Privacy Policy

Overview

Bell+ is designed with your privacy in mind. We believe in transparency and minimal data collection. This privacy policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your data.

Information We Don't Collect

Bell+ does NOT collect unnecessary personal information. We do not ask for phone numbers, contacts, precise location, photos, microphone access, or social media accounts. Bell+ does not sell your personal information or share it with data brokers.

Important: The Google Mobile Ads SDK (used only for rewarded ads in the "Get Coins" flow) may access advertising identifiers or device signals as permitted by iOS and user consent. Those data are collected by the ad provider and governed by their privacy policy (see below). Bell+ itself does not collect or retain those advertising identifiers on our servers.

Data Stored Locally

The following preferences are stored only on your device using iOS UserDefaults:

🏫 School Selection

Your selected school and its associated schedule data. This helps us show you the correct bell schedule.

📝 Period Names

Custom names you assign to class periods (e.g., "Math" instead of "Period 1"). This personalization stays completely private on your device.

🔔 Notification Preferences

Whether you've enabled local notifications for period transitions. Notifications are generated entirely on your device—we don't send push notifications from a server.

🟦 Live Activity Preference

Whether Bell+ is allowed to show Live Activities on your Lock Screen or Dynamic Island. This preference is stored locally on your device.

🎨 Theme Settings

Your preferred appearance (Light, Dark, or System). This is purely cosmetic and stored locally.

💾 Cached Schedule Data

School schedules and calendar data are cached locally for offline access and faster app performance.

Network Requests

Bell+ communicates with the official backend API at bell.plus for the following purposes:

📡 School Schedule Data

When you select a school, the app fetches publicly available schedule information (bell times, calendar events, special schedules) from our API. This data is:

• Public information provided by schools
• Not linked to you personally
• Cached locally for offline use

 Optional Sign in with Apple

Bell+ offers optional Sign in with Apple for theme syncing, coins, referrals, and related account features. When you sign in, Bell+ may store the following on Bell+ servers:

• Your Apple-provided app-specific user identifier
• Your display name, if available from Apple
• Your referral code and whether you have used a referral code
• The specific referral code you redeemed, if any, and when it was redeemed
• Your referral count and referral reward state
• Your owned themes, active theme, and coin balance
• Pending account notifications or rewards related to Bell+ features

Bell+ does not store your Apple account password. If Apple provides your email address during sign-in, Bell+ may cache it locally on your device, but it is not required for normal Bell+ use and is not used for marketing.

Notifications

If you enable notifications, Bell+ will:

• Request permission through iOS's standard notification system
• Schedule local notifications on your device for period transitions
• Optionally show Live Activities on supported iPhones using on-device ActivityKit features
• NOT send push notifications from external servers
• NOT transmit notification preferences to our servers

You can disable notifications or Live Activities at any time in Bell+ Settings or in iOS Settings.

Third-Party Services

Bell+ intentionally minimizes third-party integrations. However, we use the following third-party services where necessary:

• Google AdMob (Google LLC) — used to serve rewarded ads in the "Get Coins" flow. The AdMob SDK may collect advertising identifiers and device signals, and may use them for ad personalization, measurement, and fraud prevention. For details, see Google's privacy information below.
• Apple services — including Sign in with Apple, local notifications, and Live Activity framework support. These are governed by Apple's policies.

We do not integrate third-party analytics or social sign-in providers beyond what is listed above. Any data accessed by third parties is governed by their own privacy policies and terms.

Advertising & Tracking

Ads in Bell+ are limited to the optional rewarded ads experience available in the "Get Coins" section. We only show ads when you explicitly choose to watch them to earn in-app coins. Ads are provided by Google AdMob and may involve the following:

• Advertising Identifiers: The AdMob SDK may access the iOS advertising identifier (IDFA) or other device signals to serve and personalize ads. Bell+ does not collect or store these identifiers on our servers.
• Personalized Ads: If you allow tracking (via Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompt), ads may be personalized based on interests and device signals. You can opt out of tracking using iOS settings or by declining the tracking prompt.
• SKAdNetwork & Measurement: Ad attribution and measurement may use Apple's SKAdNetwork or other privacy-preserving mechanisms; those are managed by the ad networks.
• Data Sharing: Advertisers and ad networks may collect information about ad interactions (impressions, clicks) for reporting and billing.

How to control ads and tracking:

• When the system prompts for tracking permission, choose Ask App Not to Track to limit ad personalization.
• To globally disable personalized ads, go to Settings > Privacy > Tracking or adjust ad-related settings in iOS.
• You can also visit Google's Ad Settings to control personalization for ads served by Google.

For more information about how Google collects and uses data, see Google's Privacy Policy and Google AdMob's documentation.

Data Security

Bell+ uses a mix of local storage and limited server-side account storage for signed-in features.

• Local Bell+ data is protected by your device's security measures
• Server-side Bell+ account data is limited to the minimum needed for coins, themes, referrals, and account sync
• If you delete the app, local Bell+ data is removed from your device
• Deleting the app does not automatically remove server-side signed-in account data

Children's Privacy

Bell+ is designed for students and is safe for users of all ages. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone, including children under 13. Since we don't collect personal data at all, COPPA requirements are inherently satisfied.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Any changes will be reflected in the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

If we make significant changes, we'll notify users through an in-app announcement or update notes.

Your Rights

You retain control over your Bell+ data. Depending on the feature, your options include:

• Delete your data: Simply delete the app from your device
• Reset settings: Use the app's settings to clear cached data
• Opt out of notifications: Disable in Settings at any time
• Opt out of Live Activities: Disable them in Bell+ Settings or iOS Settings
• Request server-side deletion help: Contact us if you need help removing Bell+ account data associated with Sign in with Apple

Contact Us

If you have questions or concerns about this privacy policy, please contact us:

• Email: bell@ahmad-mahrous.com
• Website: ahmad-mahrous.com