Help Chain ("we", "us", "the app") is a location-based mutual-aid app: a person who needs help posts a help request, nearby on-duty helpers are notified, one accepts, and the two are connected by live location sharing and chat until the request is completed. This Privacy Policy explains what information Help Chain collects, why, and how it is stored, shared, and deleted.
This policy applies to the Help Chain Android app (package name com.helpchain.app) and its backend services.
If you have questions about this policy or your data, contact us at connect.helpchain@gmail.com.
1. Information We Collect
1.1 Information you provide directly
Account information: phone number (primary sign-in method), and optionally your name, email address, profile photo, a short bio, and a vehicle number (if you register as a helper who uses a vehicle).
Help request content: the title, description, and category of a help request, plus any photos or voice recordings you attach to it.
Chat messages: text messages and any media (images, audio, video, or documents) you send to your matched helper or requester, and a shared location message if you choose to send one in chat.
Ratings and reviews: ratings, written reviews, and reports you submit about other users after a help session.
Payment information: if you purchase coins or a subscription, we (or our payment processor) collect the transaction amount, payment method, and a transaction ID. We do not store your full card number.
- Support communications: anything you send us at connect.helpchain@gmail.com.
1.2 Information collected automatically
Device and log data: IP address, device model and OS version, app version, and general device information, collected when you sign in or use the app, for security and fraud prevention.
Push notification token: a device-specific token used to deliver notifications (new help requests nearby, chat messages, status updates).
Usage/activity logs: sign-in events and key actions you take in the app (e.g., going on/off duty, accepting a request), together with the IP address, device, and approximate time of the action, for account security and abuse prevention.
1.3 Location information
Location is core to how Help Chain works, and we collect it in two ways:
Foreground location: while you have the app open, we use your device's location to show nearby help requests (if you are on duty) or nearby helpers (if you have an open request), and to display live tracking on the map during an active help session.
Background location: Help Chain requests the "Allow all the time" (background) location permission on Android, used only for these two purposes:
On-duty helpers: while you are on duty, Help Chain continues to update your location in the background so that people nearby who need help can find you. This stops the moment you go off duty.
Open help requests: while you have an open help request, Help Chain continues to update your location in the background so that your assigned helper can physically reach you. This stops as soon as the help is completed or cancelled.
Background location is never collected outside of these two states — you must be on duty, or have an active help request, for it to run. You can stop background collection at any time by going off duty, cancelling or completing your request, or revoking the location permission in Android Settings.
We do not sell your location data, and we do not use it for advertising.
2. How We Use Information
We use the information above to:
Create and secure your account (phone/OTP verification, session management, fraud and abuse prevention).
Match help requests with nearby on-duty helpers, and show live location between a matched requester and helper for the duration of the request.
Deliver push notifications (nearby requests, chat messages, status changes).
Operate chat between matched users, including storing message history so a conversation can be resumed.
- Show ratings, reviews, and help statistics on user profiles.
- Process payments for coins/subscriptions, where applicable.
Investigate reports of abuse, enforce our terms, and keep the community safe.
- Respond to support requests.
Improve app reliability (e.g., diagnosing background-location or notification-delivery problems from device/log data).
We do not use your data for third-party advertising, and we do not build advertising profiles.
3. How We Share Information
We share information only as follows:
With other users, by design: your name/profile photo, rating, and (during an active matched help session) your live location and chat messages are visible to the specific user you are matched with. Your approximate presence (on duty, nearby) may be visible to nearby users browsing open requests.
Service providers who process data on our behalf, under contract and only for the purpose of providing the app:
Cloudinary — stores images, audio, and other media you upload (profile photos, help-request attachments, chat media).
Firebase Cloud Messaging (Google) — delivers push notifications, and (where enabled) Google Sign-In authentication.
- Google Maps — renders maps and location displays in the app.
SMS gateway provider (currently Renflair; previously 2Factor.in) — delivers the one-time password (OTP) used to verify your phone number.
Email provider (Brevo) — sends transactional email, if you have an email address on file.
Supabase (PostgreSQL) and Redis hosting — our database and short-lived presence/matching cache, where your account and app data is stored.
Payment processors (e.g., Razorpay/Stripe/PayPal/UPI, where enabled) — process coin/subscription purchases.
Legal and safety reasons: we may disclose information if required by law, or if necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Help Chain, our users, or the public — for example, in response to a valid legal request or to investigate a safety report.
Business transfers: if Help Chain is involved in a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, your information may be transferred as part of that deal, subject to this policy.
We do not sell your personal information.
4. Data Retention
We retain account and help-request data for as long as your account is active, so the app can function (history, ratings, chat continuity).
After you delete your account, we follow a two-stage process.
Stage 1 — immediately, when you tap "Delete my account":
- Your account is closed and every session on every device is signed out.
- Push notifications stop and your push tokens are deleted.
- Location sharing stops and you are removed from the map.
Your name and photo stop being visible anywhere in the app. To other users, past chats, reviews, and help requests show "Deleted User" with no profile photo.
Your account is marked scheduled for deletion. Your phone number stays reserved for you for the full 30 days so that you can sign in and restore the account — nobody else can register with it during that time.
Stage 2 — 30 days later, your data is permanently deleted:
- Every help request you posted, including its photos and voice notes.
Every chat you were part of and all messages in it. Deleting a conversation deletes it for the other person too — a conversation cannot be separated into two halves, and keeping their copy would mean keeping what you wrote.
- Every review you wrote or received.
Your profile photo and any other file you uploaded, deleted from our media storage as well as from our database.
Your notifications, settings, preferences, activity log, sessions, and device records.
Your phone number and email address are released at this point, and can then be used to create a new account.
What is left afterwards is an empty placeholder record containing an internal ID and no personal information. We cannot remove it entirely because other people's records still refer to it — for example, a help request that somebody else posted and you helped with is their record, not yours.
4.1 Changing your mind — the 30-day window
During those 30 days you can restore your account simply by signing in again with the same phone number and password. Everything comes back: your history, ratings, coins, and any active subscription. Nothing has been destroyed yet.
We keep this window for two reasons, and we would rather state both than describe them vaguely:
Deleting is easy to do by accident. Without a grace period a mis-tap is unrecoverable.
It prevents the app being used to destroy evidence. Help Chain connects people for in-person meetings, and a safety complaint is often made after the fact. If everything were destroyed the instant it was asked for, someone who misused the app could erase the record of it before the person they harmed had a chance to report it.
Your phone number is held for you for the whole 30 days, so restoring only needs the number and password you already had. Once the 30 days pass and the account is deleted, the number is released and anyone — including you — can use it to create a new account. A new account started that way is a genuinely new account: none of the deleted history comes back with it.
4.2 What is kept longer, and why
If a report or investigation involving your account is open, the related records are kept beyond 30 days until the matter is resolved, or for as long as required by law or by a lawful request from a court or law enforcement agency.
Where the law requires it. The Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 require an intermediary to retain user registration information for 180 days after a user cancels their registration, and the CERT-In Directions of 28 April 2022 require certain system logs to be retained for 180 days and produced on lawful request. Where those obligations apply, we keep the minimum record needed to satisfy them — a registration reference and security logs — and nothing else. Your content, media, chats and profile are deleted at 30 days regardless.
Payment and transaction records are kept for longer where legal, tax, or accounting obligations require it.
4.3 Deleting your account without opening the app
If you cannot sign in, email connect.helpchain@gmail.com from your registered email address, or write to us with your registered phone number, and we will verify your identity and process the deletion for you. The same 30-day schedule applies from the day we action it.
5. Data Security
We use industry-standard safeguards, including encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS) between the app and our servers, hashed passwords (where applicable), and access controls on our database and admin tools. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
6. Your Rights and Choices
Access/update: you can view and edit your profile information inside the app.
Location controls: you can deny or revoke location permission at any time in Android Settings; doing so will limit or disable core features (matching, live tracking).
- Notifications: you can disable push notifications in Android Settings.
Account deletion: you can delete your account at any time from inside the app, from Profile → Delete Account (also at Settings → Delete Account). Closure takes effect immediately and your data is permanently deleted 30 days later; signing in during those 30 days restores the account. See Section 4 for exactly what happens at each stage, and Section 4.3 if you cannot sign in.
Reporting a problem: if another user behaves unsafely or unlawfully, report them from the chat screen. Filing a report preserves the related records so the matter can be investigated, and we may share them with law enforcement where appropriate.
Data requests: depending on your location, you may have rights to request a copy of your data, correction, or restriction of processing. Contact us at connect.helpchain@gmail.com to make such a request.
7. Children's Privacy
Help Chain is not directed at children and is not intended for use by anyone under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, contact connect.helpchain@gmail.com and we will delete it.
8. International Users
Our servers and service providers may be located in different countries than you (our database is currently hosted in the ap-south-1 region). By using Help Chain, you consent to your information being processed in these locations, in accordance with this policy.
9. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you in the app or by other reasonable means before the change takes effect. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.
10. Law Enforcement and Legal Requests
We cooperate with valid legal process. Where we receive a lawful order, summons, warrant, or written request from a court, police, or an authorised government agency, we may preserve and disclose the information described in this policy, including account registration details, help-request records, chat records, and location data associated with a specific incident.
We may also preserve records beyond our normal retention period when we receive a preservation request, when we reasonably believe records are relevant to an ongoing or anticipated investigation or legal claim, or where necessary to protect the safety of a user or the public.
11. Grievance Officer
In accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, the Grievance Officer for Help Chain is:
Grievance Officer: Suman Saurabh
Email: connect.helpchain@gmail.com
Address: Garhi Harsaru, Gurugram, Haryana, India
You may contact the Grievance Officer with any complaint about content, conduct, or the handling of your personal data on Help Chain. We will acknowledge your complaint within 24 hours and resolve it within 15 days of receipt, as required by those Rules.
12. Contact Us
Questions, requests, or complaints about this policy or your data:
Email: connect.helpchain@gmail.com
Questions about this document, or a request about your data? Write to connect.helpchain@gmail.com.