This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect the personal information you provide or that we collect when you access or use NewsPulse, our mobile news aggregation application (the "App"). It explains your privacy rights and choices, and how to contact us about our privacy practices. Please read this Policy carefully. By using NewsPulse, you consent to the data practices described in this Policy.
Entity and Contact Information
This Privacy Policy is published on behalf of an individual operator located in Kerala, India. Business names and registered addresses are not applicable in this case. All references to "I", "me", or "my" refer to the individual operator.
How to Contact Us
If you have questions, requests, or concerns about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: sachin.nair32@gmail.com.
1. Information We Collect
NewsPulse is a news aggregation application that collects and displays news articles from various sources. The categories of information we collect include:
1.1. Information You Provide Directly
NewsPulse does not require user registration or account creation. However, when you use the App, you may provide information through your interactions:
Language Preferences: Your selected language preference (English or Thai) for viewing news articles and the app interface
Reading Preferences: Categories you browse, articles you bookmark, and articles you save for offline reading
Notification Preferences: Your subscription to breaking news topics based on your language preference
1.2. Automatically Collected Information
We automatically collect technical and usage data when you interact with NewsPulse, which may include:
Device Information: Device identifiers, device model, operating system version, and device type
App Usage Data:
Articles you view, read, or interact with
Articles you bookmark or save for offline reading
Categories you browse
Time spent reading articles
Navigation patterns within the app
Pull-to-refresh actions and pagination behavior
Technical Data:
Network connection status (to determine online/offline mode)
App version and session information
Crash logs and performance metrics
Browser type (when viewing articles in WebView)
1.3. Location Data
NewsPulse does not collect precise or approximate location data from your device. We do not request location permissions.
1.4. Payment and Transaction Data
NewsPulse is a free application. We do not process payments, collect payment information, or offer in-app purchases.
1.5. News Content Data
As a news aggregator, NewsPulse displays articles from various news sources. We collect and store:
Source Information: Information about the original news sources, including vendor names, source URLs, and scraping metadata
Reading History: Articles you have viewed (stored locally on your device)
Bookmarked Articles: Articles you have saved as favorites (stored locally and synchronized with our servers)
Offline Articles: Articles you have saved for offline reading (stored locally on your device)
1.6. Derived and Aggregated Data
We may derive non-identifying, aggregated, or de-identified data from the information we collect. Aggregated data is used for analytics, performance measurement, and to improve the news aggregation service; it cannot reasonably be used to identify you.
2. How We Use Information
We use collected information for the following purposes:
To Provide News Aggregation Services: To fetch, aggregate, and display news articles from various sources in your preferred language (English or Thai)
To Personalize Your Experience: To show you relevant articles based on your language preference, browsing history, and saved categories
To Deliver Push Notifications: To send you breaking news alerts and article notifications based on your language preferences and topic subscriptions
To Enable Offline Reading: To allow you to save articles locally on your device for reading when you don't have internet connectivity
To Manage Bookmarks: To save and synchronize your bookmarked articles across your devices
To Improve the Service: To analyze usage patterns, identify popular articles and categories, improve article recommendations, and enhance app performance
To Authenticate API Requests: To identify your device for API calls and prevent abuse
To Track Reading Behavior: To understand which articles are most viewed, trending, or popular, which helps us curate better content
To Provide Analytics: To measure app performance, track feature usage, and identify areas for improvement
To Comply with Legal Obligations: To respond to lawful requests from government or law enforcement, and protect rights and safety
3. Legal Bases for Processing
To the extent applicable, our lawful bases for processing personal data may include:
Consent: You have given consent for specific processing activities (e.g., push notifications, analytics) where required
Contractual Necessity: Processing required to perform our agreement with you (e.g., delivering news articles, managing bookmarks)
Legitimate Interests: Processing necessary for our legitimate interests, balanced against your rights (e.g., fraud prevention, network security, service improvement, content personalization)
4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies
NewsPulse is a mobile application and does not use traditional web cookies. However, we use similar technologies:
Local Storage: We use AsyncStorage to store your preferences, bookmarks, offline articles, and reading history locally on your device
Device Identifiers: We use a randomly generated UUID to identify your device for analytics and API authentication
Firebase Analytics: We use Firebase Analytics to collect aggregated and anonymized usage statistics
You can control data collection through:
Your device's notification settings (to disable push notifications)
Clearing app data through your device settings (to delete locally stored information)
5. Advertising and Analytics
Advertising: NewsPulse does not display advertisements from third-party networks. We do not use tracking for ad targeting, and we do not sell your personal information to advertisers.
Analytics: We utilize Firebase Analytics to collect aggregated and anonymized usage statistics to improve NewsPulse. These analytics may collect information such as:
Articles viewed and reading time
Feature usage (bookmarks, offline saving, language changes)
App navigation patterns
Performance metrics (loading times, error rates)
Device information (model, OS version)
General geographic data (country-level, not precise location)
All analytics data is aggregated and anonymized and cannot be used to identify individual users.
6. Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell your personal information. We disclose personal information only as described below or with your consent:
News Source Attribution: When displaying articles, we may show information about the original news source (vendor name, source URL) as part of the article metadata. This is necessary for proper attribution and transparency.
7. Security Measures
We use administrative, technical, and physical controls designed to protect personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, and destruction:
Encryption: All network communications use HTTPS encryption
Secure Storage: Local data is stored using secure storage mechanisms provided by the operating system
Access Controls: Limited access to data on a need-to-know basis
Secure APIs: API endpoints are secured and authenticated
Regular Updates: We regularly update the app to address security vulnerabilities
While we strive to use reasonable safeguards, no system can be guaranteed to be 100% secure.
8. Children's Privacy
NewsPulse is not directed to children under the age of 9 (or the minimum age in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children without parental consent. If a parent or guardian believes we have collected information from a child under the applicable age without consent, please contact us and we will take steps to delete such data.
9. Your Privacy Rights
Depending on where you reside, you may have rights including:
Right to Access: Request access to your personal data
Right to Correction: Request correction of inaccurate data
Right to Deletion: Request deletion of your personal data
Right to Portability: Request a copy of your data in a portable format
Right to Restrict Processing: Request restriction of processing
Right to Object: Object to processing of your personal data
Right to Withdraw Consent: Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent
Right to Opt-Out: Opt-out of certain data uses or profiling
To exercise these rights, contact us at the email address listed above. We will attempt to respond within applicable statutory timelines and may require verification of identity to protect your information and the rights of others.
10. Rights for European Residents (GDPR)
Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), if you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), you may have additional rights:
Right to Access: Request access to your personal data
Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data
Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data ("right to be forgotten")
Right to Restrict Processing: Request restriction of processing
Right to Data Portability: Receive your data in a structured, commonly used format
Right to Object: Object to processing based on legitimate interests
In some cases, you can lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority in your country if you believe your rights have been violated.
11. Rights for California Residents (CCPA/CPRA)
If you are a California resident, you may have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA):
Right to Know: Request details about the categories of personal data we collect, the categories of sources, the categories of recipients, and the business purposes for collection
Right to Delete: Request deletion of your personal information
Right to Opt-Out: Opt-out of the sale or sharing of personal information (we do not sell personal information)
Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights
We do not knowingly sell the personal information of minors under 16 without affirmative authorization.
12. Third-Party Links and Integrations
NewsPulse aggregates news articles from various third-party news sources. When you click on an article, you may be directed to the original news source's website. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these third-party news sources or their websites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing personal information to third parties.
13. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make material changes, we will:
Update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this Policy
Provide notice in the App or by other means as required by law
For significant changes, we may provide additional notice through push notifications or in-app messages
The updated Policy will indicate the Effective Date. Continued use of NewsPulse after changes constitutes your acceptance of the revised Policy.
14. International Users
If you are accessing NewsPulse from outside India, your data will be processed under the laws of the country where our servers or subprocessors operate, while respecting the protections described in this Policy and applicable local privacy laws.
15. How to Exercise Your Rights
To exercise your privacy rights, or to inquire about our privacy practices, please contact us via email at: sachin.nair32@gmail.com.
When you contact us, please include:
Your request type (access, deletion, correction, etc.)
Information to help us verify your identity (if required)
Any relevant details about your request
We will attempt to respond within applicable statutory timelines (typically 30 days, or as required by local law) and may require verification of identity to protect your information and the rights of others.
16. Complaint Mechanisms and Supervisory Authorities
If you are in the EU/EEA, you may lodge a complaint with a data protection authority in your country if you believe your privacy rights have been violated.
If you are in another jurisdiction and wish to file a complaint, contact your local supervisory body or our designated contact for privacy matters at: sachin.nair32@gmail.com.
17. Additional Disclosures
We may provide additional privacy disclosures in context within the App (for example, when you enable notifications or save articles offline). Those supplemental notices are incorporated into this Policy where applicable.
18. News Aggregation Specific Disclosures
As a news aggregation service, NewsPulse:
Aggregates Content: Collects and displays news articles from various third-party news sources
Source Attribution: Displays information about the original news source for each article
Content Curation: Uses algorithms to identify trending articles, popular categories, and relevant content
Multilingual Support: Provides articles in English and Thai based on your language preference
No Content Modification: We do not modify the original content of news articles; we display them as aggregated from source providers
The news articles displayed in NewsPulse are the property of their respective publishers. We do not claim ownership of the news content and provide it for informational purposes only.
19. Miscellaneous
Where any provision of this Policy conflicts with applicable law, such provision will be interpreted to the extent necessary to comply with the law. Headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation. This Policy does not create contractual rights for third parties.
20. Final Notes
We strive to maintain transparent and robust privacy practices. Thank you for trusting NewsPulse with your information. Please review this Policy periodically for updates.