🛡️ HelpNet Privacy Policy
Your safety and privacy are our top priority
Effective Date: April 14, 2026
📋 Introduction
HelpNet ("we," "our," or "us") is a personal safety and emergency SOS application designed to help users quickly alert their emergency contacts during critical situations. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our mobile application.
By downloading and using HelpNet, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the application.
📊 Information We Collect
1. Personal Information (Provided by You)
- Account Information: Name, email address, and profile photo when you register or sign in with Google.
- Emergency Contacts: Names and phone numbers of contacts you add to receive SOS alerts.
2. Automatically Collected Information
- Location Data: Precise GPS location (latitude and longitude) when you trigger an SOS alert or when the location tracking service is active. This is used to share your real-time location with your emergency contacts.
- Device Information: Device model, operating system version, and unique device identifiers for analytics and crash reporting.
3. Information from Third-Party Services
- Google Sign-In: If you sign in with Google, we receive your Google account name, email, and profile picture as authorized by you.
- Firebase: We use Google Firebase for authentication, cloud data storage (Firestore), and file storage (Firebase Storage).
🔐 App Permissions
HelpNet requires the following permissions to function. Each permission is used strictly for the purpose described below:
📍
Precise Location (GPS)
Used to determine your exact location during an SOS emergency so it can be shared with your emergency contacts via SMS and stored securely for your safety records.
📍
Approximate Location (Network)
Used as a fallback when GPS is unavailable, to still provide an approximate location for emergency alerts.
💬
Send SMS
Used to send emergency SOS text messages containing your location and distress message directly to your saved emergency contacts.
📞
Make Phone Calls
Used to enable one-tap emergency calling to local emergency services (e.g., 112, 100) or to your listed emergency contacts.
👥
Read Contacts
Used to allow you to quickly select emergency contacts from your phone's contact list when adding them to your HelpNet safety circle.
🌐
Internet Access
Required to communicate with Firebase for authentication, storing your profile and emergency contacts, and syncing data across devices.
📶
Network State
Used to check if you are connected to the internet before attempting to sync data or send cloud-based alerts.
📳
Vibrate
Used to provide haptic feedback when you trigger the SOS button, confirming the alert has been activated.
⚙️
Foreground Service (Location)
Used to keep the location tracking service running while the SOS alert is active, even if the app is in the background, ensuring your emergency contacts receive continuous location updates.
🔔
Post Notifications
Used to show a persistent notification when the location tracking foreground service is active during an SOS event, as required by Android.
🔄
Receive Boot Completed
Reserved for future use to automatically restart the safety monitoring service after a device reboot.
🎯 How We Use Your Information
- Emergency Alerts: To send your real-time GPS location and SOS messages to your designated emergency contacts via SMS.
- Account Management: To create and manage your user profile, authenticate your identity, and store your emergency contact list.
- App Functionality: To provide core features such as SOS triggering, safety tips, and contact management.
- Service Improvement: To identify and fix bugs, improve app performance, and enhance user experience.
We do NOT use your data for:
- Advertising or marketing purposes
- Selling or renting to third parties
- Tracking your location when the app is not actively in use for SOS
🤝 Data Sharing & Third Parties
We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information to anyone. Your information may be shared only in the following limited circumstances:
- Emergency Contacts: Your location and emergency message are shared with the contacts you have explicitly added in the app.
- Firebase (Google): Your account data, emergency contacts, and profile information are stored on Google Firebase. Google's privacy policy applies: Google Privacy Policy.
- Legal Requirements: We may disclose your information if required by law, regulation, or legal process.
🔒 Data Security
We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your data, including:
- All data transmitted between the app and Firebase is encrypted using TLS/SSL.
- Firebase Authentication is used for secure user sign-in.
- Firestore Security Rules restrict data access to authenticated users only.
- Location data is only collected when you actively trigger an SOS or when the foreground service is running.
While we strive to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.
📦 Data Retention
We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active. If you wish to delete your account and associated data, you can do so by contacting us at the email address below. Upon account deletion, we will remove your personal data from our active servers within 30 days.
👶 Children's Privacy
HelpNet is not intended for use by children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we discover that we have inadvertently collected information from a child under 13, we will delete it immediately.
✏️ Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Effective Date." We encourage you to review this page periodically. Continued use of the app after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
🗑️ Delete Your Account & Data
You have the right to request the deletion of your account and all associated personal data at any time. When you request account deletion, the following data will be permanently removed:
- Account Information: Your name, email address, and profile photo.
- Emergency Contacts: All saved emergency contact names and phone numbers.
- Location History: Any stored SOS location records.
- Profile Settings: All preferences and configuration data.
How to Request Account Deletion
To delete your account and all associated data, please send an email to the address below with the subject line "Delete My HelpNet Account". Include the email address associated with your HelpNet account in the body of the email.
Your data will be permanently deleted from our servers within 30 days of receiving your request. Please note that this action is irreversible.
📧 Request Account Deletion