Privacy policy

When you sign up and use your account:

• your username, email address and password (we only store a scrambled version of your password, never the password itself);
• your time zone, and the topics you'd like support with, if you choose any;
• a profile picture, if you add one. We resize it and remove hidden details such as location from it;
• your town, if you add it for the daily weather suggestion. We store it only roughly (to about 10 km / 6 miles).
• what you write in “about you” for your profile, and the people you add (and who adds you);
• private messages you send and receive. Only people who've added each other can message, and a message is seen only by the person it's sent to. We keep messages so you can read them; our team only looks at them to keep members safe, for example when someone reports a message (we then see that message). You can edit a message for 15 minutes after sending it and delete it at any time. For safety, the words a message had before it was edited or deleted are kept for 30 days, seen only if that message is reported, and then erased. You can also report a member from their profile; we see the reason and anything you add. Deleting your account deletes your messages.

When you take part:

• the groups you book, the groups you join (and when), and the groups you host;
• small wins you claim, badges you earn, and kind notes you send or receive;
• your daily mood check-ins, how you slept and what helped, your small plans for the week, reminders you set for yourself, the total score of any anxiety check you take (never your answers), and what you write in your journal. These are private: only you can see them, and they only leave the site if you print or save your summary and hand it to someone yourself;
• reports you make or that are made about you, and any removals from a group;
• messages you send us through the contact form or by email.

Automatically: a sign-in cookie that keeps you logged in, and basic technical details (such as your IP address and browser) that our server handles to show you the site and keep it secure. We also note how long you spend in each group, and, unless you switch it off, how many minutes you're active on the site each day (see usage stats).

What we don't collect: we don't record or store the video or audio of any group. A group's chat is kept for 2 days after the group, only so the people who were in it can look back at it in their Messages (with any emoji reactions), and is then erased; if you delete your account, your chat messages go too. We don't use advertising trackers or analytics from other companies, and we don't take payments.

Some of what we hold, such as the topics you pick and the groups you go to, can say something about your mental health. We treat it as sensitive: we use it only to run Heal Kinder for you (for example, to suggest groups), we never sell it, and we never use it for advertising. If you live in a state with consumer health data laws, such as Washington, Nevada or Connecticut, you can ask us to see or delete it at any time using the contact details below.

• to run your account and the groups: booking, joining, showing times in your time zone, and the waiting room;
• to send you emails you need, such as booking confirmations, password resets and important account changes;
• to show your progress, such as badges, streaks and kind notes, and the daily weather suggestion if you add a town;
• to keep the community safe: chat filtering, reports, removals, and looking into problems;
• to understand how Heal Kinder is used, in general and only as averages across members, so we can improve it;
• to meet our legal obligations.

• Signed-in members can see your username, your profile picture, the ring that shows how many groups you've hosted, and small wins you choose to share.
• People you've been in a group with, and people you've added, can see your profile: your picture, what you write in “about you”, your badges and trophies, and how many groups you've joined and hosted. If you host a group, any signed-in member can open your profile from it. Profiles can't be searched for and don't appear in search engines.
• People in a group with you see your username, picture, camera and microphone, and chat. People who were in the same group can see who was there afterwards.
• Signed-in members looking at a group see how many people have saved a spot and some of their pictures (names only if they point at one).
• Anyone, including visitors, can see public group listings, which show a host's username.

Video groups connect people's browsers directly to each other, so the people in a group with you can technically see your IP address, which can show your rough location. Please keep this in mind.

Your email address, town and the topics you've picked are never shown to other members.

We don't sell your personal information or share it for advertising. We share it only:

• with service providers who run parts of Heal Kinder for us: our website hosting and email providers;
• for the weather suggestion: your rough location goes to MET Norway (the weather) and, when you save a town, its name goes to OpenStreetMap (to find it on the map);
• for video calls: Google's connection service helps browsers find each other; it doesn't see or hear the group;
• when the law requires it, or to protect someone from serious harm;
• if Heal Kinder is sold or merged, with the new owner, who must keep protecting it in line with this policy.

We only use cookies that Heal Kinder needs to work. There are two:

• Signing in (hk_session): keeps you logged in, for up to 30 days or until you log out.
• The phone app (hk_app): remembers that you're using the Heal Kinder app, so it shows the app's layout. Kept for a year.

Your browser also remembers a few settings on your device, such as whether you prefer the cards or list view of groups, and which notices you've closed. These stay on your device and aren't sent to anyone.

Usage stats. While you're signed in and a page is open and in use, your browser tells our server once a minute that you're still there. Nothing else goes with it: not the page, not what you click or type. We use it only to work out averages across members, such as how long people spend on Heal Kinder on a day they visit, so we can improve it. It's counted on our own server, nothing goes to other companies, no one at Heal Kinder looks at what one person did, and it's deleted after 90 days. You can switch it off at any time on your account page, which also deletes what we've counted for you. We also note how long you spend in each group you join, as part of your group history.

We don't use advertising, analytics or tracking cookies, and we don't let other companies place cookies through our site. Because the cookies we use are needed to run the service, the law doesn't require us to ask for consent for them. If that ever changes, we'll ask you first.

We keep your information while your account is open. When you delete your account:

• your email, picture, town, topics, bookings, small wins, mood check-ins, sleep notes, small plans, reminders, anxiety checks, journal pages, badges and kind notes are deleted, and you're signed out everywhere;
• groups you host are canceled;
• in other people's past group lists and our safety records you're shown only as "Former member".

Minutes counted for usage stats are deleted after 90 days, whether or not you keep your account.

Any copies in backups are overwritten over time. We may keep limited records longer where the law requires it.

• change your username, email, password, picture, town, topics and time zone on your account page;
• choose not to share each small win with the community;
• switch off usage stats on your account page, which also deletes what we've counted for you;
• delete your account at any time from your account page (see how to delete your account);
• ask us for a copy of your information, or to correct or delete it, by emailing hello@healkinder.com.

Depending on where you live (for example California, Washington and other US states, or the UK), you may have further rights over your information. We'll answer requests within the time the law requires, and we won't treat you differently for making one.

We use secure connections (HTTPS), store only scrambled passwords and sign-in tokens, limit repeated login attempts, and keep members-only pages and pictures out of search engines. No system is perfectly secure, so please use a strong password that you don't use anywhere else.

Heal Kinder is only for people aged 18 and over. We don't knowingly collect information from anyone younger. If we learn that someone under 18 has an account, we'll delete it. If you think this has happened, please tell us.

We may update this policy as Heal Kinder changes and will update the "last updated" date when we do. If a change is significant, we'll let members know by email or on the site.

Heal Kinder. For privacy questions or requests, email hello@healkinder.com or use our contact form.