Privacy Policy

Account Information

When you create and use a BookSwap account, we may collect:

• Phone number
• Display name or username
• Profile photo
• Account identifier
• Account creation and last activity timestamps

Profile Information

Information you voluntarily provide, including:

• Public profile details
• Profile image
• Birthdate
• Gender
• Bio or other profile information (if provided)

Library & Book Information

To provide BookSwap's core functionality, we collect information related to books you manage within the app, including:

• Books in your library
• Wishlist items
• Book availability
• Book ownership information
• User-uploaded book images (if applicable)

Swap Information

To enable book exchanges, we process:

• Swap offers
• Offer status
• Swap history
• Information necessary to facilitate exchanges between users

Messaging

BookSwap provides in-app messaging between users. Messages, message timestamps, and related metadata are stored solely to provide messaging functionality.

Location Information

If you choose to set a swap location, we collect:

• The district and city you choose from a list, or that is detected from your device's approximate location
• Approximate coordinates, rounded to roughly 1 km (for a district you choose from the list, the centre of that district)
• Whether the location was chosen from the list or detected from your device

Your exact GPS position is never sent to or stored on our servers. Setting a swap location is optional, and you can change or remove it at any time. District names and coordinates are based on GeoNames data (geonames.org), licensed under CC BY 4.0.

Device Information

When you use the Services, we may automatically collect technical information such as:

• Device model
• Operating system version
• App version
• Device language
• Push notification token
• IP address (when required for security and service operation)
• Crash logs and diagnostic data, which may be linked to your account to help us troubleshoot issues

Camera

BookSwap requests camera access to let you scan book barcodes and take a profile photo. We do not access your camera for unrelated purposes.

Photo Library

BookSwap requests access to your photo library so you can choose an existing photo as your profile picture. We only access the photos you select, and we do not scan or upload your photo library.

Location

BookSwap asks for your approximate location only, and only when you choose "Use current location" to set your swap location. The location is read once, while you use the app; BookSwap does not track your location or access it in the background. To find your district, your device's built-in address service (provided by Apple on iOS and Google on Android) is given the rounded location, not your exact position. You can use BookSwap without granting this permission by choosing your city and district from a list instead, or by not setting a location at all.

Notifications

With your permission, BookSwap may send push notifications regarding:

• Swap offers
• Messages
• Account-related updates
• Important service notifications

You can disable notifications at any time through your device settings.

We use your information to:

• Create and manage your account
• Authenticate your identity
• Provide the BookSwap service
• Display your public profile
• Enable users to exchange books
• Show books and swap partners near you, and the approximate distance to them
• Store and synchronize your library
• Process swap offers
• Deliver real-time chat
• Send important notifications
• Detect fraud, abuse, and security incidents
• Improve the performance, reliability, and security of our Services
• Comply with legal obligations

We do not sell your personal information.

Your information is stored on secure cloud infrastructure operated by BookSwap and by the service providers listed in the following section. This includes your account and library data, your messages, and any images you upload.

Access to this infrastructure is restricted to authorized personnel and systems that require it to operate the Services.

BookSwap works with trusted service providers that help us operate our Services. These providers may process information on our behalf. Current providers include:

• Google Firebase Authentication - phone number sign-in
• Google Firebase Firestore - real-time messaging
• Google Firebase Crashlytics - crash and diagnostic reporting, which may be linked to your account identifier
• Google reCAPTCHA Enterprise - protecting sign-in from automated abuse
• Expo Push Notification Service - delivering push notifications
• Apple and Google location services built into your device - finding the district for your approximate location, only when you choose "Use current location"
• DigitalOcean - cloud hosting and storage of images

These providers process information only as necessary to provide the Services.

We may share limited information:

• when required to provide the Services;
• when required by law;
• to protect the rights, safety, or security of BookSwap and its users;
• during a merger, acquisition, or transfer of business assets.

If you set a swap location, other BookSwap users can see its district and city, and an approximate distance between you in whole kilometres - for example on your profile, next to books you own, and on swap offers. They never see your coordinates.

We do not sell or rent personal information to advertisers or data brokers.

We retain your information only as long as necessary to provide the Services, comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.

When your account is deleted, we will delete or anonymize your personal information within a reasonable period unless we are legally required to retain certain information.

Your swap location is deleted as soon as you remove it in the app or delete your account.

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards to protect your information.

However, no method of electronic transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

BookSwap is intended for users aged 13 and older, and is not directed to children under 13. By creating an account, you confirm that you are at least 13 years old. Where local law requires a higher minimum age or parental consent for users under a specified age, you must meet that requirement to use the Services.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we become aware that we have collected information from a child without appropriate consent, we will delete that information promptly. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us using the details below.

Depending on your location, applicable laws may provide you with rights regarding your personal information. These rights may include:

• Access to your information
• Correction of inaccurate information
• Deletion of your account and associated data
• Restriction of certain processing activities
• Withdrawal of consent where applicable

Changing or Removing Your Location

You can change your swap location, or remove it with "Remove location", at any time from the location button on the Home or Profile screen. Removing it deletes it from our servers.

Deleting Your Account

You can delete your BookSwap account at any time directly in the app, without contacting us. Open the Profile tab, then select Delete Account and confirm. If you no longer have the app, you can request deletion at https://www.bookswapapp.com/delete-account.

Deleting your account removes your profile photo, phone number, swap location and other profile details, clears your library and wishlist, cancels any pending swap offers, and removes your personal information from everything other users can see, as described in Section 7. Messages you sent remain in the other participant's conversation, shown as coming from a deleted user with no name or photo. This action cannot be undone.

To exercise any of the other rights listed above, please contact us using the contact information below.

Your information may be processed or stored in countries other than your country of residence where our service providers operate.

Where required by applicable law, we implement appropriate safeguards for international data transfers.

BookSwap may introduce additional services such as analytics or other operational tools to improve the application.

If these services involve the collection or processing of personal information, this Privacy Policy will be updated before such processing begins.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time.

If material changes are made, we will update the Effective Date and, where appropriate, notify users through the application or other reasonable means.