sfMate

Privacy Policy

Last updated November 4, 2026

sfMate is a chatbot that answers questions about Saint Francis High School (the school calendar, the Lancer Cafe menu, clubs, courses, and school rules, plus the Daily Announcements for students who sign up with their @sfhs.com school email), on the web and in the sfMate iPhone app. This policy explains what sfMate collects, why, who handles it, and how to delete it. sfMate is an independent project and isn't run by Saint Francis High School.

What we collect and why

• Your account: your username, the name you sign up with, your email address, and your password. Your password is stored only as a one-way scrambled hash, so no one (including us) can read it. We use these to create your account, sign you in, and email you a verification code. If you use "Continue with Google" on the website, we also receive your Google account ID, name, and email.
• Your profile (optional): first name, grade, hobbies and extracurriculars, favorite food, and, for school (@sfhs.com) accounts, the Daily Announcements topics you pick. We use these to personalize your answers and greeting, and to summarize just the announcement topics you chose. You can skip setup or change these any time.
• Your questions: to answer a question, your message and the last few messages of the conversation are sent to our server, and then to our AI provider (see "Your permission" below). sfMate does not save your conversations to your account or its database. The first part of each question (without your name or username) appears in our server logs, which we use to find and fix problems.
• Message counts: how many messages you send each day, to enforce the daily message limit.
• Feedback: when you use Send feedback in the app, we keep what you wrote with your username, email, and app version, and it's emailed to the developer so they can read it and reply to you.
• Sign-in sessions: a random sign-in token, stored on our server only as a hash and kept in your iPhone's Keychain (or your browser's storage on the website). Sessions end after 30 days or when you log out.
• Technical information: your IP address is used briefly to block repeated sign-in and sign-up attempts, and appears in our hosting provider's standard server logs.
• On your iPhone only: your liturgy and activity day reminder settings, and the reminders themselves, are stored and scheduled on your phone. We don't receive a device identifier or push token.

Your permission

In the iPhone app, before your first question, sfMate asks your permission to send your questions, the recent conversation, and your profile details to RunPod, the company that runs sfMate's AI model. The app sends nothing to RunPod until you agree. You can withdraw permission any time in Profile, topics & reminders → Stop sharing (the chat turns off until you agree again), or by deleting your account. On the website, asking a question sends it to RunPod the same way.

What we don't do

• We don't sell your information or share it for advertising.
• We don't show ads, and we don't track you across other apps or websites.
• We don't use analytics or advertising tools in the app or website.
• We don't use your information to train AI models.
• We don't collect your location, contacts, photos, or microphone.

Who handles your information

sfMate uses these service providers, only to run sfMate:

• Render hosts the sfMate website and server, its database, and its server logs.
• RunPod runs the AI model that writes the answers. For each question it receives your message, the recent conversation, the school information that answers it, and your profile details (like your first name and grade) so the answer can be personal.
• Google (Gmail) sends verification codes and delivers feedback emails to the developer. If you use Google sign-in on the website, Google handles that sign-in.

We share information with these providers only so they can run sfMate, under their terms and data processing agreements, which require them to keep it secure and use it only to provide their services to sfMate. That is the same level of protection this policy describes. RunPod's terms also allow it to use content in aggregated, anonymized form to improve its service. We may also share information if the law requires it.

How long we keep it

• Your account, profile, message counts, feedback, and your AI permission are kept until you delete your account. Deleting it removes them right away.
• Sign-in sessions expire after 30 days. Unfinished sign-ups are replaced when you start over.
• Our server logs (which can include the first part of a question and your IP address) are deleted automatically within 30 days.
• Our database host keeps backups for up to 7 days, so deleted data is fully gone within 7 days.
• RunPod processes each question to write the answer, and deletes its endpoint logs automatically after 90 days.
• Copies of feedback emails stay in the developer's inbox unless you ask us to delete them.

Reporting a problem

If sfMate gives a wrong, inappropriate, or offensive answer, tell us with Send feedback in the app or by email. We read every report and aim to respond within 2 days.

Deleting your account

In the iPhone app, tap the account button, then Delete account. This immediately deletes your account, profile, sign-in sessions, message counts, and feedback. If you use the website, email sfmate23@gmail.com from the email you signed up with and we'll delete your account for you.

Students and age

sfMate is made for Saint Francis High School students and anyone with questions about the school. It isn't directed to children under 13, and we don't knowingly collect information from them. If you believe a child under 13 has given us information, contact us and we'll delete it.

Security

sfMate uses encrypted connections (HTTPS), stores passwords and sign-in tokens only as hashes, and limits repeated sign-in attempts. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your information.

Changes

If this policy changes, we'll update the date at the top of this page.

Contact

Questions or requests: sfmate23@gmail.com. See also sfMate Support.