1. Introduction

Welcome to Tube Mate (“we”, “our”, or “us”), developed and published by KDMA Studios. Tube Mate is a transit companion application providing real-time line statuses, disruptions, weekend engineering works, timetables, and interactive network maps for London’s public transport system (including the London Underground, London Overground, Elizabeth line, Docklands Light Railway [DLR], and London Trams).

Your privacy is paramount to us. This Privacy Policy outlines what information Tube Mate accesses, collects, uses, and shares when you install and interact with our mobile application. This policy has been prepared in strict accordance with the Google Play Developer Program Policies (specifically the User Data Policy), the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR / UK GDPR), and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA / CPRA).

By downloading, installing, or using Tube Mate, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

2. Personal Information We Do NOT Collect

Tube Mate is deliberately designed to be privacy-first. We believe transit tools should not compromise your personal identity:

• No User Accounts or Registration: You are never required to register, sign in, or provide your name, email address, phone number, or home address to use Tube Mate.
• No Financial Data: Tube Mate does not collect or process payment card details, bank information, or billing data.
• No Personal Identifiers: We do not access, collect, or store contacts, photos, media files, device phone numbers, or microphone audio.

3. Data We Access, Collect, and How It Is Used

A. Location Information (Foreground Only)

Permissions Requested: android.permission.ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION and android.permission.ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION

• Purpose: Used strictly to display your current location pin on the interactive London Tube map, help you find nearby stations, and pass your starting point to external navigation apps when you explicitly choose to get walking or transit directions.
• Foreground Only: Location data is accessed solely while you are actively viewing the interactive map (Permissions.LocationWhenInUse).
• No Background Location: Tube Mate does not track, monitor, or access your location in the background, and does not request ACCESS_BACKGROUND_LOCATION.
• On-Device Only: Your coordinates are processed in real-time on your device. They are never transmitted to or stored on any remote Tube Mate servers.
• User Choice: Location permissions are completely optional. If denied, you can still search all stations, view line statuses, inspect the full interactive map, and check timetables manually.

B. Diagnostics, Crash Reports & Performance (Sentry)

Diagnostic Tool: Sentry (Sentry.Maui)

• Purpose: To diagnose application crashes, resolve bugs, and monitor operational performance across diverse Android devices and screen formats (including foldables).
• Data Transmitted During a Crash: Stack traces, unhandled exception logs, device model/manufacturer, Android OS version, app version (1.0), build number (3), and network error codes (e.g., if a transit API endpoint fails).
• Retention: Crash telemetry is stored on Sentry’s secure servers and automatically purged according to standard data retention schedules (30 to 90 days).

C. Google Advertising ID (AD_ID)

Permission Requested: com.google.android.gms.permission.AD_ID

• Tube Mate contains zero third-party advertisements or commercial ad trackers.
• The Advertising ID permission is present to enable Google Play Services and Sentry crash diagnostics to distinguish unique crash occurrences and calculate crash-free session rates.
• We do not use the Advertising ID for user profiling, retargeting, interest-based tracking, or marketing.

D. Network State & Internet Access

Permissions Requested: android.permission.ACCESS_NETWORK_STATE and android.permission.INTERNET

• Purpose: To verify active network connectivity before making requests, to display our dedicated offline recovery screen when your connection drops, to fetch live TfL service updates, and to download map tiles.

E. Local Device Storage & Caching (On-Device Only)

Storage Engine: Akavache (local SQLite cache) and Android system preferences.

• What is Stored: Your saved favorite stations and lines, your selected application theme (Light, Dark, or System default), and temporary transit metadata (cached up to 48 hours to preserve your mobile data and load maps quickly).
• Privacy Guarantee: All preferences reside exclusively in local sandboxed storage on your device. They are never synchronized to external servers or sold to third parties.

4. Third-Party Services

Tube Mate interfaces with established third-party services to deliver live transit data, mapping, and diagnostic monitoring:

• Transport for London (TfL) Unified API: Provides official London transport data, line status feeds, and timetables. Governed by TfL’s Privacy and Cookies Policy.
• Google Maps Platform & Google Play Services: Delivers base map rendering and map interaction components. Governed by the Google Privacy Policy.
• Sentry (Functional Software, Inc.): Processes crash reports and telemetry logs to maintain app stability. Governed by Sentry’s Privacy Policy.
• External Navigation Applications (Google Maps / Apple Maps): When you click “Walk” or “Navigate” on a station card, the app launches your operating system’s default navigation tool with the station coordinates. Your use of those apps is subject to their respective terms and policies.

5. Data Security

We implement robust technical measures to protect any data handled by Tube Mate:

• Encrypted in Transit: All communication between the app and external services (TfL API, Google Maps, Sentry) is secured using Transport Layer Security (HTTPS / TLS 1.2+).
• Sandboxed Storage: Cached preferences and favorites are restricted to Tube Mate’s secure, isolated application sandbox on your device, preventing unauthorized access by other applications.

6. Children’s Privacy (COPPA & GDPR-K Compliance)

Tube Mate is a general-audience public transportation guide. We do not knowingly target, market to, or collect personal data from children under the age of 13 (or under 16 in the United Kingdom and European Union). If you are a parent or guardian and believe that a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at kdma.studios@gmail.com so that we can promptly remove such data.

7. Data Retention & Your Rights (GDPR & CCPA)

Depending on your location, you hold statutory rights under data protection laws such as the UK Data Protection Act 2018, EU GDPR, and CCPA/CPRA:

• Right of Access & Portability: Because we do not operate remote user accounts or track personal identities, all your saved data resides directly on your physical device.
• Right to Deletion: You can completely erase all saved preferences, cached map data, and favorites at any time by navigating in Android to:
  
  Settings > Apps > Tube Mate > Storage & cache > Clear Storage.
  
  Uninstalling the application permanently deletes all associated local data.
• Right to Revoke Permissions: You can withdraw location access at any time through Android Settings:
  
  Settings > Apps > Tube Mate > Permissions > Location > Don't allow.

8. Updates to This Policy

We may revise this Privacy Policy periodically to accommodate app updates, emerging legal standards, or modifications in third-party services. Any changes will be published here with an updated “Effective Date”. We encourage you to review this page periodically to stay informed.

9. Contact Information

For any questions, feedback, or privacy-related inquiries regarding Tube Mate, please reach out to us:

Publisher: KDMA Studios

Email: kdma.studios@gmail.com