Privacy Policy

FLAME (“we”) provides the FLAME emotional-presence app at flameapp.uk. For the purposes of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, FLAME is the data controller for the personal data described here. You can reach us about any data matter at info@flameapp.uk.

FLAME is a wellbeing and social-connection app. It is not a medical device, not a diagnostic tool, and not a substitute for professional medical, psychological, or crisis care. It does not provide clinical advice or treatment. If you are struggling, please contact a qualified professional or a crisis service, for example, the Samaritans (call 116 123 in the UK and Ireland) or the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (dial or text 988 in the US). Wherever you are in the world, you can find a verified local helpline at findahelpline.com.

We collect only what is needed to run the app:

• A randomly generated user ID (anonymous, no email or name required to sign up)
• Your chosen display name, if you provide one
• Your check-in data: mood, intensity, and timestamp
• Circle membership, which people are in your circle
• Warmth gestures you send to your circle

• We do not require an email address or phone number
• We do not sell, rent, or share your data with advertisers
• We do not use advertising trackers or ad networks (for product analytics we use one privacy-first tool, see Analytics below)
• We do not read or store any private notes or journal text (none exists in the current version)

All data is stored in Supabase, a PostgreSQL database with row-level security. Your check-in history is readable only by you, and we never sell it or share its contents. Your presence data (mood, intensity, hex colour) is shared with the people in your circle in real time while you are online together. People in your circle can see each other's current mood but cannot access each other's full check-in history.

To understand how FLAME is used and make it better, we use PostHog, a privacy-first product analytics tool, hosted in the EU. We record a small set of anonymous product events, for example, that a check-in happened, an invite was created, or the waitlist was joined.

These events are tied to a random analytics identifier that is generated fresh each session and is never linked to your account, your name, or your device. We have turned off session recording, automatic click and keystroke capture, and IP-address collection. We never send your name, your exact mood, the words of your check-ins, who is in your circle, or your invite links. The most we record about a feeling is a broad five-category bucket (such as "bright" or "heavy") and an intensity band, never the specific mood you chose or anything you typed.

We process your data on the basis of your consent (which you give by creating an account and using the app, and can withdraw at any time by deleting your account) and our legitimate interests in operating, securing, and improving the service. Mood data may be treated as special-category data; where it is, we rely on your explicit consent, and we minimise it, sharing only your current mood with the people you choose, and only a coarse, anonymised category with our analytics tool.

We use a small number of trusted processors, each under a data-processing agreement:

• Supabase, database, authentication, and real-time presence (hosted in the EU).
• Vercel, application hosting and delivery.
• PostHog, anonymous product analytics (EU region; IP collection disabled).

We do not sell or rent your data, and we do not share it with advertisers or data brokers.

Your database and analytics data are processed in the European Union. Where any transfer outside the UK/EEA occurs, it is covered by appropriate safeguards (such as adequacy decisions or standard contractual clauses).

Your data is retained for as long as your account exists. You may request deletion at any time, in-app via “Leave circle” and account deletion, or by emailing us. We permanently delete your account and all associated check-in data within 30 days. Anonymous analytics events are retained in aggregate and are not linked to you.

Under UK GDPR you have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to our use of your personal data, and to data portability. Because we hold very little and require no email to sign up, most of your data lives on your device or in your own account and you can remove it directly. To exercise any right, email info@flameapp.uk. You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.

A mood can be special-category data (it can reveal something about your health or emotional state). We process it on the basis of your explicit consent, which you give by choosing to check in and share your flame with your circle. You can withdraw that consent at any time: turn on Quiet mode to stop sharing, leave a circle, or delete your account. Withdrawing consent does not affect sharing that already happened, and it does not require you to give a reason.

FLAME is intended for people aged 16 and over, and we recognise that some users will be 16 or 17. We have designed the app with the UK Age Appropriate Design Code (the “Children’s Code”) in mind:

• Privacy-protective by default: no email or real name required, small self-chosen circles, and no public profiles, feeds, followers, or free-text messaging.
• Data minimisation: we collect only what the app needs, and only a coarse, anonymised mood category ever reaches analytics.
• No behavioural profiling, no advertising, and no “nudge” techniques designed to extend use against a young person’s interests.
• Clear, plain-language explanations of what we collect and why, and easy in-app controls to pause sharing, leave a circle, or delete an account.
• Crisis signposting throughout, and a consistent statement that FLAME is not a mental-health or crisis service.

We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 16. If you believe someone under 16 is using FLAME, contact us and we will remove the account.

For any data-protection question, or to exercise a right, contact us at info@flameapp.uk. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk, or to your local data-protection authority.

FLAME does not use advertising or tracking cookies. To sign you in and remember your session, we use essential storage on your device (secure authentication cookies and local storage). These are necessary for the app to work and cannot be turned off without preventing sign-in. Our analytics run cookieless.

Access to your data is enforced at the database level with row-level security, so your check-ins are readable only by you and your circle’s current moods only by its members. Data is encrypted in transit (HTTPS). Server secrets are never included in the app or website code that runs on your device. We keep the amount of personal data we hold deliberately small.

We take reasonable steps to prevent unauthorised access to your data. In the unlikely event of a personal-data breach that is likely to affect your rights, we will notify the UK Information Commissioner’s Office within 72 hours where required, and will inform affected users without undue delay where the law requires it.

We do not carry out automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects about you, and we do not build advertising or behavioural profiles of you.

If we make material changes to this policy, we will update the date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify you in the app. Continued use of the app after changes take effect constitutes acceptance.

Questions about this policy: info@flameapp.uk