Privacy Policy

Last updated: August 28, 2026

VinylSonar ("VinylSonar", "we", "us") operates the VinylSonar mobile and web application and the website at vinylsonar.ca (together, the "Service") — a platform for cataloguing your record collection, discovering and trading vinyl with collectors nearby, and getting alerts about records you want. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices you have.

By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to this Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the Service.

1. Information we collect

Information you provide

• Account details — your email address, phone number, and/or the details from a Google or Apple sign‑in, used to create and secure your account.
• Profile — display name, avatar, and any location or store details you choose to add.
• Your collection & wishlist — the records you catalogue (titles, artists, formats, condition, notes, photos) and the records you follow or want.
• Marketplace listings — items you offer for sale, including price, condition, photos and pickup/shipping details.
• Messages — the content of chats and community‑room messages you send through the Service.
• Camera & photos — with your permission, the app uses your camera to scan a barcode, read a disc label or runout code, or photograph a sleeve, and can read images you pick from your photo library. Barcode scanning and basic on‑device text recognition happen on your phone, and those images are not sent anywhere. You can refuse or revoke camera and photo access in your device settings and still add records by searching the catalogue or typing them in.
• Photos used for AI recognition — if you use AI record recognition (reading a disc label, sleeve art, or a run‑out matrix code), the photo is uploaded to our servers and sent to Anthropic's Claude API, which reads it and returns the artist, title and catalogue number. We store that photo against your account so you can review the result, and we keep it alongside the record you confirm in order to improve recognition accuracy. Deleting your account deletes the scan photos held against it. If you would rather no photo left your device, add records by scanning a barcode, searching the catalogue, or typing the details in — none of those upload an image.
• A friend's email address — if you use the invite feature to have us email an invitation on your behalf, we use that address to send the invitation and to record whether the invitation was accepted. We do not use it for our own marketing, and either of you can ask us to delete it.

Information collected automatically

• Location — with your permission, your approximate or precise location, used to show records and sellers near you and to power proximity alerts. You can disable location in your device settings.
• Device & usage data — device type, app version, IP address, and basic interaction/diagnostic data used to operate, secure, and improve the Service.
• Push tokens — a notification token so we can send you the alerts you enable.
• Website visits — our web server records the usual request log for vinylsonar.ca and web.vinylsonar.ca: the page requested, the time, the browser, and the site you arrived from. We use it to count visits and see which pages are read. There is no third‑party analytics service, no advertising tracker and no cookie used for this, and the reports we keep do not contain IP addresses — only totals.
• Advertising ID — on the free, ad‑supported tier, Google AdMob may access your device's resettable advertising identifier to select ads and limit how often you see the same one. You can reset it, or turn off ad personalisation entirely, in your device settings (on Android: Settings → Privacy → Ads). Subscribing to Premium removes ads from the app.

2. How we use your information

• Provide and operate the Service — cataloguing, search, marketplace, chat, and account security.
• Match you with nearby records, sellers, and wishlist/artist alerts.
• Estimate the market value of records in your collection.
• Send notifications you have enabled (price drops, new listings, messages, new releases).
• Process subscriptions and, where applicable, show relevant offers and advertising.
• Prevent fraud and abuse, enforce our terms, and comply with legal obligations.

3. Third‑party services we use

We rely on trusted providers to run the Service. Each processes only the data needed for its function:

These providers have their own privacy policies governing how they handle data.

4. How information is shared

• With other users — your display name, avatar, ratings, listings, and the messages you send are visible to the people you interact with (e.g. a buyer or seller, or a community room).
• With service providers — as described in Section 3, to operate the Service.
• For legal reasons — if required by law, or to protect the rights, safety, and security of users and the Service.
• Business transfers — in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

We do not sell your personal information.

5. Your choices and rights

• Access & update — view and edit your profile, collection, and listings in the app.
• Delete your account — you can delete your account and associated data from within the app, or by request if you no longer have it installed — see Delete your account, which lists exactly what is removed and what is kept. This removes your personal data, subject to the limited exceptions in Section 6.
• Location & notifications — enable or disable these in your device settings and in the app's notification preferences at any time.
• Regional rights — depending on where you live (e.g. Canada, EU/UK, California), you may have rights to access, correct, delete, or port your data, or to object to certain processing. Contact us to exercise them.

6. Data retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide the Service. When you delete your account we delete or de‑identify your personal data. Two narrow exceptions remain, because each record is about another person as much as it is about you: reports other users have filed about your conduct are kept as moderation history, and a sale in which you were the buyer is kept as the seller's trading record with your identity removed from it. We may also retain records where the law requires it, such as transaction records needed for tax or accounting, for as long as that obligation lasts.

7. Security

We use industry‑standard measures (including encryption in transit and access controls) to protect your information. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Children

The Service is not directed to children under 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If you believe a child has provided us information, please contact us and we will delete it.

9. International users

We are based in Canada and may process and store information in Canada and other countries where our providers operate. By using the Service you consent to this transfer, subject to appropriate safeguards.

10. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. We will post the revised version here and update the "Last updated" date above; significant changes may also be notified in the app.

11. Contact us

Questions or requests about your privacy? Email us at [email protected].