Data & Privacy
Last updated: August 18, 2026
A plain-language index of every piece of data Focal holds about you, where it is stored, how long it stays, and the two ways to get rid of it. For the full legal text, see the Privacy Policy.
1. What Focal stores
| Data | Where it lives | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Email address, display name, account id | Firebase Authentication | Signing you in and syncing your data across devices |
| Goals, focus sessions, statistics, streaks, achievements | Cloud Firestore | The app’s core function |
| Study room membership, room name, live session status | Cloud Firestore | Showing the other people in your room who is studying |
| Subscription status (active / expired) | RevenueCat, mirrored into Firestore | Unlocking Focal Pro on every device you sign in on |
| Crash reports and diagnostics | Firebase Crashlytics | Fixing crashes. Tagged with your account id only — never your email or name |
| Preferences: theme, focus environment, notification settings, blocked-app selection | On your device only | They never leave the device and are removed when you delete the app |
2. What Focal does not store
- No advertising identifiers, no tracking SDKs, no ad networks. Focal does not track you across apps or websites and shows no ads.
- No payment card details. Purchases run entirely through the App Store; Focal never sees your card.
- No Screen Time data.App blocking uses Apple’s Family Controls framework. Your app selection is held in opaque tokens that stay on your device and are never readable by us or transmitted anywhere.
- No location, contacts, photos, microphone, or camera access.
3. Deleting your account and data
You can permanently delete your account from inside the app, with no need to email anyone:
- Open Focal and go to Settings → Account.
- Tap Delete Account and confirm.
This immediately and irreversibly removes your goals, focus sessions, statistics, achievements, room membership, profile, and sign-in credentials. Study rooms you created are closed and removed for their other members. It cannot be undone and there is no recovery window.
An active subscription is notcancelled by deleting your account — Apple manages billing, so cancel it separately in iPhone Settings → your name → Subscriptions before deleting, or you will keep being charged.
4. Getting a copy of your data
Email privacy@focalapp.org from the address on your account and we will send you a machine-readable export of everything listed in section 1 within 30 days, free of charge. The same address handles access, correction, restriction, objection, and erasure requests under the GDPR, the UK GDPR, and the CCPA/CPRA.
5. How long data is kept
Account data is kept for as long as your account exists and is destroyed when you delete it. Crash reports are retained by Firebase Crashlytics for 90 days. Backups are retained for 7 days on a rolling basis, so deleted data can survive in an inaccessible backup for up to a week before it is overwritten.
6. Reporting a problem
Study rooms carry names and display names chosen by the people in them. If you see something abusive or objectionable, use Report on the member’s row inside the room, or email support@focalapp.org. Reports are reviewed within 24 hours and accounts that break the Terms of Service are removed.
7. Children
Focal is not directed at children under 13 (or the minimum age of digital consent in your country, whichever is higher) and we do not knowingly collect their data. If you believe a child has created an account, email privacy@focalapp.org and we will delete it.