Privacy

Real human connection is what BERF_thread is all about — and that starts with trust. This page is the plain-language version of how we handle your data.

Connection — what we’re for

• Real human connection is what it’s all about.
• Spouse is number one — get that right, the rest works.
• Then family, then friends, then acquaintances.
• Acquaintances aren’t as close — that’s fine, they still bring joy.

What we (Berforia) see

• We don’t browse user data in normal operations — your contacts, voice notes, photos, and relationship details are yours
• We don’t sell or share your data with advertisers or third parties — ever
• We may access data only for: (a) keeping the service running (debugging crashes), (b) responding to your direct support request, (c) legal compliance
• When BERF processes your data with AI (mood check-ins, voice notes, etc.), it’s sent to Anthropic under their no-training, no-retention API terms — Anthropic doesn’t train on your data and deletes it after processing
• No one outside Berforia can read your data, see your pics, or access anything else without your explicit share action

Security — how we hold your data

• Encrypted in transit (TLS) and at rest.
• Auth-gated — every read and write is scoped to your account.
• Partner-scoped — partner-shared data is only readable by you and your paired partner.
• DoD-grade hardening in progress; we will note material upgrades here as they ship.

We do not

• Sell or share your data with brokers, advertisers, or third-party marketers.
• Train AI models on your data.
• Track your location in the background for analytics or ad targeting.
• Record audio.
• Surveil you.

We do securely store

• Contacts, check-ins, events, notes, and photos you add.
• Partner pairing artifacts — a shared Bluetooth UUID and a sync token used to recognize your partner’s phone in proximity.
• Account basics — email, display name, phone number, and authentication state.
• Operational telemetry needed to run the service (request logs, error traces) on short retention.
• Only you and the people you’ve explicitly paired with can read your content.

Sharing as a couple

BERF_card shares can optionally include your partner’s contact info (name and cell), but only when both of you have explicitly opted in under Settings → Share as a couple, and the per-share toggle is on for that specific share. Either of you can turn the consent off at any time, and any in-flight share immediately stops including the other partner’s info. We never bundle partner contact data on a one-sided opt-in.

Your rights

• Export — request a copy of your data at any time.
• Delete — request deletion of your account and content at any time.
• Correct — fix anything inaccurate via the app or by email.
• Withdraw consent — turn off optional features (location proximity, sleep linking, etc.) anywhere they’re offered in Settings.
• Email [email protected] for any of the above. We respond within a reasonable window — usually under a week.

Third-party services we use

We use a small, carefully chosen set of vendors to run the service. We do not share your content with them beyond what they need to do their job.

• Railway — application hosting.
• Cloudflare R2 — photo and file storage.
• Twilio — sending SMS messages you initiate.
• Apple Push Notification service — delivering notifications.
• Anthropic Claude — AI assistance for opt-in features; the data sent is limited to what the feature needs and is not used to train models per Anthropic’s API terms.
• Google Sign-In — optional authentication.

Cookies and similar

The web app uses a small number of first-party cookies and similar storage strictly to keep you signed in and to remember UI preferences. We do not use third-party advertising, analytics, or social-media trackers.

Children’s privacy

BERF_thread is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with information, please email [email protected] and we will delete it.

Changes to this policy

If we make a material change, we will note it here with a new “Last updated” date and, where appropriate, surface a notice in the app the next time you sign in.

Contact

Questions, requests, or concerns: [email protected].

Berforia, LLC.