myCarCaptain

1. Introduction

Thrapp Digital LLC (“Thrapp Digital,” “we,” “our,” or “us”) is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you visit our website myCarCaptain.com or use our mobile application (collectively, the “Service”). We are committed to the Transparency Principle: ensuring you understand how your data is processed.

We practice Privacy by Design. To put you in control, we provide a Privacy Dashboard within the Service where you can manage your consents, track your agreement history, and exercise your data rights in real-time.

Note on Pre-Launch Status: The Service is currently in a pre-launch/beta phase. We are constantly improving our features, which may occasionally require changes to how we process data. We will notify you of any significant changes to this policy.

2. Information We Collect

We collect information that you voluntarily provide to us and information automatically collected when you use the Service.

A. Personal Information You Provide

• Account Information: Name, email address, password, and optional profile information.
• Vehicle Data: VIN (Vehicle Identification Number), license plate number, make, model, year, current mileage, and maintenance history.
• User Content: Fuel logs, receipt photos, maintenance notes, and other records you manually input or upload.
• Authorized User Information: Email addresses, names, and access permissions for any individuals you invite to share and manage your vehicle data.
• Feedback & Correspondence: Information you provide when you contact us for support or join our waitlist.

B. Information Collected Automatically (via Google Firebase)

Our Service uses Google Firebase. When you access or use the Service, certain information about your device and usage patterns is automatically collected. This data includes:

• Device Data: Device identifiers (such as the Advertising ID or Vendor Identifier), device model, OS version, and general geographic location (derived from IP address).
• Usage Data: Details on how you interact with the app, including automatically logged events such as screen views, session duration, and feature access.
• Tracking Technologies: An App-Instance Identifier, which acts as a unique, pseudonymous identifier for your app installation, similar to how cookies function on a website.

Usage data and device identifiers are processed via Google Firebase. You may opt-out of Detailed Navigation Tracking or Performance Reporting via the Privacy Dashboard. Please note that disabling performance reporting may limit our ability to troubleshoot technical issues specific to your account.

C. Financial and Payment Data

We use a third-party payment processor, Stripe, to handle all subscription transactions. Thrapp Digital LLC does not store your credit card or bank account information. All payment data is provided directly to Stripe, whose use of your personal information is governed by their Privacy Policy (available at https://stripe.com/privacy).

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the data we collect for the following specific purposes:

1. To Provide the Service: Storing your vehicle records, calculating metrics, displaying fuel log and maintenance history, and allowing your Authorized Users to create, view, edit, or delete entries and download reports.

2. To Generate AI Insights: We process your vehicle data (including your maintenance history and VIN) using Artificial Intelligence (AI) models. This data is combined with publicly available data (such as NHTSA complaints and recalls) to aid service and maintenance planning, provide maintenance insights, cost analysis, and AI summaries.

3. To Communicate with You: Sending service alerts (e.g., "Oil Change Due"), security updates, and product announcements.

4. To Improve Our App: We use usage analytics and crash reporting to prioritize features and fix bugs. You can manage your preferences for Usage Analytics and Detailed Navigation Tracking at any time through your Privacy Dashboard.

5. To Create Anonymized Data: Aggregating user data to identify broad trends (e.g., "Average repair cost for a 2018 sedan") as described in Section 5.

6. To Prevent Abuse: To maintain a "Trial Exclusion List" using one-way cryptographic hashes of emails to prevent unauthorized resubscription to free trials.

7. To comply with Legal Obligations and Protect Against Contractual Disputes: We retain a record of your acceptance of our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy for a period of six (6) years from the date of account deletion.

4. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal, identifiable information. We only share information in the following circumstances:

• With Authorized Users: We share your vehicle data, maintenance logs, fuel logs, and reports with any individual(s) you explicitly invite to be an Authorized User on your vehicle(s). You acknowledge that any user you invite to your vehicle(s) will have access to view your vehicle data, add/edit/delete fuel logs and maintenance records, and download reports. You are solely responsible for granting this access, and for the actions, edits, and deletions performed by your Authorized Users.
• Service Providers: We share data with trusted third-party vendors who assist us in operating the Service (e.g., Google Firebase for database hosting, AI providers for generating insights, email delivery services). These partners are bound by confidentiality obligations.
• Legal Compliance: We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or governmental regulation.
• Business Transfers: If Thrapp Digital is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction.
• Advertising Partners: We may share pseudonymous identifiers (such as Advertising IDs) and anonymized, aggregated data with third-party advertising partners (e.g., Google AdSense) to serve relevant ads in the Essential tier of our Service. These partners may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to collect information about your activities across different websites.

5. Automated Processing and AI-Generated Inferences

We use automated systems and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to process the personal information and vehicle data you provide. This processing results in the creation of Inferred Data—new information generated by our Service that was not directly provided by you.

Logic of Processing: Our AI models analyze your manually entered records (such as mileage and maintenance history) alongside publicly available data (such as manufacturer recalls and technical service bulletins).

Nature of Inferred Data: These automated insights, including maintenance predictions and safety alerts, are probabilistic inferences rather than verified mechanical facts. Because this data is machine-generated, it is subject to the limitations of AI, including potential errors, omissions, or misinterpretations.

Purpose of Processing: We generate this inferred data solely for informational and educational purposes to assist you in vehicle management. This data is not intended for use as a formal diagnostic record or a substitute for professional mechanical advice.

Data Accuracy: Consistent with our commitment to data integrity, we provide these insights "as-is" and encourage users to verify all AI-generated inferences against their official vehicle Owner’s Manual or with a certified technician.

6. Data Anonymization and Aggregation

A core feature of our Service is the ability to generate community insights while protecting your identity.

• Your Rights: You may choose to anonymize your data through the app settings or upon account deletion.
• The Process: When data is anonymized, we permanently remove or mask all Direct Identifiers, including: Name and Email Address, Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), License Plate Number, User-generated notes, receipt photos, and documents.
• Our Use of Anonymized Data: As stated in our Terms of Service, once data is fully anonymized and aggregated, it is no longer "Personal Information." Thrapp Digital LLC owns this anonymized data and may use it for research, commercial analytics, and improving our AI models without further notice or compensation to you.
• Non-Reidentification: We commit to never attempting to re-identify any user from anonymized datasets.

7. Data Security & Trial Protection

We use industry-standard encryption. This includes encryption in transit and at rest (via HTTPS and secure database storage). To protect our business model, if you delete your account, we may retain a one-way hash of your email. This hash is irreversible and cannot be used to contact you; it is used to protect against contractual disputes and determine your eligibility for future promotions.

Disclaimer: While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal information, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee its absolute security.

8. Your Data Rights & Privacy Dashboard

We provide a centralized Privacy Dashboard in the "My Account" section to help you exercise your rights:

• Right to Access & Portability: You can instantly Export Your Data in a machine-readable JSON format directly from the dashboard.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: You can toggle Usage Analytics, Crash Reporting, and Google Signals on or off at any time.
• Right to Deletion: You can initiate a permanent Account Deletion through the dashboard.
• Consent History: You can view a timestamped record of every version of the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy you have accepted.
• Anonymity Control: You can use the "Reset Anonymous Identifier" feature to disconnect your past device usage history from your current session.

For rights that cannot be exercised through the dashboard, please contact us at privacy@myCarCaptain.com.

9. Third-Party Links and Services

The Service may contain links to third-party websites or services (e.g., auto parts stores, insurance providers). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to read their privacy policies.

10. Cookies and Interest-Based Advertising

Our Service uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience and serve relevant advertisements in the Essential tier of our Service.

• Advertising Cookies: Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a user's prior visits to our website or other websites.
• Personalized Advertising: Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to our users of our Essential tier of our Service based on their visit to our site and/or other sites on the Internet.
• Your Choices: You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings or by using tools like the Network Advertising Initiative (NAI) opt-out page. You can also manage cookie preferences through your browser or device settings.

11. Children's Privacy

Our Service is not directed to individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we discover that a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, we will delete it immediately.

12. State and International Specific Rights

• California Residents: Under the CCPA, you have the right to request a "Notice of Collection" and to "Opt-Out of the Sale or Sharing of Personal Information." We do not "sell" your data for money, but our use of third-party ad cookies may be considered "sharing" under California law.

• EU/UK Residents: Under the GDPR, we process your data based on Contractual Necessity (to provide the service) and Legitimate Interest (to improve the app and show relevant ads). You have the right to object to processing and to data portability.

13. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The updated version will be indicated by an updated "Effective Date" and the updated version will be effective as soon as it is accessible. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy frequently to be informed of how we are protecting your information. Continued use of the Service after changes to this Privacy Policy constitutes acceptance.

14. Contact Us

If you have questions or comments about this policy, you may email us at privacy@myCarCaptain.com