Privacy Notice

DenKin is operated by Michael J St Martin, operating as DenKin. For privacy questions or requests, email denkinpets@gmail.com or write to DenKin, PO Box 387, Claremont, CA 91711, United States. This notice describes the DenKin app, the DenKin website, its hosted services and the optional features you choose. A feature described here may be unavailable in your build or account.

Information about a pet can also identify a person, including through a photo, contact detail, home location or care document. The controls and explanations below apply to that personal information. A veterinary clinic, caregiver, shelter or social service you contact separately is responsible for its own processing.

Accounts use an email address, account identifier and authentication information. Apple or Google sign-in can supply the profile details and identifiers you authorize. When you delete an Apple-linked account, DenKin asks Apple to disconnect it, using a one-time authorization from the sign-in you complete to confirm deletion. That authorization is held in memory for a few minutes and is never stored. You can also remove DenKin in your Apple Account settings at any time; this does not prevent you from requesting deletion of your DenKin account. Pet profiles can include a name, species, breed, sex, age, identifying description, photo, registration or microchip details and information you choose to add. You may also supply documents, extracted text, summaries, care notes, check-ins, emergency contacts, provider profiles, adoption plans, messages or recovery reports.

Service operation uses request and error information, network information such as IP addresses, account and transaction identifiers, timestamps, security events and usage counters. AI metering records the account, request identity, a request fingerprint and cost information; the metering ledger is not a copy of your complete conversation. Apple processes App Store payment details; DenKin receives the purchase verification and entitlement information needed to associate a completed registration with the selected pet, rather than your full payment-card number. If a business subscribes to DenKin Business, Apple processes the payment. DenKin receives the subscription status, renewal date, trial status and transaction identifiers needed to show the business listing. We never receive card details.

If you join the DenKin waitlist, we keep your email address only to tell you about launch and major updates. Every message has an unsubscribe link, and you can ask us to delete the address at any time.

Signed-in cloud features use Supabase authentication, database and file storage. Vercel hosts the app and API services. These services process the information needed to handle your requests, including technical logs. Access to private cloud records is scoped to the signed-in account; this is not a claim of end-to-end encryption or a guarantee against every security risk.

Local storage holds functions such as your selected pet, music preferences, guide preferences, private discovery demo choices and game progress. Older device-only profiles and some recovery or sharing drafts also stay on that device. Clearing app storage can remove them. Local information does not become a cloud backup just because you sign in; use the export or save controls that the feature provides. Authentication storage keeps you signed in and is separate from advertising tracking.

We use information to operate accounts, save and retrieve the content you choose, prepare records and care handoffs, perform requested searches, deliver permitted introductions, maintain game progress and verify registration purchases. We also use relevant information to respond to support requests, investigate reports, prevent misuse, protect the service, account for usage and meet legal obligations.

Private care records are not made into discovery cards merely because you use the app. A request for a summary or AI suggestion is not permission to publish it. Optional disclosure to AI, publication of a listing and sending a copy to someone else have their own controls. Where consent applies, you can stop future optional processing by turning the relevant feature off or declining another request; that does not undo information already sent.

Where European data-protection law applies, we use the legal basis appropriate to the purpose: providing the requested service for necessary account and storage functions; your consent for optional AI or public disclosure where applicable; legal obligations for required transaction and compliance records; and legitimate interests for proportionate security and abuse prevention where those interests are not overridden by your rights. These interests include protecting accounts and preventing fraud. You may ask about or object to processing as described below. This notice is not consent to every purpose.

OpenAI processes optional AI requests after the feature explains the input and you give permission. General Guide questions send your reviewed question and relevant app-help context; they do not automatically attach private records or photos. Caption rewriting sends the text assembled for the caption, which can include the pet details you supplied. Photo ideas send a reduced, re-encoded photo with pet name and species, supplied occasion or details and date context. The reduced photo has location metadata removed; its visible contents can still reveal a person or place.

Adoption writing help sends your reviewed adoption or rehoming inputs. Provider writing help sends the reviewed business name, area and descriptive text. Care organization sends the selected, reviewed notes and saved-summary sources with their intended purpose; light care-note polishing sends only the reviewed notes and purpose. You can write and edit manually instead. No AI draft is automatically published, saved as a final instruction or sent to a caregiver.

When optional AI help is available in Denward and you approve the request, it sends your question, relevant game progress and selected choice to OpenAI. Private records and photos are not attached. Ordinary game play and scripted game hints do not require that AI request; you can continue playing without sending it.

Shelter contact search sends the city or postal area to OpenAI web search. The separate public intake-listing search sends the reviewed area and short pet description. It does not attach the pet photo, microchip number, contact details or full profile. Optional AI recovery recaps send the notes you review for that request. The scheduled daily recovery draft is assembled from recorded activity without an additional AI request.

DenKin requests that these model responses not be stored as API application state. That setting is not a zero-retention promise: OpenAI may retain information for safety, abuse prevention or legal obligations under the applicable service terms and account configuration. Do not include passwords, payment details or unrelated sensitive information. AI can be wrong; review its output against the source before relying on it.

Camera and selected-photo access are used when you choose to add or share a photo or record. Uploaded originals may include information visible in the image or embedded in a file; the location-metadata removal described above applies to the reduced copy used for AI photo ideas, not to every uploaded document.

Kin Guide’s native voice feature starts only after your action and the required device permission. It requires on-device speech recognition, keeps the short recording in memory and produces editable text; the feature does not save or upload an audio file. If on-device recognition is unavailable for your language, you can type instead. A transcript is not sent to OpenAI or saved as a record until you choose the relevant action. Dictation provided by your keyboard is governed by your keyboard and device settings. You can change camera and microphone permissions in your device settings.

Pet discovery can include sample cards, which are marked as samples. Saved private discovery settings, including your general area and preview preferences, may sync with your account. Swipe choices and card interaction history stay on this device. Turning on the private preview does not publish a pet profile. A typed city or region is not continuous GPS tracking. Forget Choices & Turn Off removes the saved preview preferences; turning the preview off alone retains them. Cards identify demos and third-party directory information so they are not mistaken for a real member or confirmed service.

A provider who reviews a service card and turns on provider discoverability makes the listed business fields available to signed-in members. When you choose to see provider promotions, available offers can be selected using your saved area and discovery preferences and can appear in the game while active. Public directory results come from external sources and do not imply that the business joined DenKin.

When adoption publication is enabled, a private plan and a published listing are separate. The listing owner chooses the reviewed public fields and whether the listing appears in discovery. An inquiry or reply goes to the parties involved through its explicit send action; safety reports can be reviewed for moderation. Saving or swiping a card does not send a message or reveal your private records. Withdrawing a listing or turning discovery off affects future visibility, not copies other people already kept.

Missing-pet recovery can save the episode, chosen search area and planning radius, time zone, recap preference, contact plan, recorded activity, owner-entered leads and unsent recap drafts privately for your account and pet. Initial daily draft preparation is set to 7 PM in your selected local time zone when enabled. Turning daily drafts off stops new scheduled drafts; marking the pet home closes the active episode. Existing saved notes and copies are separate from future scheduling.

An app-recorded handoff means a composer, link or other action was opened; Mail acceptance does not prove recipient delivery. Owner-reported sightings remain unverified. Public searches do not read every shelter database or private social group. The current app does not import social replies or your inbox, call shelters using an AI agent, triangulate a pet’s position or automatically email a daily recap.

When shared search cards are enabled, the owner reviews the pet name, type, general area and description before creating a public link. Anyone with that link can view those approved details. The shared card does not automatically include private photos, home addresses, microchip numbers, records or account contact information. Turning the link off or closing the recovery case stops future access through DenKin; it does not remove copies or posts elsewhere.

A visitor can submit a possible sighting through an enabled search link: the time, place, description and, only if offered for a reply, an email address. Reports and reply addresses are private to the case owner and authorized service operations, not displayed on the public card. Reports are unverified. The security check uses Cloudflare Turnstile, which processes technical browser and network information to prevent misuse. DenKin also uses limited security counters and a keyed digest of network information to control repeated submissions. These features remain unavailable until their service and data-lifecycle controls are enabled.

Recovery correspondence is optional. A device-saved email preference is separate from an account-saved preference. When account preferences are enabled, choosing to save one records the address, time zone and separate recap choice for your account; an alternate address must be verified before delivery. Saving a preference does not itself start email delivery. DenKin does not currently have an automatic sender connected.

A found-pet note stays on your device for your account. It does not create a public map pin, send an owner alert or prove a match. Review the audience statement before using any later publication feature. Community handoffs to Nextdoor, Facebook or another service use your chosen draft and that service’s own posting controls; DenKin does not gain access to the group or its private conversations through the handoff.

Saved care briefs contain the notes and record selections you save for that pet and caregiver purpose. Known profile details may start a new brief; review them before sharing. Saving a brief keeps it private. Only the instructions and selected summaries in the reviewed output are shared; unselected records and original file attachments are not silently added.

A Kin Card image or Apple Wallet pass contains the selected identity information shown in its preview. The Wallet pass is separate from private records and reusable care briefs. It is a static copy: profile changes and account deletion do not remotely update or revoke copies already in Wallet or on a recipient’s device. A pass marked TEST is a sample and is not a registration. Nearby sharing, AirDrop, downloads, copied text and messages leave copies that DenKin cannot recall.

When you use system or social sharing, the chosen destination receives the image, text, link or file you approve. Facebook can receive the selected image through Meta’s native sharing SDK, while your caption is copied locally for you to paste. You choose the audience and publish in Facebook. The configured integration disables automatic Facebook app-event logging and advertiser-ID collection. Saving a social group link does not sign you in or give DenKin permission to read the group. Destination services handle their own account, network and usage data under their policies.

On a supported iPhone, Save Photo & Open Instagram, TikTok or Snapchat asks for permission to add your prepared image to Photos, copies your caption locally and opens the selected app if available. This action does not read your photo library or publish a post. You select the saved image, paste your caption and choose the audience in that app. The saved image remains in Photos until you remove it. The caption copied by this native action expires after ten minutes and is not shared through Universal Clipboard. In a browser, save the image separately before uploading it to the destination.

The website’s neighborhood-notice editor keeps the text only in the open page; it does not save the draft to a DenKin account or browser storage. Copying uses your device clipboard. After you review the notice, opening the prepared Nextdoor link sends that text to Nextdoor in the link; it can also remain in browser history. The longer-text fallback copies the notice for you to paste instead. Nextdoor is an independent destination with its own Privacy Policy. DenKin does not receive your Nextdoor credentials, read replies or confirm that a post was published.

Apple Maps receives the searches and map context needed when you ask for nearby places or generate a map, including a typed area or the center you confirm. Opening an external Maps link sends its query to Apple. The app does not provide a live AirTag location feed; Find My remains under Apple’s controls. A map is not a complete record of shelters, intakes or sightings.

Apple and Google handle the sign-in process you choose. App Store purchases and Wallet features also involve Apple. Supabase, Vercel and OpenAI support the functions described above; external recipients you choose are separate from those service providers. DenKin operates in the United States, and providers may process information in the United States and other countries where they operate. Laws in those countries may differ from those where you live. Contact us for information about processing locations and the safeguards applicable to your information.

Denward uses your chosen adventurer, saved choices, equipment, companions, fishing and crafting progress, randomized outcomes and local game settings to run the adventure. Available registration benefits can be derived from the pet’s registration status. The game does not need to publish medical records, contact a real provider or send your choices to OpenAI merely to roll dice or advance a story.

A provider offer on the map is a separate card you can choose to inspect. It is not automatic enrollment, contact or a purchase. Reset Adventure affects the progress described by the reset confirmation; it does not unregister your real pet. Device-only saves can be lost when storage is cleared.

Account content is retained to provide the features you keep in use until you remove it, request account deletion or another necessary retention reason applies. The retention criteria are whether the information is still needed for the feature, an unresolved request or dispute, service security or a legal recordkeeping obligation. Settings includes Delete Account, with sign-in verification and explicit confirmation. Deletion removes the active account and associated data through the implemented cleanup process; a failed or incomplete operation is not reported as completed. Pet-level controls remove the selected pet’s supported data. Contact us if you cannot complete a request.

Issued registration numbers remain reserved after their link to a deleted pet is removed. AI cost counters retain no deleted-account link or request fingerprint after the documented deletion path. Some transaction, security, abuse, dispute and support records may need to remain for the relevant purpose or legal obligation. Backups and infrastructure logs are separate from active data, so deleting active data does not immediately erase every backup copy. We do not use retained backup copies as a reason to continue ordinary use of a deleted account. Contact us if you need details about retention or a deletion request.

Deleting your account does not cancel an Apple subscription, remove a recipient’s copy, delete material you posted on another platform or clear every device-only save. Use the separate device or destination controls for those copies. Important original documents should be retained independently of DenKin.

You can edit supported profile information, select what goes into a brief, turn optional features off, remove saved social links and manage device permissions. Settings offers cloud pet-data and older device-data exports. The cloud export includes supported pet and recovery information, but does not include original file contents or every account, message or moderation record; it is not a complete account export.

Email denkinpets@gmail.com to ask for access, correction, deletion or a copy of personal information, or to raise a privacy concern. Depending on applicable law, you may also have rights to restrict or object to processing, withdraw consent, appeal a decision or complain to a regulator. We may verify your identity and authority before responding and explain any lawful exception. Do not send passwords or unnecessary sensitive documents with your request. We will not discriminate against you for exercising an applicable privacy right.

For users in the EU, applicable rights include access, correction, erasure, restriction, portability and objection, and a complaint to the relevant data protection authority. Withdrawing consent does not invalidate earlier lawful processing. In Canada, you may ask about access, correction, consent choices and handling outside Canada, subject to applicable federal or provincial law. Applicable United States state privacy rights also remain available; eligibility and any lawful exceptions are assessed for the request rather than waived by these terms.

DenKin accounts are for adults aged 18 and older. Separate accounts for children and teens are not offered. The game’s appearance and App Store content rating do not establish account eligibility.

An adult who supervises play on their own account remains responsible for the account and should not create a separate child profile or supply a child’s personal information. Contact denkinpets@gmail.com if you believe a child’s information has been supplied improperly so we can review and address it.

This notice is version denkin-2026-10-25-launch, the launch edition of October 25, 2026. We identify revisions and give appropriate notice before materially changing how personal information is used. We obtain additional permission where required. A new optional purpose is not authorized by an old feature toggle.