GaARi Privacy Policy

Effective date and last updated: . Replaces the earlier version that was hosted on Google Drive.

This policy explains what information the GaARi app uses, why, who receives it, and your choices. It covers GaARi for Android and iPhone/iPad: “GaARi – AR Car Sim & Drive” on Google Play (com.SecundumReality.Gaari) and “GaARi: AR Car Visualizer Drive” on the App Store (ID 1629459924).

The short version

  • GaARi has no account. We never ask for your name, email or phone number.
  • The camera picture is used on your device to show AR. We do not record, upload or keep it.
  • GaARi shows ads from Google AdMob and uses Google Firebase for usage statistics. On Android it also sends crash reports and registers for push notifications.
  • Where the law requires it, you choose whether ads are personalised, and you can change that in Settings › Privacy Options.
  • We do not sell your personal information.

Questions or requests: contact@homevism.com.

1. Who we are

GaARi is published by Secundum Reality, Islamabad, Pakistan. Secundum Reality is operated by HOMEVISM SMC-PRIVATE LIMITED, which is responsible for the information described in this policy (the "controller"). Contact us at contact@homevism.com. On the App Store, the app is listed under the developer name Osman Ahsan Sheikh. This policy goes with the GaARi Terms of Use.

2. What we do not collect

GaARi does not ask for, and we do not collect:

  • your name, email address, phone number or postal address;
  • an account, password or sign-in of any kind;
  • your contacts, messages or precise (GPS) location;
  • payment details. The app has nothing to buy.

3. What stays on your device

  • Camera. GaARi uses the camera only to show the cars in AR. The picture is processed on your device by the AR components (Vuforia Engine and, on Android, Google Play Services for AR) and is not recorded, uploaded or kept by us.
  • Settings on your device. GaARi keeps a few small values in its own storage: your settings, the last update notice it received, whether it has already asked for notification permission, and (on Android) a random code our server gave the device. Deleting the app deletes them.

4. Information sent to our own server

Some of GaARi's features use our own server at lumamapper.com, which Secundum Reality operates:

  • Update check (Android and iPhone). A few times a day, GaARi asks our server whether a newer version is available, so it can tell you about it. The request includes a device identifier that your phone gives the app (Unity's device ID) and which version of GaARi you have, and our server sees your IP address.
  • Push notifications (Android only). To send you GaARi notifications, the app registers your device with our server. It sends: a device identifier, your device model, device language, operating system and version, the GaARi version and build, the app's package name, a random code that identifies the device to our server, and the Firebase Cloud Messaging token needed to deliver notifications. Our server also records the time it last heard from the device, how many times the app has been opened, the IP address it last connected from, and the country and city worked out from that IP address. If you tap a notification, the app tells our server which notification you tapped.

On Android 13 and later, GaARi asks for permission to show notifications. If you say no, the device is still registered, but Android does not show the notifications. You can turn them on or off at any time in your device settings. The iPhone version does not use push notifications.

5. Information collected by Google services in the app

GaARi includes these Google services. They collect information directly from the app and process it under Google's own policies:

  • Google AdMob (ads) and the Google User Messaging Platform (consent). To show ads, measure them and prevent ad fraud, AdMob collects your IP address, device and app information, ad interactions and, on Android, your device's advertising ID. GaARi never asks for Apple's tracking permission, so on iPhone and iPad AdMob does not get your advertising identifier (IDFA). In the European Economic Area, the UK, Switzerland and other places where the law requires it, Google's consent message asks for your choice before personalised ads are shown. You can change your choice in GaARi's settings with Privacy Options when that button is shown.
  • Google Analytics for Firebase. Records standard usage events, such as app opens and how long sessions last, and one technical event about how the ground AR mode tracked the floor. It uses an app-instance ID and collects device and operating-system information and your approximate location (country or region) from your IP address. On Android it may also use the advertising ID.
  • Firebase Crashlytics (Android). When GaARi crashes, it sends a crash report: the technical details of the error, your device model and operating system, the GaARi version, an installation ID, and technical notes about the app's state at the time: which AR mode and AR engine were in use, the tracking state, the device's temperature status and memory, and the Android and ARCore versions.
  • Firebase Cloud Messaging (Android). Gives the app the token used to deliver push notifications.
  • Google Play Services for AR (ARCore), Android. GaARi's ground AR mode runs on Google Play Services for AR, which is provided by Google and governed by the Google Privacy Policy.

Learn more: how Google uses information from apps that use its services, Privacy and security in Firebase and the Google Privacy Policy.

Vuforia Engine (PTC). GaARi's AR runs on Vuforia Engine. Vuforia Engine may send PTC limited technical information about the device and the app, for example to check the engine licence. See the PTC Privacy Policy.

6. Device permissions

GaARi asks for or uses these permissions:

  • Camera: to show the cars in AR.
  • Notifications (Android 13 and later): to show push notifications.
  • Internet and network state: for ads, analytics, crash reports, update checks and notifications.
  • Advertising ID (Android): used by AdMob and Firebase as described above.

You can change permissions at any time in your device settings.

7. Why we use information, and our legal bases

Where data protection laws such as the GDPR or UK GDPR apply, we rely on these legal bases:

  • Showing the app, AR and the update notice: performing our agreement with you (the Terms of Use) and our legitimate interest in keeping the app working and up to date.
  • Sending push notifications (Android): our legitimate interest in telling users about the app. Whether they are shown is up to your notification permission.
  • Usage statistics and crash reports: our legitimate interest in understanding how the app is used and fixing problems.
  • Showing ads: your consent for personalised ads where the law requires it; otherwise our legitimate interest in funding a free app.
  • Preventing abuse and keeping the service secure: our legitimate interest in protecting the app, our server and our users.

8. Who we share information with

  • the service providers named in this policy, which receive information directly from the app or process it for us;
  • authorities, courts or others when the law requires it, or when it is needed to protect the rights, safety or property of our users, the public or us;
  • a buyer or successor if our business or this app is transferred, under the same protections.

We do not sell your personal information for money, and we do not share it with anyone else for their own marketing. Where the law treats showing personalised ads as "sharing" or "targeted advertising", you can opt out with the choices below.

9. International transfers

The service providers in this policy, and our own server, may process information in countries other than yours, including the United States, India (our server is hosted by Amazon Web Services in Mumbai) and Pakistan. Where the law requires it, these transfers are protected by safeguards such as the European Commission's standard contractual clauses, which Google and other providers use.

10. How long information is kept

  • Our server keeps a device record for as long as GaARi is in use on that device, and deletes it when you ask us to. Server logs, which can include IP addresses, are kept for a limited time for security and troubleshooting.
  • Google keeps Firebase Analytics data for the retention period set in our Google Analytics property, at most 14 months, and Crashlytics crash reports for up to 90 days. AdMob data is kept under Google's own policies.

11. Your rights and choices

You can:

  • Change your ad consent choice with Privacy Options in GaARi's settings (where shown).
  • Reset or delete your advertising ID (Android: Settings › Privacy › Ads (or Settings › Google › Ads) › Delete advertising ID).
  • Turn GaARi's notifications off in your device settings.
  • Stop all collection by deleting the app.

Depending on where you live, you may also have the right to access, correct or delete personal information about you, to object to or restrict its use, to data portability, and to withdraw consent at any time (this does not affect what was done before). To use these rights, email contact@homevism.com and tell us that your request is about GaARi and which device you use. Because GaARi has no account, we may need details from your device to find the right information. We will answer within the time the law allows. For information held by Google or other providers, you can also use their own tools.

If you are in the European Economic Area or the UK, you can also complain to your local data protection authority.

12. Children

GaARi is rated for general audiences but is not directed at children under 13 (or the minimum age in your country). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has given us personal information, contact us at contact@homevism.com and we will delete it.

13. Security

Information sent to our server and to the Google services in the app travels over encrypted connections (HTTPS). No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, but we take reasonable steps to protect the information we handle.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when GaARi or the law changes. We will change the date at the top of this page and, for material changes, mention them in the app's release notes.

15. Contact

Secundum Reality (HOMEVISM SMC-PRIVATE LIMITED) · Islamabad, Pakistan · contact@homevism.com

See also: GaARi Terms of Use · About GaARi