Privacy Policy

PickleConnect ("we", "our", "the app") is committed to protecting your privacy. This policy explains what data we collect, how we use it, and your rights.

1. Information We Collect

Account Information

When you create an account, we collect:

• Email address — used for authentication and password reset
• Display name — shown to other players
• Profile photo — if you sign in with Google, your Google profile photo may be used

Profile Information (Optional)

You may choose to provide:

• Skill level (e.g., 3.0–4.0)
• City / location
• Age and gender
• DUPR rating ID

Location Data

With your permission, we collect your device's GPS coordinates to:

• Sort courts and players by distance from you
• Detect when you're near a court for check-in prompts
• Match you with nearby players
• Show relevant weather data for courts

Location is requested only when you use the app and is never tracked in the background. You can revoke location access at any time in your device settings.

Usage Data

• Court check-ins — your name, arrival time, duration, and optional comments when you check in at a court
• Availability posts — when and where you're available to play
• Games — games you create or join, including date, time, and court
• Messages — direct messages you send to other players (stored encrypted in transit)
• Notification preferences — which notification types you've enabled or disabled

Device Information

• Push notification token — to deliver push notifications to your device
• Platform — whether you're using iOS, Android, or web (to format notifications correctly)

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your data to:

• Provide the core app features: courts, check-ins, player matching, games, and messaging
• Send push notifications you've opted into (game invites, player matches, court activity, messages)
• Show you relevant nearby courts and players
• Display live court conditions and weather
• Improve the app based on usage patterns (aggregated, not individual)

3. Data Sharing

Your data is shared only in these limited ways:

• Other players — your display name, skill level, city, availability posts, and check-in status are visible to other users as part of the app's core functionality. Your email is never shown.
• Firebase (Google Cloud) — we use Firebase for authentication, database (Firestore), and push notifications (FCM). Data is stored on Google Cloud servers in the United States. See Firebase Privacy.
• Weather APIs — we send court GPS coordinates (not your personal location) to Open-Meteo and the National Weather Service to display weather data. No personal information is included in these requests.

4. Data Retention

• Court check-ins — automatically deleted after 24 hours or when you check out
• Availability posts — remain active until you remove them or they expire (custom schedules expire after their end date)
• Messages — stored until you delete your account
• Notifications — displayed for the last 7 days, stored in the database until account deletion
• Account data — retained until you delete your account

5. Your Privacy Choices

You have control over your data:

• Location — deny or revoke location permission in your device settings at any time. The app will still work but won't sort by distance or show proximity prompts.
• Notifications — toggle individual notification types on/off in Notification Settings. Use the master toggle to disable all push notifications. Set quiet hours for overnight silence.
• Profile visibility — your profile is visible to other players. You can minimize what you share by leaving optional fields (age, gender, city) blank.
• Availability sharing — choose who sees your posts: everyone, connections only, specific players, or groups.
• Messages — you control who you message. Other players cannot message you unless you've both engaged in conversation.
• Delete account — you can permanently delete your account and all associated data from Profile → Delete Account. This removes your profile, posts, game history, and messages.

6. Data Security

We use industry-standard security measures:

• All data transmitted over HTTPS/TLS encryption
• Firebase Authentication for secure sign-in
• Firestore security rules that restrict data access to authorized users
• Push notification tokens are stored securely and removed when invalid

7. Children's Privacy

PickleConnect is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has created an account, please contact us and we will delete it.

8. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. If we make significant changes, we'll notify users through the app. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent revision.

9. Contact Us

If you have questions about this privacy policy or your data, contact us at: