Privacy Policy

1. About this policy

This policy applies whenever you use VoltSim, which means the VoltSim apps on any platform, the VoltSim web app, the website at voltsimulator.com, and the online services that come with them, such as accounts, cloud sync, share links and the community. VoltSim is provided by its developer (“we”, “us”, “our”), who is responsible for your personal information as described here.

Our Terms of Use explain the rules for using VoltSim. Words that are defined there have the same meaning here.

This policy replaces our previous Privacy Policy, which was effective from November 13, 2021.

2. Information we collect

2.1 Your account

You don't need an account to use the simulator. If you create one, you sign in with your email address (with a password or a sign-in link), or with Google or Apple. We receive:

• your email address (with Sign in with Apple, you can choose to share a private relay address instead);
• your name and profile photo, if your Google or Apple account shares them; and
• a user ID that identifies your account.

When your account is created, we give it a random username, which you can change. Your public profile contains your username, the date you joined and, if your sign-in provider shared it, your name.

2.2 Your projects and content

• Projects on your device. The circuits you make are saved on your device. We don't collect them unless you use one of the features below.
• Cloud sync. If you have a subscription and use cloud sync, we store your projects, folders and component presets on our servers so they can sync between your devices.
• Share links. When you create a share link, we store a copy of the shared circuit so that anyone who has the link can open it. Share links aren't linked to your account.
• The community. When you publish a circuit, we store it with its title, description, tags, language and preview image, and link it to your account. We also store the circuits you like and save, and count how many times each published circuit is liked, viewed and copied.
• Feedback and bug reports. When you send feedback in the app, we receive your rating, your message, the email address you give us (if any) and an ID for the project you were working on. When you report a bug, the app also uploads a copy of the circuit you're working on.
• Automatic error reports. If the simulator hits repeated errors while running a circuit, the app uploads a copy of that circuit with the error details, so we can reproduce and fix the problem. These uploads don't include your account details.
• Emails. When you email us, we receive your email address and whatever you include in your message.

2.3 Purchases and devices

Purchases in the app are processed by Apple or Google, and purchases on our website are processed by Stripe. We don't receive your card or bank details. We use RevenueCat to manage purchases and subscriptions, and we receive information about what you bought, such as the product, the store, a transaction ID, the purchase and expiry dates and whether a subscription is active, so we can unlock the features you paid for.

When you're signed in, we link your purchases to your account so you can restore them on your other devices, and we share your user ID, email address and name with RevenueCat so we can help you with purchase problems. We also use the country of your app store account, which we work out from the currency of its prices, to decide which offers are available to you, for example whether ads are offered.

To apply device limits on purchases, we register each device you sign in on. We store an identifier for the device, its platform (for example Android, iOS, desktop or web) and the date it was added. On Android and on computers, the identifier is derived from your device's hardware and system information. On iPhone and iPad, it's the app's identifier for vendor, kept in your device's keychain so it stays the same if you reinstall the app. In the web app, it's a random ID saved in your browser.

2.4 Information collected automatically

• Usage information. In our Android and iOS apps, we use Google Analytics for Firebase to understand how VoltSim is used, for example which screens are viewed, which components are added, when simulations are run, which examples are opened and when purchase screens are shown. This comes with information about your device and app, such as the device model, operating system, app version, language, an app instance ID and your approximate location, which Google works out from your IP address. When you're signed in, it's linked to your user ID, together with whether you're signed in and what you've unlocked.
• Performance information. We use Firebase Performance Monitoring to measure how quickly the Android and iOS apps start and respond, and how long network requests take, together with information about your device and app.
• Crash reports. If the Android or iOS app crashes or hits an error, we use Firebase Crashlytics to collect a report with technical details, such as the device model, operating system, app version, what the app was doing and recent app log messages, which can include your user ID.
• Notifications. If you allow notifications, your device receives a push token. When you sign in, we store it with your user ID so we can send you notifications about your account.
• Ads and ad measurement. Google AdMob and the Meta SDK collect information as described in section 6.
• Server logs. Like most online services, our servers and providers record technical information when the app or website connects to them, such as your IP address, the time of the request and error details, to keep the service running and secure.

3. How we use your information

We use your information to:

• provide VoltSim: run your account, sync your projects, create share links, unlock your purchases, apply device limits and run the community;
• moderate the community: review circuits before they're published, act on reports, and enforce our community rules;
• communicate with you: send notifications you've allowed, tell you about decisions on your circuits or account, reply to feedback and support requests, and tell you about important changes;
• improve VoltSim: understand which features are used, find and fix bugs, crashes and slow screens, and decide what to build next;
• show and measure ads: offer optional ads in the Android app, and measure how well our own ads for VoltSim work; and
• keep VoltSim safe and meet our legal obligations: prevent fraud and abuse, protect our members, and comply with the law.

If you live in the European Economic Area, the UK or Switzerland, the law requires us to tell you our legal bases for using your information. We use it to perform our contract with you (to provide the features you use), for our legitimate interests (to improve VoltSim, keep it safe and moderate the community), with your consent (for example for personalized ads and notifications, which you can withdraw at any time), and to comply with legal obligations.

4. What other people can see

• Your public profile, which contains your username, the date you joined and, if your sign-in provider shared it, your name, can be seen by anyone, including people who aren't signed in.
• Once a circuit you published is approved, anyone can see and run it, with its title, description, tags, preview image, your username and its like, view and copy counts. Other members can copy and change it, as described in our Terms of Use.
• Anyone who has a share link can open the shared circuit.
• Your email address, your purchases, your registered devices, your cloud-synced projects and the circuits you like and save are not shown to other people.

Please don't put personal information, such as your address or phone number, in your username or in circuits you publish or share.

5. Who we share it with

We don't sell your personal information for money, and we only share it as described here.

5.1 Service providers

We use these companies to run VoltSim. They process information on our behalf, or as described in their own privacy policies.

5.2 Other sharing

• The law and safety. We may share information if the law requires it, to respond to valid requests from authorities, or when we believe it's needed to protect someone's life or safety, our members or VoltSim. For example, we report content that suggests a threat to someone's life or safety to the relevant authorities.
• A change of ownership. If VoltSim is sold or transferred, your information may be transferred too. This policy, or one that protects you just as much, will continue to apply.
• With your permission. We share information in other ways when you ask us to.

6. Ads and ad measurement

6.1 Ads in the Android app

The Android app includes Google AdMob. In some countries, it offers optional ads that you can choose to watch in return for a reward in the app. The iPhone, iPad, desktop and web apps don't show ads.

The AdMob software starts when the Android app opens, including in countries where we don't offer ads. To show and measure ads and to prevent ad fraud, AdMob may collect your device's advertising ID, your IP address and information about your device and how you interact with ads.

• Where the law requires it, for example in the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, the app asks for your consent before ads are personalized. You can change your choice at any time in the app under Settings → Privacy Options.
• You can delete or reset your advertising ID, or opt out of personalized ads, in your device's settings.

6.2 Measuring our ads

We advertise VoltSim on Meta's platforms, such as Facebook and Instagram. Our Android and iOS apps include the Meta SDK, which tells Meta about events such as when the app is installed and opened, so we can measure how well those ads work. On Android, this can include your device's advertising ID. On iPhone and iPad, the Meta SDK doesn't collect the advertising identifier.

7. Device permissions

The app asks for a device permission only when a feature needs it, and you can turn permissions off at any time in your device's settings:

• Notifications, to tell you about your circuits and account, and about new examples and app updates.
• Microphone, only for the microphone component, which feeds sound into your circuit. The sound is processed on your device. It isn't recorded or uploaded.
• Motion and other sensors, only for components that use your device's accelerometer, light, proximity or pressure sensor or battery level. These readings are used on your device and aren't uploaded.
• Flashlight, only for the flashlight component. VoltSim doesn't use your camera.

8. Our website and web app

• The pages on voltsimulator.com don't use cookies, analytics or ads. Some pages load fonts and icons from Google Fonts and cdnjs (Cloudflare), which receive your IP address. Our hosting provider, Firebase Hosting, records technical information such as IP addresses in its server logs.
• The VoltSim web app doesn't use analytics, crash reporting or ads. It saves your settings, your sign-in session and a random device ID in your browser's storage. If you sign in with Google, the web app uses Google's sign-in service, which may set its own cookies.

9. How long we keep it

• We keep your account information, cloud-synced projects and published circuits until you delete them or your account.
• We delete circuits that were rejected in review after 30 days.
• We keep share links so that they keep working, and bug reports and automatic error reports for as long as we need them to fix problems. If you want a share link removed, email us with the link.
• We delete a push token when you sign out of the app, when it's replaced, or when you delete your account.
• Crash reports are kept for 90 days. Analytics data is kept in Google Analytics for the period we set there, and we keep a copy of analytics events in our Google Cloud project to understand long-term trends.
• We keep feedback and emails for as long as we need them to answer and to improve VoltSim.
• We may keep some information for longer when the law requires it, for example purchase records, or to resolve disputes and enforce our terms.

10. Deleting your account and data

You can delete your account at any time in the app under Account Management → Delete Account. This permanently deletes your account, your public profile and username, your cloud-synced projects, the circuits you published to the community, the circuits you liked and saved, and your push tokens.

Some information isn't deleted with your account:

• Projects saved on your device stay there until you delete them or remove the app.
• Copies of your published circuits that other members made before they were removed can stay in their workspaces.
• Records of your purchases and of the devices registered to your account, including the email address and name held by RevenueCat, aren't deleted automatically. Email us if you want them deleted.
• Analytics, performance and crash data are deleted on their normal schedule (see section 9).
• Feedback, bug reports and share links aren't linked to your account. Email us with details if you want them deleted.
• Deleting your account doesn't cancel a subscription. Cancel it in your App Store or Google Play account settings.

If you can't use the app, email voltsim.app@gmail.com from the email address on your account and we'll delete it for you.

11. Your choices

• Use the simulator without an account, and keep your projects only on your device.
• Choose whether to use cloud sync, share links and the community.
• Change your username at any time.
• Turn notifications off in your device's settings.
• Control personalized ads as described in section 6.
• Delete your account as described in section 10.

12. Your privacy rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to ask us for a copy of your personal information, to correct it, to delete it, to restrict or object to how we use it, to receive it in a portable format, and to withdraw consent you have given. You also have the right not to be treated differently for using these rights.

To use any of these rights, email voltsim.app@gmail.com. We may need to confirm that the account is yours before we act, and we reply within the time the law requires, usually within 30 days. If you aren't happy with our answer, you can complain to the data protection authority where you live.

If you live in a US state with a privacy law, such as California: we don't sell your personal information for money. Our use of Google AdMob and the Meta SDK, described in section 6, may count as “selling” or “sharing” personal information for targeted advertising under some of these laws. You can opt out by turning off ad personalization or deleting your advertising ID in your device's settings, or by emailing us.

13. Where your data is processed

We and our service providers may process your information in countries other than the one where you live, including the United States, where privacy laws may be different. When we transfer personal information from the EEA, the UK or Switzerland, we rely on safeguards such as the European Commission's standard contractual clauses, which our providers offer.

14. Security

We protect your information with measures such as encrypted connections, access rules that keep your account data, purchases and cloud-synced projects readable only by you, and limited access for our team. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we can't guarantee absolute security. If you find a security problem, please tell us at voltsim.app@gmail.com.

15. Children

You must be at least 13 years old to create a VoltSim account or to use the community. If you are under 18, you may only use VoltSim with the permission of a parent or guardian. We don't knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 through accounts or the community. If you believe a child under 13 has created an account, email us and we will delete it.

16. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy, for example when we add features or when the law changes. The date at the top of this page shows when it last changed. If a change is significant, we'll let you know in the app or by email before it takes effect.

17. Contact us

For questions about this policy or your information, or to use your privacy rights, email voltsim.app@gmail.com. You can also reach us from the app under Settings → Contact. We communicate in English.