AutoMe — Privacy Policy / מדיניות פרטיות

Who we are

AutoMe is a social app for drivers in Israel that lets users reach a vehicle owner by license plate via anonymous calls and in-app messages.

Data we collect

• Account data: mobile phone number (required to create an account).
• Vehicle data: license plate number and basic vehicle details (e.g., model year) used to link an account to a vehicle.
• Messages: message content you send (text) and related metadata such as sender, recipient (plate/UID), and timestamps.
• Device identifiers: an FCM device token to deliver push notifications.
• Location (optional): if you allow access, we use device location to show nearby services (charging stations, garages, weather). By default, AutoMe does not store your location on our servers.
• Advertising ID (optional): if ads are enabled, Google AdMob may access the Android Advertising ID for ad delivery and measurement.
• Service logs: our providers (Google Firebase/Google Cloud) may collect IP addresses and technical logs for security and reliability.

How we use your data

• Provide and improve the service and core features (anonymous call initiation, messaging, notifications).
• Verify vehicles and prevent abuse, fraud, or misuse (e.g., blocking malicious accounts).
• Send service messages and push notifications you opt into.
• Comply with legal obligations and enforce our terms.

On-device processing vs. our servers

Anonymous calls are initiated via the device dialer (ACTION_DIAL); we do not record or store call audio. Location is processed on the device to compute proximity and is not saved to our database by default. Messages, phone numbers, plates, and push tokens are stored in Firebase Realtime Database to enable the app to function.

Third‑party services we use

• Google Firebase (Authentication, Realtime Database, Cloud Messaging) — hosting and processing of account data, messages, tokens, and security logs.
• Google AdMob (if enabled) — delivers ads and may access the Advertising ID and infer approximate location for ad purposes.
• Google Maps/Places — for displaying maps and place information.
• Israel Ministry of Transport Open Data (data.gov.il) — we may send a license plate to public datasets solely to validate vehicle details (e.g., model year). We do not control how that governmental service processes requests.

These providers process data on our behalf under their own terms. Google services store data on Google Cloud infrastructure; our Firebase project is hosted in the EU region (europe-west1) where applicable.

Sharing and selling

We do not sell your personal information. We share data only with service providers as necessary to operate the app, with your consent, or when required by law.

Data retention

We keep account and vehicle data for as long as your account is active. Messages and notification records are retained to operate the service and may be deleted upon request. Push tokens are kept until you sign out, uninstall the app, or the token expires. We may keep limited backups and security logs for a reasonable period after deletion to meet legal, security, and fraud-prevention requirements.

Security

Data is encrypted in transit and at rest by Google Cloud/Firebase. We apply access controls and Firebase security rules to restrict access to authorized users only. However, no system can guarantee absolute security.

Your choices and rights

• Access, correction, deletion: contact us at itsikapps@gmail.com to request a copy of your data or to delete your account and associated data.
• Permissions: you can revoke location and notification permissions in your device settings.
• Ads choices: you can reset or limit the Android Advertising ID and, where available, turn off personalized ads.

Children

AutoMe is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us personal data, contact us and we will delete it.

International users

We may process data on servers outside your country. When we do, we rely on appropriate safeguards provided by our service providers.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. We will post the updated version here and update the “Last updated” date above.