Prabhu Smaran — Privacy Policy
Last updated: 29 October 2026 Applies to: the Prabhu Smaran mobile app (iOS and Android) and the website at https://www.prabhusmaran.com (together, the "Service")
1. Summary
- Prabhu Smaran works fully offline and without an account. There is no sign-up and no login.
- Your chant counts, sessions, custom chants, favourites, reading progress, and optional profile name and photo are stored on your device only. We do not receive them.
- We do not collect your contacts, location, microphone, or camera. We do not read your photos. The app reads a picture only if you choose one as your profile photo.
- We do not sell your personal data, and we do not use it for advertising by third parties.
- You can erase everything the app holds by using Profile → Reset all data, or by uninstalling the app.
The rest of this policy explains this in detail.
2. Who we are
Prabhu Smaran is operated by Aman Gupta, an individual based in Gurugram, India ("Prabhu Smaran", "we", "us"). Because the app keeps your data on your device, we hold almost none of it. Where we do handle personal data (for example, a support email you send us, or crash reports), we decide why and how it is processed. In the language of India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 ("DPDP Act"), we are the Data Fiduciary for that data.
Contact for privacy questions: [email protected]. See section 13 for our grievance officer.
This policy is part of our Terms and Conditions.
3. What we collect
3.1 Information stored on your device (we do not receive it)
| Data | Why it is stored |
|---|---|
| Chant activity: the chant chosen, mala counts completed, session start and end, duration, pauses, and your in-progress session | To count, to let you resume after the app closes, and to show history, streaks, and your activity heatmap |
| Custom chants you create: chant text (Hindi or Roman), label, tag, target count | So you can use them again |
| Favourites and play counts for aarti, and katha read status and reading position | To build your library and remember where you stopped |
| Profile name and photo (optional) | To show on your Profile screen. The photo is copied into the app's private storage. |
| Preferences: script (Hindi, English, both), language, reading theme and font size, sound and haptics, accepted Terms version | To remember your settings |
This data stays in the app's private storage on your phone. We cannot see it, and it is not uploaded to us.
Backups. Your phone's operating system may include the app's data in its own backup, such as Android Auto Backup (to your Google account) or iOS device or iCloud backup (to your Apple account). Those backups are controlled by Google or Apple and your device settings, not by us.
3.2 Information collected automatically
- Crash and error reports. In release builds where crash reporting is enabled, Firebase Crashlytics (Google) may collect crash details, device model, operating system version, app version, and an installation identifier. We do not add the text of your chants or your profile details to these reports.
- App configuration requests. From time to time the app may ask Firebase Remote Config (Google) for settings such as a home-screen banner or a message that an update is required. Google receives your IP address and technical request data when this happens, as in any internet request. If you are offline, the app uses built-in defaults.
- We do not use product analytics, advertising SDKs, or your device's advertising ID.
3.3 Information you send us
If you email us, we receive your email address and the contents of your message. We use it only to reply and to improve the app.
3.4 What we do not collect
We do not ask for your precise or approximate location, contacts, calendar, microphone, camera, or files. The app uses internet access only for the Remote Config and crash-report requests above. It uses audio, wake-lock and foreground-service permissions only so that aarti audio can keep playing with the screen off. It does not need notification permission in this version.
3.5 Sensitive information
The chants and religious content you use may indicate your religious belief. Because that information stays on your device, we do not collect or see it. Custom chants are private to you.
4. Why we use your data, and our legal basis
We process your data only for purposes you have agreed to or that the law permits.
| Purpose | Basis |
|---|---|
| Run the counter, history, favourites, and reading features on your device | Your consent, given when you use the app and accept the Terms |
| Fetch app settings and banners, and require updates when needed | Your consent |
| Collect crash reports to find and fix problems | Your consent (you can withdraw it, see section 9) |
| Answer support requests and grievances | Your request |
| Comply with law, resolve disputes, and enforce our terms | Legal obligation and legitimate uses permitted by law |
We do not use your data for behavioural advertising, profiling, or automated decisions that significantly affect you.
5. Who we share it with
We do not sell your personal data. Your chant data stays on your device, so there is nothing for us to share. The only outside providers involved are:
| Provider | Purpose | Data involved |
|---|---|---|
| Google Firebase (Remote Config, Crashlytics) | App settings and banners; crash reports | IP address, device and app data, crash details |
| Google (Android) and Apple (iOS) | App distribution, optional device backup, their own store analytics | Governed by their own privacy policies |
| Your email provider | Carrying emails you send to support | Your email and message |
We may also share data:
- If the law requires it, for example under a valid order from a court or government authority.
- To protect rights, safety, or the security of the Service, or to prevent fraud.
- In a business transfer, such as a merger or sale, where the new owner must honour this policy. We will tell you if the entity responsible for your data changes.
Banners on the home screen are chosen by us and delivered through Firebase Remote Config. We do not use third-party ad networks and do not use your advertising ID.
6. Where your data is stored and transferred abroad
Your app data is stored on your own device. Firebase is operated by Google and may process crash reports and configuration requests on servers in other countries, including outside India. The DPDP Act allows transfer of personal data outside India except to countries the Government of India restricts. We rely on providers that protect data with reasonable safeguards and contractual commitments.
7. How long we keep it
| Data | Retention |
|---|---|
| Chant activity, custom chants, favourites, reading progress, profile | On your device until you use Reset all data, uninstall the app, or clear its storage. Copies in an OS backup follow that backup's own rules. |
| Crash reports | About [90 days] on Firebase's schedule, stripped of direct identifiers where possible |
| Remote Config request logs | As kept by Google under its terms |
| Support emails | Until the issue is resolved, then [6 months] |
| Records we must keep by law | As long as the law requires |
If you uninstall the app, the data stored in it is removed from your device. If you restore a backup or reinstall on a device that restores app data, that data may come back.
8. Security
Your data sits in the app's private storage, protected by your device's operating system and lock screen. Connections to Firebase use encrypted HTTPS/TLS. We do not run any server that holds your chant data. No system is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.
If a personal data breach affects data we hold, we will notify you and the Data Protection Board of India as the law requires.
Please protect your device with a lock. Because data is stored on the device, losing it or having it reset can lose your counts, so see our Terms about keeping a note of important counts.
9. Your choices and rights
Under the DPDP Act, you have the right to:
- Access: see your data directly in the app (Profile, activity history, custom chants). For data we hold, such as your emails to us, ask us for a summary.
- Correction and completion: edit your profile name and photo and your custom chants in the app.
- Erasure: use Profile → Reset all data to erase all app data on your device, or uninstall the app. For emails you sent us, write to us and we will delete them.
- Withdraw consent: at any time. This does not affect processing done before. To stop crash reports and remote configuration requests, use your device settings to block the app's network access, or uninstall the app.
- Grievance redressal: contact us first (section 13).
- Nominate: name another person to exercise your rights if you die or become incapacitated.
To make a request, email [email protected]. We may verify your identity first. We aim to respond within 15 days.
If you are not satisfied with our response, you may complain to the Data Protection Board of India once it is operational, after first raising the issue with us.
You can also manage permissions in your device settings and clear cached content by clearing app data.
10. Children
If you are under 18, please use the Service only with a parent or guardian's consent. The app does not ask for or collect personal details such as a phone number, email address, or location, and it has no accounts. We do not track or monitor children's behaviour, and we do not show targeted advertising to children.
A parent or guardian who believes a child has sent us personal data (for example in an email to support) can contact us at [email protected], and we will delete it.
11. Cookies and the website
The mobile app does not use browser cookies, and the website does not use cookies or analytics trackers. Most browsers also let you block or delete cookies if you wish.
The in-app Terms and Contact pages may open in an in-app view or your email app. Emails you send to support are handled by your email provider as well as by us.
12. Third-party links
The Service may link to third-party websites, for example from a banner. Their privacy practices are their own. Please read their policies.
13. Grievance officer and contact
For any privacy question, request, or complaint:
- Email: [email protected]
- In the app: Profile → Contact Us
We acknowledge complaints within 24 hours and aim to resolve them within 15 days.
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as the app or the law changes. We will change the "Last updated" date and, for material changes, notify you in the app or by other suitable means. Where the law requires fresh consent, we will ask for it. Older versions are available on request.
15. Governing law
This policy is governed by the laws of India, and the courts described in our Terms and Conditions have jurisdiction, without limiting any right you have under the DPDP Act or consumer law.
🙏 Your practice is yours. Your counts stay on your phone.
Prabhu Smaran — steady devotion, every day. © 2026 Prabhu Smaran