Privacy Policy

Amitabha Journal (“the app”) is a non-profit, free Buddha-name recitation counter. This page explains how the app handles data.

What we collect

Anonymous usage data. To improve the product, starting with version 1.0.7 the app collects usage data not linked to any identity via Firebase Analytics (provided by Google), such as page views of each feature, the count and duration of a chanting session, and how feature switches are used. This data:

• does not include chanting content, dedication texts, recordings, photos, or anything you type;
• is not linked to your name, device identifiers, Apple account, or any identity information;
• is used only to understand overall feature usage — never for advertising, and never for cross-app tracking.

Firebase’s handling of data is governed by the Google Privacy Policy and Firebase’s privacy documentation.

Account information (optional). Starting with version 1.0.8, you may optionally sign in: with a one-time code sent to your email, with Sign in with Apple on iOS, or with a Google account; starting with version 1.0.9, sign-in with a one-time SMS code sent to your phone number is also available. Signing in is entirely optional — without an account, every feature of the app works on-device with no personal information required.

• When you sign in with email or phone, we collect your email address or phone number solely for authentication and account identification; Before a code is sent by email or SMS, you complete a quick human-verification check (Cloudflare Turnstile) that keeps verification codes from being abused; SMS codes are delivered through an SMS service provider.
• When you sign in with Apple or Google, the platform provides an identity credential according to its policies and the information you choose to share (Apple lets you hide your real email); we request nothing further.

Nickname (optional). When signed in, you may set a nickname in Settings. It is stored with your account and used to display your profile; once you join a squad, your nickname is also shown to squad members and may appear on the global leaderboard.

Squads (optional, sign-in required). You can create or join a squad to practice together with fellow practitioners. When you use this feature, we collect and store the following data:

• the squad name and room code (used to invite others to join with the code);
• membership relations (which account belongs to which squad);
• each member’s daily recitation counts (today/yesterday) and the squad’s cumulative totals;
• likes exchanged between members;
• each member’s role in the squad (captain, admin, or member);
• daily count history for the last 30 days (used to show members’ 7-day activity when a captain chooses a successor; entries older than 30 days are deleted automatically);
• reports (the reporter, the reported member or squad, the category, and the time). A reporter’s identity is never shown to any user; captains and admins see only the categories and number of reports against a member.

The squad name, member nicknames, today/yesterday counts, and likes are visible to members of the same squad; the squad’s combined count for today appears on the global leaderboard. Like account data, this data is stored in the Supabase cloud (see “Where your data lives”); it is never sold and never used for advertising.

Crash reports (automatic). Starting with version 1.0.9, the app integrates Sentry crash reporting: when the app crashes, it automatically collects the crash stack trace and device information (model, OS version, and similar), solely to locate and fix problems. It never includes recitation records, dedication content, or anything you type. This data is processed by Sentry (in the US region) under the Sentry Privacy Policy.

Retention of squad data. When you leave or are removed from a squad, your membership record is marked as withdrawn and the counts you contributed stay in the squad’s statistics; when a captain disbands a squad, all of that squad’s data (memberships, counts, likes, and reports) is deleted immediately and cannot be recovered.

Beyond the above, the app asks for no contacts, location, or identity information, contains no advertising SDKs, and never sells your data.

Where your data lives

• On-device storage: recitation counts, practice time, streaks, dedication records, reminder times, and your settings are stored in the app’s local sandbox on your device; once you sign in, your recitation records, dedication records, and settings are also synced to the cloud (see below).
• iCloud sync (iOS, when signed out): if your device is signed in to an Apple account with iCloud enabled, the records above are automatically backed up via Apple’s iCloud Key-Value Storage and synced across the devices signed in to the same Apple account. This data lives in your own iCloud storage, held by Apple; the developer has no access to it. Apple’s handling of data on iCloud is governed by the Apple Privacy Policy. Turn off the app’s iCloud switch in system Settings to stop syncing; your data remains on the device.
• Android system backup (when signed out): on Android, on-device data is backed up by the system’s Auto Backup to your own Google account for device migration and reinstall recovery; it is held by Google under the Google Privacy Policy.
• Supabase cloud sync (when signed in): once signed in, your nickname, recitation records, dedication records, and settings, as well as squad data (squad names, room codes, membership relations, member roles, counts, likes, and reports), are transmitted over an encrypted connection and stored in a database hosted by Supabase (supabase.com) in its Tokyo region, solely to provide you with sync across device changes, reinstalls, and multiple devices, as well as the squad practice and global leaderboard features. This data belongs to you: it is never sold, never used for advertising, and never shared with any third party, and it is retained only until you delete your account. You can delete your account and all cloud data in the app at any time (see “Deleting your data”).

Permissions

• Notifications: used for two kinds of reminders, each of which can be turned off separately in the app’s Settings: ① the daily chanting reminders you set yourself — generated and triggered entirely on-device, never through any server; ② the squad daily ranking push (since version 1.0.9, requires signing in and joining a squad) — sent from our server via Apple APNs (iOS) / Google FCM (Android), which requires storing your device’s push token on the server. You can also revoke the notification permission anytime in system Settings.
• Audio playback: the chanting and wooden-fish sounds are local audio files bundled with the app; playback makes no network requests.
• The app does not use location, camera, microphone, contacts, or photo-library read permissions. If you export an image with the save/share feature, writing to your photo library is initiated by you, and the system will ask for authorization separately.

User content and moderation

Squad names and member nicknames in squads are user-generated content. To keep the shared practice environment wholesome, the app provides the following mechanisms:

• Profanity filtering: when you set or change a nickname or squad name, inappropriate wording is automatically filtered;
• Reporting: any member can report a fellow member under “inappropriate nickname” or “suspected count inflation”; signed-in users can also report another squad’s name on the global leaderboard. Once a nickname or squad name receives reports beyond a threshold, it is automatically hidden and replaced with a default name (such as “Practitioner” or “A squad”);
• Captain and admin management: the captain and the admins they appoint can remove members from the squad;
• Count plausibility checks: the server rejects counts that exceed what a person can physically chant; when showing teammates’ data, the app also recognizes abnormal growth patterns and de-emphasizes them, without any public label.

If you have concerns about how inappropriate content is handled, you can reach us via the email at the bottom of this page.

Third parties

Other than the following services, the app integrates no third-party advertising and shares no data with any third party:

• Apple iCloud: data sync on iOS when signed out (see above; the data belongs to you).
• Google Auto Backup: system-level backup on Android when signed out (see above).
• Supabase: account, sync, and squad data hosting when signed in (see above).
• Apple Sign in with Apple / Google sign-in: optional sign-in methods (see “What we collect”).
• Google Firebase Analytics: anonymous usage statistics (see “What we collect”).
• Cloudflare Turnstile: human verification before a sign-in code is sent, to keep verification codes from being abused; Cloudflare processes browser environment information during the check under the Cloudflare Privacy Policy.
• SMS service provider: delivers verification-code text messages on behalf of Supabase when you sign in with a phone number.
• Apple APNs / Google FCM: delivery channels for the squad daily ranking push (see “Permissions”).
• Sentry: crash report collection (see “What we collect”; data is processed in the US).

Children

The app’s content is suitable for all ages (rated 4+) and does not target children under 13 for the collection of personal information. Signing in is optional and requires only minimal information such as an email address or phone number.

Deleting your data

• Delete your account: you can delete your account in the app under Settings → Account, without contacting anyone. Deletion immediately removes the server-side account and all cloud data (nickname, recitation records, dedication records, and settings) and cannot be undone; in squads you joined, your membership record is marked as withdrawn and your nickname is removed (if you are the captain, the role passes automatically to an admin or the most recently active member), while counts you contributed remain anonymously in the squad statistics without being linked to you. On-device data remains on your device, and you can keep using the app signed out.
• On-device data: deleting the app removes all local data on the device. To also remove the iCloud backup, delete the app’s data in Settings → Apple Account → iCloud → Manage Account Storage; Android system backups can be managed in the device’s Google backup settings.
• Anonymous usage data cannot be tied to any individual, so it neither needs to nor can be deleted per person.

Changes to this policy

If this policy is updated, the changes will be posted on this page and the “Last updated” date at the top will be revised.

Contact us

Questions about privacy? Write to us: jiakuan.li.cs@gmail.com