Privacy Policy

This policy covers the Othiri mobile app and website, including discovery, profiles, chat, safety/moderation tools, and premium subscriptions. Othiri supports only users who are 18 years or older.

• Collect only what we need and use it for stated purposes.
• Be transparent about data uses, choices, and permissions.
• Build safety by design: protect users, combat spam/fraud, and respect consent.

• Your email address, which is how you sign in — we email you a one-time code. If you sign in with Google instead, Google tells us the email address and name on that account.
• Account info (name, date of birth for the 18+ check, photos, interests, bio, profile fields).
• Approximate location, to show people near you and a distance. The app asks Android for approximate location only — it never asks for, and cannot take, your precise position. You can refuse or revoke it in device settings.
• Profile interactions (likes, matches, blocks/reports, basic chat metadata).
• User-generated content (photos, prompts, messages, voice notes) for delivery and safety moderation.
• Device and diagnostics (app events, crash logs, device identifiers, OS version).
• Purchase metadata for premium features (via Google Play Billing; we do not receive full card details).
• What you write to support: a ticket carries your name, the email address or phone number you give us for a reply, and anything in the message or screenshot you attach.
• Camera, photo library and microphone — only when you use a feature that needs them (taking a photo, uploading one, recording a voice note). Othiri never asks for your contacts and never reads your phonebook.
• If you choose to verify your identity: a selfie, and the document type, images and number of an ID you submit (for example Aadhaar or passport). Verification is optional — you can use the app without it.

• You (profile setup, uploads, interactions, communications).
• Your device (approximate location and diagnostics, with your permission).
• Google, if you choose Google Sign-In: the email address and name on that Google account.
• Service providers/SDKs (analytics, payments, crash reporting, content delivery).
• Other users (e.g., reports for safety moderation).

• Provide core features: discovery, matches, messaging, and account management.
• Personalize recommendations (e.g., compatible/nearby profiles).
• Safety & moderation (detect spam/fraud, enforce rules, handle reports).
• Customer support, analytics, debugging, and product improvement.
• Legal compliance and enforcing our Terms.

Photos are reviewed by people, not by software: a photo you upload stays hidden until a moderator approves it. Written content is checked automatically as you submit it — a word filter can refuse a bio, a prompt answer or a note and ask you to reword it — and moderators separately review what those checks flag. The automated part never bans anyone and never removes an account on its own; a person decides that, and the same is true of reports from other users. Safety reports and account-deletion reasons are deliberately exempt from the word filter, so you are never blocked from quoting what someone said to you.

• Consent (e.g., optional permissions such as location or media).
• Contract (to provide the features you request).
• Legitimate interests (keep the app safe, prevent fraud, improve features).
• Legal obligation (comply with laws and lawful requests).

• All in-app purchases are processed through Google Play Billing. Google processes payments on our behalf.
• We do not store or receive your full card details. Google handles sensitive payment information securely.
• We receive limited payment metadata (e.g., transaction IDs, status) to deliver purchases, prevent fraud, and handle support.

We do not sell personal data. We share with service providers under contracts and safeguards (e.g., cloud hosting/CDN, analytics, moderation, payments), with authorities when required by law, to protect users or our Service, or with your consent (for a specific feature).

• Google Play Billing (Android in-app purchases).
• Firebase Analytics / Crashlytics (usage analytics and crash diagnostics).
• Cloud hosting/CDN and content moderation tools.

On the web, we may use cookies or similar technologies for authentication, security, analytics, and preferences. In the app, analogous SDKs/signals may be used for the same purposes. Manage web cookies via your browser and app permissions via device settings.

Othiri asks Android for APPROXIMATE location only — it has never held the precise-location permission, so a precise position is not something we can take. It is used to show you people near you and to show a distance; your exact whereabouts are never shown to another user. Grant or revoke the permission in device settings at any time; without it, discovery is limited.

• Encryption in transit (HTTPS) and encryption at rest for sensitive fields, including message content (AES-256-GCM).
• This is not end-to-end encryption. We hold the key, so our systems can decrypt a message where the law or a safety investigation requires it. Do not treat Othiri chat as private from us.
• Access controls and least-privilege for internal tools.
• Rate-limiting, anomaly detection, and anti-abuse protections.
• Vendor due diligence and contractual safeguards for processors.

If we detect a data incident that poses a material risk, we will investigate, mitigate, and notify affected users and/or authorities as required by law.

Deleting your account CLOSES it — it does not erase it. When you delete, your profile stops being shown to anyone, you are signed out everywhere, your matches are torn down and your messages stop being delivered. The records themselves stay on our servers in that closed state, including your photo files. The one thing we do remove is verification material: the images and number of any government ID you submitted are cleared at the moment of deletion. Beyond that, we keep data for as long as needed for the purposes stated here, and safety, payment and tax records for as long as the law requires. If you want us to go further than a closure for your specific data, email us and say so.

Your data may be processed outside your state/country. Where required, we use contractual and technical safeguards with service providers.

• Update your profile data in the app, or close your account there (Settings → Account → Manage account → Account control).
• Hide instead of closing: Pause your profile for 7, 14 or 30 days, or use Incognito Mode so only people you swipe right on can see you.
• Manage permissions (location, camera, media, notifications) in device settings.
• Block or report someone in the app. Blocking takes effect at once and works in both directions.
• Request data access or deletion by emailing contact@othiri.com.
• Unsubscribe from non-essential emails via links in those emails.

• Othiri is strictly for adults (18+). Minors are not allowed to use the Service.
• If you suspect a user is under 18, report the profile; we may require age verification and will remove violating accounts.
• We remove content involving or endangering minors and will cooperate with lawful requests from authorities.
• Parents/guardians can email us to request deletion if a minor’s data was submitted.

• Collected — personal info: your email address (how you sign in), your name, date of birth, gender, and anything you write in your bio, prompts and profile fields.
• Collected — photos, voice and messages: profile photos, voice notes, and the messages you send, for delivery and for safety review.
• Collected — location: approximate location only. The app does not request precise location.
• Collected — app activity and IDs: likes, matches, blocks and reports; device identifiers, including the push token used to send you notifications; crash logs and diagnostics.
• Collected — purchases: transaction metadata from Google Play Billing. We never see your card details.
• Collected only if you choose it: a selfie, and the type, images and number of a government ID, for verification. You can use Othiri without ever submitting either.
• Shared: with service providers who run hosting, delivery, analytics, crash reporting and payments on our behalf, and with authorities where the law requires it. We do not sell personal data.
• Security: encrypted in transit (HTTPS) and at rest for sensitive fields (AES-256-GCM). Not end-to-end encrypted.
• Deletion: you can delete your account in the app, or ask us by email. Deleting CLOSES the account and stops it being shown — see the retention section above for exactly what is kept.

• Face-recognition or face-matching. Verification selfies are compared by a person, not by software, and we build no face templates.
• Your contacts. The app never requests contacts permission, so nobody finds you through their phonebook.
• Your precise location. The app asks Android for approximate location only.
• A phone number to sign in with. Sign-in is your email address or Google; you only give us a number if you type one into a support ticket.
• Full card details (handled by Google Play Billing).

We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18. If we learn data was collected from a minor, we will delete it and may disable access to the account.

• Terms & Conditions
• Child Safety Standards (CSAE)
• Support

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will post the latest version in the app/website and update the “Last updated” date. Significant changes may be communicated in-app. Your continued use means you accept the updated policy.