If you are a California resident, you have the following rights under CCPA:

Right to Know: Request information about data collection and use.
Right to Delete: Request deletion of your personal information.
Right to Opt-Out: Opt out of the sale of personal information (we do not sell data).
Right to Non-Discrimination: Not be discriminated against for exercising your rights.