Privacy Policy

This policy covers Plateby, package app.plateby, the meal-planning web app at https://plateby.app and its Android app. https://plateby.app/privacy remains Plateby's own copy and is not redirected here.

Who we are

Plateby is operated by LifeTinker Studio, operated by Cihan Doğan ("we", "us", "our"), Ankara, Türkiye. For privacy questions, write to [email protected].

Data we collect

Account information

At registration we collect your first and last name (optional), email address, and a password stored as a bcrypt hash, never in plaintext. If you sign in with Google, we receive your Google account ID and display name.

In-app content

We store the content you create: meal plans, meals and recipe data, shopping lists and pantry/inventory records, nutrition goals and tracking data, household membership and invitation data, photos uploaded to the recipe pool, photos uploaded for text recognition, photos attached to inventory, and shopping receipt photos if you upload them. An uploaded photo used for text recognition stays on our server even if the recipe is not saved.

Technical data

We process your IP address for security logging and rate limiting, browser type and operating system for error diagnostics, and application and security logs that may contain identifiers such as username, email, and IP address for abuse prevention, authentication, and diagnostics. We also keep a signup record: the IP address and User-Agent of the account-creation request, the time, and a pseudonymised account identifier derived by irreversible hashing from your Google sign-in subject where one exists. Accounts created by an administrator carry no such identifier.

AI processing

AI-assisted meal planning works in one of two ways. If you add your own API key (Bring Your Own Key), requests run through your own provider account. If you do not, requests run on Plateby's provider keys and count against your account's weekly meal allowance. In both cases, meal names and your dietary preferences are sent to third-party AI providers (OpenRouter, Groq, Anthropic, Google Gemini). Dietary preferences may reveal health or religious information, so they may be special-category personal data under GDPR Article 9 or KVKK; they are processed with your explicit consent and only to generate plans.

Subscription and purchase data

Plateby Pro is sold through Google Play. Your card number and billing address never reach us; Google collects and processes the payment. To verify and maintain the subscription, we receive and store the purchase token and Google order number, the product and base plan id (monthly or annual), the subscription state and expiry date, whether the purchase has been acknowledged, and the time of the last subscription event. We use this only to unlock Pro access, track renewals and cancellations, and resolve purchase disputes. We do not use it to target ads or profile you.

Advertising data

The mobile app shows ads on free accounts through Google AdMob: a banner at the bottom of the screen and a full-screen ad while a plan is generated. The web version at plateby.app carries no ads, and while a Plateby Pro subscription is active the app requests no ads. When an ad is requested, the advertising ID (AD_ID), IP address, device and app information, and ad interaction data go directly to Google. Our server never sees or stores that data. The content in your Plateby account is not sent to the ad network; your plans, recipes, dietary preferences, email address, household data, and subscription record are never sent to AdMob, and ads are not targeted using them. We receive only aggregate impression and revenue reports. In the EEA and the United Kingdom, Google's UMP consent form is shown before the first ad request and your choice is stored on your device by Google. If you do not consent, the app requests no ads and keeps working.

How we use data

We use data to create and manage accounts, deliver meal planning, shopping lists, and recipes, operate household sharing, secure the service and rate-limit abuse, diagnose errors, serve ads on the free mobile tier, and comply with legal obligations. We do not use your plans, recipes, or dietary preferences to target ads. We do not sell personal information.

Legal bases

We rely on performance of a contract for the data needed to provide accounts and core services; legitimate interests for security, diagnostics, and service quality; consent for optional notifications and third-party AI integration; explicit consent for dietary preferences that may reveal health or religious information; and, in the EEA and the United Kingdom, the consent you give through Google's UMP form for advertising. Outside those regions, ads are served on the legitimate interest of sustaining the free tier; a Pro subscription removes them.

Sharing

We share data only with the providers needed to run the service:

• household members you invite can see your plans and shopping lists;
• AI providers (OpenRouter, Groq, Anthropic, Google Gemini) receive meal names and dietary preferences to generate plans, through your own key when you use Bring Your Own Key and through our key when you do not;
• MyMemory / Translated S.r.l. (EU, Italy) receives recipe and meal text for translation when it is not already cached;
• Resend (EU/US) sends verification and account emails;
• Google FCM and Apple APNs (US) deliver push notifications if you enable them;
• USDA FoodData Central (US) receives generic food names only for nutrition lookup;
• Google Play processes purchases and subscription state, and receives your account identifier at purchase time so the purchase can be matched;
• Google AdMob serves ads on the free mobile tier and receives the advertising data described above;
• we disclose data where required by a court order or applicable law.

We do not share data for analytics or marketing, and no data is shared for advertising while a Pro subscription is active.

Retention

Account data is kept while your account is active. When you delete your account, personal data is permanently erased within 30 days, with two exceptions. Security and abuse-prevention records are deleted at the end of their 90-day retention. The subscription record is kept, with its link to your account severed, for the statutory retention period that applies to commercial and financial records. Security logs are kept for 90 days. The signup record is kept for 90 days for abuse prevention and survives account deletion only with its link to your account severed. Receipt images are deleted 180 days after upload.

Advertising data is never stored by us; the ad request goes from your device to Google. Google's retention is governed by its privacy policy. The only on-device traces are the UMP consent record and the time of the last full-screen ad, both removed when you uninstall the app. Deleting your account does not cancel a subscription in Google Play; cancel it through Play.

Cookies and local storage

We do not use advertising cookies on the Plateby website or in the app interface. Local storage (localStorage, IndexedDB, or device preferences) is used for the session token, language preference, offline app cache, the time of the last full-screen ad, and Google's UMP consent record. Those values stay on your device; the ad timestamp is never sent to our server.

Security

All communications use HTTPS (TLS 1.2 or later). Passwords are stored as bcrypt hashes. User- provided AI API keys are protected server-side with Fernet encryption (AES-128-CBC with HMAC-SHA256). Database backups are taken as consistent dumps, encrypted with age, stored off the production server, and restore-tested regularly.

Your rights

Under GDPR and KVKK you may request access to your data, correction of inaccurate or incomplete data, erasure, restriction of or objection to certain processing, and portability. Write to [email protected]; requests are answered within 30 days. You can also delete your account in the app under Settings → Delete Account.

Children

Plateby is not directed at children under 13. If we become aware that data has been collected from a child under 13, we will delete it.

International transfers

Our providers may process data in countries other than yours, including the United States, under the safeguards described in their own policies. Where required, transfers rely on standard contractual clauses or another lawful transfer mechanism.

Changes

Material changes to this policy will be announced in the app or by email at least 7 days before they take effect. The current policy is always available at https://plateby.app/privacy and at this address.

Contact

LifeTinker Studio, operated by Cihan Doğan Ankara, Türkiye [email protected]