Serein privacy policy

This policy explains what data the Serein app collects, why, who else ever sees it, how long it is kept, and how to have it deleted. Serein is published by Solace Foundry Ltd. (“we”), a limited liability company formed in Colorado, United States.

Serein exists to help someone restrict their own access to things they have chosen to stay away from. That purpose only works if the app is not also watching them. The commitments below are therefore part of the product design, not just this document.

1. What we collect, and every use of it

Account information

When you create an account we collect an email address and an authentication identifier. If you sign in with Apple or Google, we receive the identifier that service returns and, where you permit it, an email address. This is used to sign you in, to keep your settings available on your device, and to connect you with your Witness. It is not used for advertising or profiling.

Your protection settings and pledge

The limits you set, the pledge you write, and the record of requests to change those limits are stored so that they persist and so your Witness can act on them. Requests to loosen a limit are visible to the Witness you have named, because approving or refusing them is that person’s entire role.

Your app and website selections

Serein uses Apple’s Screen Time (Family Controls) framework. When you choose apps or categories to restrict, iOS gives Serein an opaque token rather than the name of the app. We cannot see which apps you selected, and those tokens remain on your device. Website addresses you add to your own block list are stored so the filter can enforce them.

Content filtering — what is never recorded

Serein filters on your device by resolving whether a requested address is on the list you configured. It does not log, transmit, store, or examine your browsing history, the pages you visit, or the content of any network traffic. A blocked attempt may increment a count and, if you have chosen to enable that, notify your Witness that a block occurred — never what was being reached for.

Subscription and payment

Purchases are processed by Apple. We never receive or store your card details. We use RevenueCat to determine whether your subscription is active. Diagnostic and crash information may be collected to keep the app working.

2. Who else sees your data

We use a small number of service providers to operate Serein. Each is bound by contract to protect your information, and we confirm that every third party with whom Serein shares user data provides the same or equal protection of that data as stated in this policy.

• Google (Firebase Authentication and Cloud Firestore) — account authentication and storage of your settings, pledge, and Witness relationship.
• RevenueCat — subscription entitlement status.
• Apple — App Store purchases, sign-in, and push notifications.
• Your Witness — a person you choose and can change. They see the limits you have asked to change and can approve or refuse. They do not receive a record of your activity and cannot alter your settings.

3. What we will never do

We do not sell, rent, trade, or otherwise disclose your data to third parties for any purpose, and we do not use it for advertising, marketing, profiling, or analytics performed on our behalf by advertisers or data brokers. We do not build advertising profiles, and we do not share data with any party for their own independent purposes. Data leaves your device only for the operational reasons listed in section 2.

4. How long we keep it, and how to delete it

We keep your account data for as long as your account exists. Records that no longer serve a purpose are removed.

• Deleting your account removes your account record, your settings, your pledge, and your Witness relationship. You can do this from within the app, in Settings.
• Removing your Witness ends that person’s access immediately.
• Withdrawing permissions — you can revoke Screen Time access, notification permission, or the on-device filter at any time in iOS Settings. Doing so stops the related processing.
• Deleting the app removes everything Serein stored locally on that device.

You may also write to privacy@solace-foundry.com to ask for a copy of your data, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete it, and we will do so.

5. Your rights

If you are in the United Kingdom or the European Economic Area you have rights under data protection law to access, correct, delete, restrict, and port your data, and to object to processing. Contact privacy@solace-foundry.com to exercise any of them. You also have the right to complain to your local supervisory authority.

6. Children

Serein is not directed at children and is not intended for use by anyone under 17. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If you believe a child has provided us with data, contact us and we will delete it.

7. Changes

If we change this policy we will update the date at the top of this page, and we will tell you in the app where a change is significant.

8. Contact

Questions about this policy, or about anything in it, can go to privacy@solace-foundry.com, or by post to:

See also the terms of use and the Serein support page.