Privacy Policy

Overview

Wander ("we," "our," or "us") respects your privacy. This policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your data while you use the Wander app and website.

Location Data

Wander requests precise location access, including in the background, to detect nearby places with stories and to notify you when you arrive in a covered city. Here's how we handle it:

• On-device use: Precise GPS is used on your device to time story triggers and arrival notifications.
• Coarse cell-based transmission: We convert your location into H3 hexagonal cells (approximately 174 meters across) before sending it to our servers for story relevance. Your exact latitude/longitude is not stored in our database.
• Your control: You can deny or revoke location access at any time in your device settings; background/always access can be downgraded to while-using or off.

Analytics

We use PostHog for analytics to understand how you use Wander and improve the app:

• Linked to a device identifier: Analytics events are tied to the same anonymous (or Apple Sign-In-linked) identifier used for your account, so we can measure things like story completion and streaks over time. This identifier is not tied to your real-world identity unless you sign in with Apple.
• Events tracked: Session start/end, stories heard, votes, bookmarks, completion status, and preferences.
• No third-party sale: Analytics data is not sold to third parties. It's used internally to improve the app.

Advertising

Wander shows ads through Google AdMob, including mediated networks such as Unity Ads:

• Advertising identifier: With your permission (Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompt, or the Android equivalent), we and our ad partners collect your device's advertising identifier (IDFA/GAID) to serve and measure ads and to prevent showing you the same ad repeatedly.
• Your control: You can decline tracking permission when prompted, or disable it later in your device's privacy settings — ads will still show, just without personalization.
• Ad partners: Google AdMob and its mediation partners (including Unity Ads) each have their own privacy policies governing data they collect for ad delivery.

Audio & Caching

Audio files are cached for performance:

• Cloudflare R2 storage: Audio files are stored on Cloudflare's R2 service (equivalent to AWS S3). Cloudflare does not use your data for advertising or profiling.
• Public links: Audio files are accessed via temporary public URLs but are not searchable or discoverable outside the Wander app.

Account & Preferences

Your user profile includes story preferences and listening history:

• No email or sign-up required: You are identified by a random UUID generated on your device. Wander does not require you to sign up or provide any personal information.
• Local-first preferences: Your taste preferences (entity type weights) are stored in our database tied to your UUID.
• 90-day retention: Listening events (story completions, skips) are retained for 90 days and then automatically deleted. Streaks, progress, bookmarks, and preferences are retained as long as you use the app.

Bookmarks & History

Wander stores some data to personalize your experience:

• Bookmarks ("Listen Later"): Stories you save are stored in our database (up to 50 at a time; oldest are auto-purged).
• Streaks & progress: We track your daily listening streak and city completion progress.
• Deletion: You can delete individual bookmarks, or delete everything at once via Settings → Account → Delete Account.

Data Deletion

In-app: Settings → Account → Delete Account immediately and permanently deletes your profile, bookmarks, and preferences, and anonymizes your listening history, streak, and city progress so it can no longer be linked back to you.

For partial deletion requests (e.g. just listening history), or if you'd rather not use the app:

• Contact us at [email protected] with your request.
• Specify what data to delete (listening history, preferences, all data, etc.).
• We will process deletion requests within 7 days.

Security

Your data is transmitted over encrypted (HTTPS) connections. We maintain reasonable security practices to protect your data from unauthorized access. However, no system is 100% secure; use the app at your own risk.

Third Parties

Wander integrates with the following third parties:

• Google Cloud: Story audio is generated using Google Cloud's text-to-speech (TTS) API. Google's privacy policy applies to TTS data.
• Cloudflare R2: Audio files are stored on Cloudflare R2. Cloudflare's privacy policy applies.
• PostHog: Analytics are collected using PostHog. PostHog's privacy policy applies.
• Google AdMob & Unity Ads: Ads are served via Google AdMob, with Unity Ads as a mediation partner. These providers may collect your advertising identifier and other data per their own privacy policies.

Children's Privacy

Wander is not intended for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 13. If we learn that we've collected data from a child under 13, we will delete it.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy at any time. The "Last updated" date at the top reflects the most recent version. Continued use of the app after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact

If you have questions about this privacy policy or our data practices, contact us at [email protected].