Privacy Policy
Chest (“the App”) is a personal library for movies, TV shows, anime, and books. Your Chest is private by default. Friends sharing is opt-in and mutual. This policy explains what we collect, who can see it, and how to delete it.
Information we collect
Account
Email, username, and profile details (display name, bio, avatar) through Clerk authentication. You can optionally save a hashed phone number so people who already have that number can find you on Chest. We do not use the number to sign in.
Library
Titles you save, rate, review, finish, drop, or dismiss; collections you create; ranking comparisons; and libraries you import from Goodreads or IMDb CSV exports. You can download a copy from Settings → Export Chest.
Social
Friend requests and friendships, blocks, activity you generate (saves, starts, finishes, ratings, collections), comments and likes on activity, collection collaborators and follows, and friend recommendation asks. Taste profiles (a summary of your library) power Hunter and optional friend taste-match scores.
Preferences and onboarding
Hunter content-type preferences, rating mode, onboarding mood and intents (mood is used only for your first For You list), and similar in-app settings.
Contacts (optional)
If you allow Contacts, Chest reads phone numbers and emails from your address book on the device to find people already on Chest. Phones are hashed before match; emails are compared to existing account emails. We do not store names, photos, or the rest of your address book, and we do not keep a copy of your contact list after the match.
Photos (optional)
If you pick a profile photo, or a share destination needs a poster attached.
Notifications
A device push token so we can deliver Alerts (friend requests, collection invites, friend recommendations, Taste Twin / Tangent unlocks, and similar). You can turn notifications off in system Settings.
Feedback
Notes you send from Settings → Send feedback (bug, idea, or other), including the text you write. Admins can read those notes to improve Chest.
Hunter and Ask Hunter
To fill For You and answer Ask Hunter, we send Groq a summary of titles in your Chest (names, types, ratings, genres) and the message you typed. We do not send your email, phone, or password to Groq. Ask Hunter does not keep a long-term chat transcript on our servers.
On your device
The app caches your signed-in library, preferences, and similar state in on-device storage so Chest still opens offline. Sign-out clears that user-scoped cache. Guests can browse the catalog without an account; guest state stays on the device.
Technical data
Standard server logs needed to operate and secure the API (for example IP address, timestamps, and error traces). If crash reporting is enabled, Sentry may receive device and stack information — not your library titles.
Sharing and visibility
- Your Chest (saved titles) is private by default. Friends can see it only if you are friends and you have not turned off “share saved items.” Strangers never see your library.
- Ratings and reviews are public so they can appear on title pages.
- Profile is private by default. A public profile can show a public shell; public collections are offered only when the profile is public.
- Friends are mutual. Activity is for friends, not a global feed.
- Taste match with a friend is friends-only and does not require sharing your full library.
- Share links you create (a title or your profile URL) are visible to anyone with the link.
You control profile visibility, library sharing with friends, contact discovery, and blocked people in Settings → Privacy.
How we use information
- To provide and sync your personal library across devices, including imports and export.
- To power Hunter (For You and Ask Hunter) from your library taste.
- To run optional Friends features you choose to use.
- To authenticate you, prevent abuse, review reports of abusive accounts, and keep the service running.
- To respond to feedback and support mail.
- We do not sell your data. We do not use it for third-party advertising or tracking across other companies’ apps.
Third-party services
- Clerk — authentication, account, and profile photo. Clerk’s own policies apply to data it holds.
- Groq — language model for For You and Ask Hunter, as described above.
- Resend — optional email when a library import finishes, and optional alerts when someone is reported.
- TMDB, Hardcover — content metadata for search and details (movies, TV, and anime from TMDB; books from Hardcover). Book covers and creator photos may come from Open Library or Wikimedia Commons. Search queries go to these catalogs; we do not send them your full Chest.
- Hardcover — book catalog metadata (titles, authors, series, ratings, identifiers). Chest does not display Hardcover-hosted cover or author images.
- Open Library — book cover and author photos via the Open Library Covers API, looked up by ISBN or author name. Image bytes are not stored by Chest.
- Wikimedia Commons / Wikidata — fallback creator portraits when Open Library or TMDB has no photo, looked up by name. Image bytes are not stored by Chest. File pages: commons.wikimedia.org.
- Sentry — optional crash and error reports when a DSN is configured. Reports can include device and stack information, not your library titles.
- Hosting — Render (API), Vercel (this website and share links), Neon (database), Redis (cache). These vendors process data to host Chest. Processing typically occurs in the United States.
- Optional AI providers may process anonymized taste signals to generate recommendations.
This product uses TMDB and the TMDB APIs but is not endorsed, certified, or otherwise approved by TMDB.
User-generated content
Profiles, bios, collections, ratings, and activity you share with friends (or, if your profile is public, more widely) are user-generated. You can report someone from ⋯ on their profile, Activity, a review, their collection, or a friend request. We review reports and may restrict or remove accounts that violate others’ safety. The reported person is not told who reported them. A report includes the reason you pick and any details you add; we keep username snapshots if that account is later deleted.
Data retention & deletion
We keep your account and library while the account exists. You can delete your account from Settings → Delete account. That removes your Chest library data associated with the account, including social connections we store. Authentication records held by Clerk are deleted with the account and otherwise follow Clerk’s policies.
Backups and server logs may persist for a short time after deletion. Catalog titles themselves (movie names, posters) are third-party metadata, not your personal library.
Your choices
- Stay private — you never have to add Friends or make a public profile.
- Turn Contacts, Photos, and Notifications off in system Settings.
- Remove a saved phone number in Settings → Privacy.
- Export your Chest or delete your account in Settings.
- Email us to ask what we hold or to request deletion if you cannot use the app.
Children
Chest is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has created an account, email us and we will delete it.
Changes
We will update this page when our practices change and revise the date above. Continued use of Chest after an update means you accept the revised policy.
Contact
Questions about this policy: openchest.app@gmail.com · Support