Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains what information the SecureComm apps for Android and iOS ("SecureComm", "the app", "we", "us") collect, why we collect it, how it is used and shared, and the choices and rights you have. Both apps connect to the same SecureComm service, and this policy applies equally to both unless a section says otherwise.

1. About SecureComm

SecureComm is an encrypted messaging and calling app available for Android and iOS. The apps communicate with our own servers at aegissecurecomm.com (account API and XMPP messaging server) and with the third-party services listed in Section 7.

We are the data controller for the personal data described here. See Section 15 for how to reach us.

2. Information we collect

2.1 Account information

• Phone number. You register with your mobile number. It is your account identifier and is how other people find you.
• One-time SMS verification. To prove the number is yours, a verification code is sent by SMS through Google's Firebase Phone Authentication service, on both Android and iOS. Firebase receives your phone number and device details in order to deliver and validate the code.
• Optional profile details. A display name (nickname), profile picture and status message, if you choose to set them. These are visible to the people you communicate with.
• Authentication credentials. Account tokens and encryption key material needed to keep you signed in and to secure your messages.

2.2 Contacts

If you grant the Contacts permission, the app reads phone numbers from your device address book and sends them to our server so it can tell you which of your contacts already use SecureComm. The server returns only the matches. This is the standard "contact discovery" mechanism used by phone-number-based messengers.

• Contact discovery is optional — deny or revoke the Contacts permission and the app continues to work; you simply add people by number manually.
• Names, e-mail addresses, photos and other address-book fields stay on your device and are used only to display your contacts inside the app.
• Numbers that do not match a registered user are not retained by us for discovery purposes.

2.3 Messages, calls and media

• Message content is end-to-end encrypted and cannot be read by us or by our server operators. Encrypted messages are stored on the server only until they are delivered to your devices.
• Attachments (photos, videos, voice notes, documents) are encrypted on your device before upload and stored temporarily on our file-transfer server in that encrypted form.
• Voice and video calls are end-to-end encrypted and, where the network allows, connect directly between devices. When a direct connection is impossible, encrypted call media is relayed through our TURN relay server, which forwards packets without being able to decrypt them.
• Locally stored data. Your chat history, media files and settings are stored on your device, in the app's private storage. On Android, the app's data is excluded from Android cloud backups.

2.4 Technical and connection data

To operate the service our servers process a limited amount of technical data, including your IP address, connection timestamps, online/offline presence, the app version and device/operating-system type, and the minimum routing metadata required to deliver a message or set up a call (for example, the account addresses involved and delivery status). This information is used for delivery, abuse prevention, security and troubleshooting.

2.5 Push notifications

To wake the app when a new message or call arrives, SecureComm uses Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) on Android, and Apple's Push Notification service (APNs) together with Firebase Cloud Messaging on iOS. Push payloads do not contain message content; the app fetches and decrypts the message itself. Google and, on iOS, Apple assign your installation a device registration token for this purpose.

2.6 Analytics

We do not operate our own analytics and we do not profile users.

• Android: the app ships with no analytics or crash-reporting SDK. Google Analytics for Firebase is explicitly excluded from the build.
• iOS: the current build includes Google Analytics for Firebase as a component of the Firebase SDK. Where active, it collects standard app-usage and device information (such as app opens, session length, device model, operating-system version, country and a Firebase installation identifier). It never has access to your messages, calls or contacts, all of which are encrypted.

2.7 Optional features you trigger

• Location sharing. Only when you explicitly choose to share a location in a chat. The coordinates are sent as an end-to-end encrypted message; we do not track or log your location.
• Camera and microphone. Used only while you are taking a photo or video, recording a voice note, or in a call.

3. Information we do not collect

• We do not read, listen to, scan or profile the content of your messages or calls — we cannot, because of end-to-end encryption.
• We do not include advertising SDKs, and we do not show ads.
• We do not use your data to build advertising profiles or to target advertising.
• We do not track you across other companies' apps and websites.
• We do not sell or rent your personal information to anyone.

4. How we use information

We do not use your data for automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects.

5. End-to-end encryption

SecureComm encrypts messages and calls end-to-end using the Signal protocol (implemented as OMEMO for XMPP), so that only you and the people you are talking to hold the keys. Encryption keys are generated and stored on your device and are never transmitted to us in a usable form. Voice and video calls are carried over WebRTC with DTLS-SRTP media encryption. OpenPGP is also supported as an alternative for users who prefer it.

Because we do not hold your keys, we cannot recover your message history if you lose your device, and we cannot produce message content in response to any request.

6. Device permissions

SecureComm asks only for the permissions its features need. The exact wording differs between Android and iOS, but the purposes are the same.

You can grant or revoke any of these at any time: on Android in Settings → Apps → SecureComm → Permissions, and on iOS in Settings → SecureComm. Revoking a permission disables the related feature but does not disable the app.

7. Sharing and third parties

We do not sell your data and we do not share it for advertising. Data is shared only in these situations:

• Other users. The people you message see the content you send them plus your number, profile name and picture, and presence information you have allowed.
• Google Firebase Authentication — receives your phone number and device signals to send and verify the SMS one-time code, on both platforms. See Firebase Privacy.
• Google Firebase Cloud Messaging and, on iOS, Apple Push Notification service — receive a push token and an encrypted wake-up signal in order to deliver notifications.
• Google Analytics for Firebase — on iOS only, receives the app-usage and device information described in Section 2.6.
• Our infrastructure providers — the hosting providers that run our XMPP, API, file-transfer and TURN relay servers, acting as processors on our instructions.
• Legal requests. We may disclose the limited information we hold if we are legally required to. We cannot disclose message or call content because we do not have access to it.

8. Data retention

• Account record (phone number, profile) — kept while your account exists, and deleted when you delete the account as described in Section 9.
• Undelivered encrypted messages — stored only until delivered, then removed; messages that cannot be delivered expire automatically.
• Encrypted attachments — removed from the file-transfer server after a limited retention window.
• Call media — never stored; relayed packets are discarded immediately.
• Connection and security logs — kept for a short period for abuse prevention and troubleshooting.
• On-device data — kept until you delete the messages, or delete the account or uninstall the app.

9. Deleting your account and data

You can delete your account and its server-side data yourself, from inside the app. No e-mail request and no contact with us is required.

If you leave that option unticked, only the copy on your device is removed and your account continues to exist on the server. Tick it if you want the account itself deleted.

You can also delete individual messages or whole chats at any time by long-pressing them in the app, and uninstalling the app erases its local database, cached media and encryption keys from your device.

What gets deleted, and when

Messages you already sent to other people remain on their devices, exactly as with any messaging app — we cannot remove copies held by your contacts. We may retain a minimal record (such as the fact that a number was deregistered) where we are legally required to, or to prevent abuse.

10. Security

• End-to-end encryption for messages, attachments and calls.
• TLS for every connection between the app and our servers.
• Optional app lock with a PIN or biometrics, with lockout after repeated failed attempts.
• Self-destructing messages and attachments, if you enable them for a chat.
• App data is stored in private, non-exported storage, and on Android is excluded from cloud backups.

No system can be guaranteed perfectly secure, but we work to protect your information using measures appropriate to its sensitivity.

11. Children

SecureComm is not directed at children. You must be at least 16 years old (or the minimum age of digital consent in your country, if higher) to create an account. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children below that age; if we learn that we have, we delete it.

12. Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict or object to the processing of your personal data, to withdraw consent, and to receive a copy of your data in a portable format. Users in California may request disclosure of the categories of personal information collected and opt out of "sale" or "sharing" — we do neither.

The quickest way to exercise your deletion right is to delete your account in the app, as described in Section 9. For any other request, contact us using the details in Section 15. We respond within 30 days and will never discriminate against you for making a request. EU/EEA and UK users also have the right to lodge a complaint with their local data protection authority.

13. International transfers

Our servers and service providers may be located in countries other than yours. Where personal data is transferred out of the EEA or the UK, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the apps evolve. The "Last updated" date at the top always reflects the current version, and material changes will be announced in the app or on this page before they take effect. Continuing to use SecureComm after an update means you accept the revised policy.

15. Contact us

For privacy questions, requests or complaints, contact us through the developer contact details shown on the app's store listing:

• Android: the SecureComm listing on Google Play — see "Developer contact" / "App support".
• iOS: the SecureComm listing on the Apple App Store — see "App Support".

To delete your account, you do not need to contact us at all — use the in-app steps in Section 9.