Privacy Policy

1.THE SHORT VERSION

Farang requires an account, so you sign in with Apple or Google (or email) to get started. Once you're in, the everyday tools - maps, phrasebook, translator, currency converter, visa countdown - keep their data on your device, while the community features - forum, groups, events, direct messages, and the "Farangs Here" presence list - store the data they need on our servers (Supabase) so they can work across devices and reach other people. This policy covers both.

2.WHAT STAYS ON YOUR DEVICE

Even though an account is required to use Farang, the following data lives only on your iPhone and is never sent to us:

• Visa type, arrival date, and the running day count.
• Saved phrases, translation history, favourite places, map preferences.
• Your chosen app colour, theme, and default screen.
• Camera captures and OCR results (Thai menu/sign reading).
• Microphone audio and speech recognition results (voice translation).

Uninstalling the app removes all of it.

3.ACCOUNT DATA WE STORE

When you create an account to use community features, we store the following on Supabase servers:

• Auth: email address and securely hashed password credential (handled by Supabase Auth - we never see your plaintext password).
• Profile: your display name, profile photo (if uploaded), and any optional fields you fill in - gender, home country, current region, and a short bio.
• Visa profile: visa type and arrival date, if you choose to save these to your account for cross-device sync.
• Forum: posts, replies, votes, and any edits or deletions you make.
• Groups: groups you create or join; posts and replies you make within them.
• Events: events you create; RSVPs and any attendance updates.
• Direct messages: messages you send and receive.
• Farang Pro: if you subscribe, a record of your purchase (which plan, and when it renews or expires) so we can unlock Pro features and your verified badge. Payment itself is handled by Apple; we never see your card details.
• Moderation: reports you file against content or users; blocks you apply; moderation actions taken against your account.
• Account metadata: creation date, last-active timestamp, and device locale.
• Ban enforcement: a one-way hashed account identifier that may be retained after deletion to prevent re-registration following a serious Terms violation (see section 9).

4.LOCATION

Farang asks for your location so it can show nearby 7-Elevens, ATMs, hospitals, and other points of interest on the map. For everyday map use, your location stays live on your device and is not sent to our servers.

The one exception is the map's Social mode ("Farangs Here"). While you have that toggle on, we send the city you're in plus an approximate location - rounded to about a kilometre, never your exact coordinates - so other travellers can see you're around, roughly how far away you are, and invite you to activities. Your rounded location is stored only so we can compute distances; it is never shown to anyone. Other travellers only ever see a distance rounded to the nearest kilometre, never a point on a map. You can turn it off at any time from the Farangs list, which removes you immediately.

5.CAMERA, MICROPHONE, PHOTOS, SPEECH

Farang may ask permission to use your camera (to read Thai menus and signs), microphone and speech recognition (for voice translation), and photo library (to select a profile photo or avatar). Camera OCR and voice translation are processed entirely on-device using Apple frameworks - the results never leave your phone. The one exception is avatar/profile photo upload: if you choose to set a profile photo, that image is uploaded to and stored on our servers as part of your account.

6.THIRD-PARTY SERVICES WE CALL

Some features send data to third-party services to do their job. Each has its own privacy policy. Requests to keyed providers (OpenAI, Google, Foursquare, OpenWeather, IQAir) are proxied through our server so the provider keys never ship in the app.

• OpenAI - runs automated safety moderation. Community posts and private messages (direct and group) are screened before they're delivered; this is required for the community feature. Separately, optional AI reply suggestions in activity chats are off until you explicitly turn them on - if enabled, we send only up to five recent text-only messages (labelled just "you" or "them"; no names, IDs, location, or photos), and you can revoke that consent any time in Legal > AI data controls. Your content is not used to train models.
• Google Cloud Translation - the text you translate.
• Apple Maps (MapKit) - the base map tiles for the area you're viewing.
• Google Places, Foursquare and OpenStreetMap - nearby places (menus, ATMs, cafes) around the location you're viewing.
• Wikipedia (Wikimedia) - photos and short descriptions for a point of interest when you open it.
• OpenWeather and IQAir - weather and air quality for the city you're viewing.
• open.er-api.com - currency exchange rates (no personal data sent).
• Apple's on-device Speech framework - voice translation, processed on your device, not sent to Apple servers.
• Supabase - stores and authenticates your account and community data (see section 3).

We don't share anything extra with these services beyond what the feature needs.

7.NO ADVERTISING, NO TRACKING

Farang has no ads, no tracking across other apps or websites, no advertising pixels, and no third-party analytics SDKs. You are not the product.

We do keep basic, first-party usage analytics on our own servers - which in-app features get used (for example, an activity was created or a chat was joined) - to understand what's working and improve the app. This is linked to your account but never used to track you across other companies' apps, and never sold. It's removed or anonymised when you delete your account.

8.YOUR RIGHTS & ACCOUNT DELETION

You can delete your account and all associated data at any time using any of these three paths:

• In-app: Profile > Account > Delete account.
• Web: use the account deletion page at farangapp.com/delete-account.
• Email: write to Aunty@farangapp.com with subject "Delete account request".

We will complete the deletion within 30 days and confirm by email.

If you have emailed us feedback, you can ask us to delete that correspondence by writing to Aunty@farangapp.com.

9.DATA RETENTION

Account data is retained for as long as your account is active. When you delete your account, your profile, posts, messages, and all associated data are permanently removed from live servers within 30 days. Supabase database backups cycle on a rolling window and are fully purged within 30 days of the deletion date. Anonymised aggregate statistics (e.g. total post counts) may be retained indefinitely for service analytics.

In cases of serious Terms violations (e.g. illegal content, severe harassment), we may retain a one-way hashed account identifier after deletion to enforce future bans. This identifier cannot be used to reconstruct your personal data.

10.AFFILIATE LINKS

Some links in the Thailand Toolkit (like SafetyWing, Airalo, Wise, Kiwi) are affiliate links. If you book through one, the partner pays us a small commission. You pay the same price. Farang does not receive any personal information from these partners.

11.CHILDREN

Farang is not directed at children under 13. We don't knowingly collect information from anyone under 13. If you believe a child has created an account, email us and we will delete it promptly.

12.CHANGES

If this policy changes, we'll update the date above and note what changed. For questions, email Aunty@farangapp.com.