Privacy Policy

Our Commitment to Your Privacy

TripChronos is designed with your privacy as a core principle. We believe your travel memories are personal, and we've built our app to ensure they stay that way.

No Tracking, No Ads, No Data Selling

We don't track you, show you ads, or sell your data to anyone. Ever.

Data We Collect

TripChronos only collects data that you explicitly provide and that is necessary for the app to function:

Location Data

When you capture a memory, we use your current location to tag where the memory was created. This is used to display your memories on the map and to automatically fill in city and country information.

Your control: You can disable location access at any time in your device settings.

Photos

Photos you select or capture for your memories are stored as part of your trip data. We may also read location metadata from your photos to help tag where they were taken.

Your control: You choose which photos to add. Photos are stored in your iCloud account.

Trip & Memory Details

Information you enter about your trips (destination names, dates, descriptions) and memories (notes, timestamps) is stored to create your travel journal.

Your control: You can edit or delete any trip or memory at any time.

Camera

Camera access is used to take photos for your memories and to scan a friend’s QR code when adding them. The camera is never opened or accessed in the background — only when you tap a button to take a photo or scan a code.

Your control: You can disable camera access at any time in your device settings; the app will simply skip these features.

Notifications

TripChronos uses notifications for two purposes: optional “On This Day” reminders that resurface a past travel memory on the same date, and push alerts when a friend updates a trip you’re collaborating on. The On This Day reminder is scheduled and delivered locally on your device. Collaboration push notifications travel through Apple Push Notification service.

Your control: Both notification types are off by default. You can enable, disable, or revoke notifications at any time from the app’s Settings or your device settings.

Background Activity

TripChronos uses two iOS background modes: remote notifications (so a collaborator’s edits appear on your device without you having to open the app) and background processing (so iCloud sync and reverse-geocoding can finish even after you switch apps). The app does not run audio, location, or fetch-on-a-timer in the background.

Your control: Background App Refresh can be disabled per-app in your device settings.

Legal Basis for Processing

Depending on your location, we rely on the following legal bases for processing your personal data:

Consent: You provide explicit consent when granting location access, selecting photos, or entering trip details. You can withdraw consent at any time by adjusting your device settings or deleting your data.
Contract Performance: Processing is necessary to provide you with the TripChronos service, including storing your trips, syncing across devices, and enabling features you use.
Legitimate Interest: We may process limited data to maintain and improve the app's functionality, provided this does not override your rights and freedoms.

How Your Data is Stored

iCloud Sync

All your data is stored in your personal iCloud account using Apple's CloudKit service. This means your trips, memories, and photos sync across all your devices signed into the same Apple ID.

We never have access to your iCloud data. It's stored in your private CloudKit container, encrypted and protected by Apple.

When you share a trip with collaborators, the trip is moved into a shared CloudKit zone so invited friends can view and edit in real time. Only people you explicitly invite have access, and you can revoke access at any time. The shared zone is still owned by you and remains under Apple's encryption.

Data Retention

Your data is retained in your personal iCloud account for as long as you choose to keep it. Because all data is stored in your own iCloud container, you have direct control over its lifecycle:

Individual trips, memories, and photos can be deleted at any time within the app.
All app data can be deleted at once via Settings.
Uninstalling the app and removing its iCloud data through your Apple ID settings will permanently delete all TripChronos data.
Social profile data (display name, avatar, friend codes) associated with the Friends feature is deleted when you remove your profile or delete all data.

We do not retain any copies of your data on our own servers.

International Data Transfers

Your data is stored via Apple's iCloud (CloudKit) infrastructure. Apple may store and process your data in data centers located in various countries around the world. Apple's handling of your iCloud data is governed by Apple's Privacy Policy and applicable data protection agreements.

For users in the European Economic Area (EEA), Apple maintains compliance with GDPR requirements for international data transfers, including the use of Standard Contractual Clauses where applicable.

Because TripChronos does not operate its own servers or transfer your data to any third parties beyond Apple's services, we do not independently transfer your personal data across borders.

Social Features

If you choose to use the Friends or Collaboration features, some data is shared to enable social functionality:

Profile Information: Your display name and avatar (if set) are visible to friends you connect with.
Aggregate Stats: Your travel statistics (countries visited, trips completed) may appear on friend leaderboards.
Friend Codes & QR Codes: A unique code is generated for your profile so friends can connect with you, either by entering the code or scanning the QR version. Your QR code contains only your friend code.
Activity Feed: When you complete a trip or unlock an achievement, that activity may be visible to friends you've connected with. You can disable this in Settings.
Trip Collaboration: Trips you choose to share with collaborators are moved into a shared CloudKit zone visible to invited friends only. Trips you have not shared are never visible to anyone else.

Your trip details, memories, and photos are never shared with friends unless you explicitly share a trip — either as a Trip Report (web link or PDF) or by inviting a collaborator to a specific trip.

Services and Frameworks

TripChronos is built almost entirely on Apple's first-party frameworks. Below is the complete list of services and frameworks we use, and exactly what each one sees.

Apple frameworks

Apple MapKit: For displaying maps and reverse geocoding locations to city/country names.
Apple CloudKit: For storing your data in your private iCloud container.
Apple CloudKit Sharing: When you share a trip with friends or accept an invitation, the trip is moved into a shared CloudKit zone so collaborators can view and edit in real time. Only the people you explicitly invite have access; you can revoke access at any time.
Apple WeatherKit: For 10-day forecasts on upcoming trips and historical weather lookups for past memories. Lookups send only the location and date being queried; weather requests are not associated with your TripChronos identity.
Apple Intelligence (on-device): AI features such as Optimize Day, suggested activities, and AI captions run entirely on your device using Apple's on-device Foundation Models. The trip data passed to the model never leaves your iPhone or iPad. Available on devices that support Apple Intelligence (iOS 26+).
UserNotifications: For optional “On This Day” reminders and push notifications about shared trip activity. Notifications are scheduled and delivered locally where possible; remote pushes for collaboration travel through Apple Push Notification service.

Crash reporting (Sentry)

We use Sentry to capture crash reports and severe app hangs so we can fix them quickly. The integration is deliberately minimal:

Crash reports only — no performance monitoring, no profiling, no usage analytics.
Your TripChronos identity is explicitly stripped from every report before it leaves the device.
Reports include the app version, build number, device model, OS version, and a stack trace from the crash. They do not include your trips, memories, photos, location history, or friend connections.
Console log breadcrumbs are dropped before send.

Sentry is the only third-party SDK shipped inside TripChronos.

Outbound content requests

A few features fetch public content over standard HTTPS. These are content downloads, not data uploads — only your IP address and the URL being requested reach the servers. Your TripChronos profile, friend code, and account identity are never attached.

Cloudflare CDN: Music tracks for the Trip Video feature are delivered from our content delivery network on Cloudflare. The CDN sees only your IP and the track URL being downloaded — no headers, cookies, or user identifiers are sent.
Wikipedia: When the app surfaces extra context for a place, it fetches a public summary directly from wikipedia.org. Wikipedia sees only your IP and the place name being looked up.

What we do not use

TripChronos does not use any advertising SDKs, third-party analytics, fingerprinting, attribution tracking, or third-party AI providers. We do not request App Tracking Transparency permission because we have nothing to track.

Your Rights

Regardless of where you live, you have full control over your data:

Access: View all your data within the app at any time.
Portability: Because your trips, memories, and photos live in your own private iCloud container, you can copy or export them at any time using Apple’s data tools at privacy.apple.com or iCloud.com.
Delete: Delete individual trips, memories, or all your data from Settings inside the app.
Withdraw Consent: Revoke permissions (such as location, photos, or notifications) at any time through your device settings.

In addition to these universal rights, you may have additional rights based on the privacy laws in your region:

European Economic Area, United Kingdom & Switzerland (GDPR)

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have the right to:

Request access to, rectification, or erasure of your personal data
Restrict or object to the processing of your personal data
Data portability — receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
Withdraw consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing
Lodge a complaint with your local Data Protection Authority (e.g., CNIL in France, BfDI in Germany, Garante in Italy, AP in the Netherlands, AEPD in Spain)

Brazil (LGPD)

Under the Lei Geral de Proteção de Dados (LGPD), you have the right to:

Confirm the existence of processing and access your data
Correct incomplete, inaccurate, or outdated data
Anonymize, block, or delete unnecessary or excessive data
Request data portability
Delete personal data processed with your consent
Obtain information about entities with whom your data has been shared
Be informed about the possibility of denying consent and the consequences
Lodge a complaint with the Autoridade Nacional de Proteção de Dados (ANPD)

Japan (APPI)

Under the Act on the Protection of Personal Information (APPI), you have the right to:

Request disclosure of your personal data that we retain
Request correction, addition, or deletion of your data if it is inaccurate
Request cessation of use or erasure of your data if it was handled improperly
Request cessation of third-party provision of your data

We use your personal information for the purposes described in this policy and do not provide it to third parties without your consent except as required by law.

South Korea (PIPA)

Under the Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA), you have the right to:

Request access to your personal information
Request correction or deletion of your personal information
Request suspension of processing of your personal information
Receive notification of the purpose, items collected, and retention period for personal information

Personal information is destroyed without delay once the purpose of processing has been achieved. You can delete your data at any time through the app's Settings.

Turkey (KVKK)

Under the Kişisel Verilerin Korunması Kanunu (KVKK / Law No. 6698), you have the right to:

Learn whether your personal data has been processed
Request information about processing if your data has been processed
Learn the purpose of processing and whether your data is used in accordance with its purpose
Know the third parties to whom your personal data is transferred
Request correction of incomplete or inaccurate data
Request deletion or destruction of your personal data
Object to outcomes that arise from the analysis of your data exclusively through automated systems
Claim compensation for damages arising from unlawful processing

Thailand (PDPA)

Under the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA), you have the right to:

Withdraw consent at any time
Request access to and obtain a copy of your personal data
Request data portability in a machine-readable format
Object to the collection, use, or disclosure of your personal data
Request deletion or destruction of your personal data
Request restriction of the use of your personal data
Request correction of your personal data to be accurate and up to date
Lodge a complaint with the Personal Data Protection Committee

Vietnam (PDPD)

Under Vietnam's Personal Data Protection Decree (Decree 13/2023/ND-CP), you have the right to:

Be informed about the processing of your personal data
Provide or withdraw consent for data processing
Access and view your personal data
Request correction of your personal data
Request deletion or restriction of your personal data
Object to data processing
Lodge a complaint or initiate a lawsuit regarding personal data protection violations

Middle East & North Africa

If you are located in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, or other MENA countries with data protection legislation, you may have rights including:

Access and review your personal data
Request correction or updating of inaccurate data
Request deletion of your personal data
Withdraw consent previously given for data processing
Lodge a complaint with the relevant data protection authority in your country

Specific rights and their scope may vary depending on the applicable local legislation in your country of residence.

To exercise any of these rights, you can manage your data directly in the app or contact us at support@tripchronos.com. We will respond to your request within the timeframe required by applicable law.

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

The TripChronos app does not use cookies, web beacons, pixels, or any other tracking technologies. We do not use any third-party analytics, advertising SDKs, or fingerprinting techniques.

This website (tripchronos.com) does not set any cookies or use any tracking scripts.

Children's Privacy

TripChronos is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date.