Privacy Policy
Bible Match is operated by Bible Match Foundation, a Christian nonprofit dedicated to encouraging Scripture engagement and Christ-centered community. Bible Match Foundation is in the process of applying for U.S. 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. This policy explains how we handle your data with transparency and "Privacy by Design.
1. Information We Collect
a. Information You Provide
Account Credentials: Email address (used solely for passwordless One-Time Password [OTP] authentication and account management) and your chosen custom Username.
User-Generated Content (UGC): Optional text reflections, Bible verse matches, "Amens," and community chat comments.
Profile Data: Optional information you choose to display on your profile (e.g., favorite verse).
b. Information Collected Automatically
Technical & Diagnostic Data: Device type, OS version, and app crash/performance logs. This data is fully anonymized and used strictly to maintain app performance. It is never linked directly to your user identity.
Approximate Location (Timezone): We detect your device's coarse timezone to deliver "Daily Match" notifications at the correct local time. We do not collect precise GPS location or tracking history.
Sensitive Data: Interactions with Scripture may reveal religious beliefs. We process this data strictly and exclusively to provide the App's spiritual features, and never for profiling, behavioral tracking, or advertising.
2. How We Use Your Information
Authentication: To verify your identity via secure, passwordless OTP.
Community Interaction: To display your optional reflections, chat messages, and verse matches to other users within your active group.
Safety, Moderation & Minor Protection: To investigate reports of conduct that violates our Community Guidelines or compromises user safety.
Updates & Communications: If you opt in during registration or via your account settings, we may use your email address to send you App updates, ministry news, and newsletters from Bible Match Foundation. You may withdraw this consent at any time via the unsubscribe link in any email or by updating your preferences in the App's Settings menu. We do not use your email address for commercial advertising.
Non-Commercial Mission: As a nonprofit, we never sell, rent, or trade your data to third parties, advertising networks, or data brokers.
3. Third-Party Services & Service Providers
We rely on a limited set of service providers (processors) to operate the App. None of these providers are permitted to use your data for their own purposes, and none receive it for advertising.
Scripture Tools: Secure third-party Bible APIs provide verse search functionality. No personal account information is transmitted to these providers.
Cloud Hosting & Infrastructure: We use cloud infrastructure and database providers to securely store and process App data on our behalf, under confidentiality obligations.
Email Delivery: A transactional email provider delivers OTP authentication codes and account-related emails only.
No AI Processing of Reflections: We do not send Reflections, journal entries, or other personal UGC to any third-party AI service for processing, analysis, or model training.
4. Privacy Controls & Visibility
Public vs. Private Profiles: You may set your profile to "Private" to hide your biographical information from the broader community feed.
The Username Safety Rule: To maintain community safety, accountability, and prevent anonymous harassment, your chosen Username remains visible to other users when you post a public reflection, comment in a chat room, or match a verse in that specific game room.
5. Age Requirement & Minor Safety (Strictly 16+)
Bible Match is strictly designed for and restricted to users aged 16 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 16. This threshold is set voluntarily above the age covered by the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), which applies to children under 13. If our moderation team discovers or is notified that an account belongs to a user under 16, the account and all associated data will be purged from our servers immediately.
6. Data Retention & Your "Right to Vanish"
a. Account Deletion: You can delete your account at any time via the "Delete Account" button in the App's Settings menu
b. Complete Data Purge: Upon triggering account deletion, your email address, custom Username, profile records, and group memberships will be permanently erased from our active database servers within 30 days.
c. UGC Anonymization: To preserve the context of community discussions, shared reflections and comments will not be deleted outright but will be anonymized and displayed as "Deleted User" so that other users' replies remain meaningful.
7. Security Standards
We protect our 16+ community using end-to-end encryption for all data transfers, including OTP authentication requests. Developer and administrator access to user emails is strictly restricted to essential safety, support, and moderation personnel, and is protected by mandatory Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA).
8. Contact Us & Data Rights Requests
For questions, to report inappropriate community behavior, or to exercise your rights to data erasure, contact us directly:
Bible Match Support Email: support@biblematch.org