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Privacy Policy

Last updated: September 11, 2026

Alt Chat (“we”, “us”) runs a social network for the alternative scene on iOS, Android and AltChat.com. This policy explains what we collect, why, who we share it with, and the choices you have. It applies to the mobile apps and the website alike. You must be 18 or older to use Alt Chat.

1. Age requirement

Alt Chat is strictly for adults 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18, and we remove such accounts and their data when we become aware of them. If you believe a minor is using Alt Chat, contact us at support@alt-chat.com and we will act promptly.

2. Information you give us

  • Account and sign-in: your email address; your phone number if you sign in by SMS verification; and, if you use Google Sign-In or Sign in with Apple, the email address and basic profile those services return (Apple lets you hide your email). Passwords and verification codes are handled by Google Firebase Authentication; we never see or store your password.
  • Profile: display name, unique username, bio, profile and gallery photos, birthday and age, gender, orientation, interests, mood, music taste (your Music DNA artists and Profile Anthem), the groups you feature, and your visibility and discovery settings (distance radius, age range, who can see or rate you, hidden age, location or online status).
  • Location:with your permission, your device’s location while you use Alt Chat, to show nearby people and approximate distance. Alt Chat stores your location point; see Third parties below for how your city name is resolved. You can decline or revoke the location permission in your device settings and still use most of Alt Chat.
  • Content: posts, polls and votes, replies, wall posts, Vibes (profile ratings) and compliments, direct messages, room and Night Chat messages, private-chat requests, and the photos, GIFs and videos you upload or send. Messages are stored so we can deliver and display them; they are not private from the people you send them to.
  • Reports and support requests you submit, and the moderation records that result from them.

3. Information collected automatically

  • Device and technical data: device type, operating system, app version, language, IP address, login and security events, and how you interact with the app (for example which sections you open). We use this to run, secure and improve Alt Chat.
  • Presence:whether you are online and when you were last active. VIP members can hide this with the “hide online status” setting.
  • Push notifications: if you allow them, a notification token so we can tell you about messages, likes, replies, matches and events. Turn them off any time in your device settings.
  • Purchases: if you buy VIP, coins or other paid features, we receive purchase history, subscription status, product IDs and transaction confirmations from the App Store or Google Play. Payment card details are processed by Apple or Google and are never seen or stored by Alt Chat.

Alt Chat shows no third-party advertising, and the mobile apps include no advertising, ad-tracking or third-party analytics SDKs.

4. How we use it

  • To create and run your account and profile across all platforms.
  • To power the Realm feed, Meet, Vibes, Groups, Chatrooms, Whispers, Night Chats, Music DNA and Watch Parties, and to show approximate distance and nearby members.
  • To personalise what you see, such as nearby profiles, people with similar music taste and suggested content.
  • To process purchases and manage VIP entitlements.
  • To keep Alt Chat safe: content moderation, blocking, fraud and abuse prevention, security, and enforcing our rules and the 18+ requirement.
  • To respond to your reports and support requests.
  • To send notifications you have enabled.
  • To comply with legal obligations.

5. Who can see your information

Your profile (photos, bio, interests, approximate distance, the Vibes you receive) and the things you post publicly are visible to other members by design, subject to the privacy controls in Edit Profile (follower/following visibility, wall settings, rating visibility, who can rate you, and hidden age, location or online status). In Night Chats and alias posts you appear under a room alias rather than your profile; Alt Chat keeps the link between the alias and your account for moderation. Direct messages are visible only to you and the recipient. Think carefully before sharing personal details in public areas.

6. How we share it

  • With other members, as described above.
  • With service providers that operate our infrastructure, listed in the next section, who process data on our behalf.
  • With authorities when required by law or to protect the safety of our members or the public.
  • In a business transfer, if Alt Chat is ever acquired or merged.

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share it with third parties for their own advertising.

7. Third parties we use

  • Google Firebase(Authentication, Firestore, Storage, Cloud Functions, Cloud Messaging, Hosting) — our core backend and data processor.
  • Apple App Store and Google Play— payments and subscriptions in the mobile apps.
  • Sign in with Apple and Google Sign-In— optional sign-in methods.
  • Location lookup— in the apps, your device’s built-in geocoder (Apple on iOS, Google on Android) turns your coordinates into a city name. On the website, your coordinates are rounded to roughly one kilometre and sent to BigDataCloudsolely to look up your city and country. Only Alt Chat stores your exact location point.
  • Google Maps — map imagery for location features.
  • GIPHY— your search terms are sent to GIPHY only when you search for a GIF.
  • Apple Music / iTunes— song previews, artwork and artist search for Profile Anthems and Music DNA.
  • YouTube— Watch Parties and music rooms play videos in the official YouTube embedded player, which operates under Google’s privacy policy. Nothing is downloaded or re-hosted.

These providers process information under their own privacy policies. We are not responsible for the practices of services we do not control.

8. Data retention and deleting your account

We keep your information while your account is active. You can permanently delete your account at any time: in the apps, open your profile tab (Haven) and tap Delete Account at the bottom; on the website, use Edit Profile or visit altchat.com/delete. Deletion removes your profile, photos, posts, messages, matches and sign-in credentials through a server-side process. You can also request deletion by emailing support@alt-chat.com. Some records may persist briefly in backups, or be kept in anonymized or tombstoned form where needed for safety, fraud prevention, dispute resolution or legal compliance.

9. Your choices and rights

  • Edit or remove profile content at any time in Edit Profile.
  • Control discovery and visibility: distance, age range, who can rate you, hidden age, location and online status, and who sees your followers and wall.
  • Turn notifications on or off, and grant or revoke the location permission, in your device settings.
  • Block or report any member from their profile, a chat, a post or a room. Blocks are enforced on our servers.
  • Depending on where you live (for example California, the European Economic Area or the UK), you may have the right to access, correct, delete or receive a copy of your personal information, or to object to or restrict certain processing. Contact support@alt-chat.com to exercise these rights; we verify requests through your account.

10. Security

We protect information with encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS), server-side access rules, automated image and text screening, and human moderation. No online service can guarantee absolute security, but we work to protect your information and act on issues quickly.

11. International users

Alt Chat is used in many countries. Your information is stored and processed on Google Cloud infrastructure, primarily in the United States, and may be transferred to countries other than the one you live in, where data protection laws may differ.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. We will post the new version here with a new date, and announce material changes in the app.

13. Contact

Email support@alt-chat.com, visit the Support Center, or in the app open Haven → Application → Alt Chat Info.