Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

Forward Software LLC (“Forward Software,” “we,” “us”) is a Texas limited liability company that publishes mobile apps under the name Forward Vision, including Tempo and Faithful Way (the “Apps”). This policy explains what information the Apps and this website collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices you have. For people in the European Economic Area (EEA), the United Kingdom and Switzerland, Forward Software LLC is the data controller.

2. Information we collect

Tempo

• Your library stays on your device. Articles you save, text you paste, and books or files you import (such as EPUB, PDF and TXT) are stored only on your phone. When you save a link, Tempo downloads the page directly from that website to your phone; the article never passes through our servers. As with any web request, the website you’re reading can see your device’s IP address.
• Account information (optional). You can buy a subscription and read without an account. If you create one to sync between devices, we collect your email address (or the private relay address Apple provides if you use Sign in with Apple and choose to hide your email) and assign you a user ID. If you use Sign in with Apple, we store an encrypted token from Apple so we can revoke Tempo’s access when you delete your account.
• Sync data (only if you sign in). Your reading positions and progress, when you finish something, and reader settings such as your reading speed. We identify each document with a scrambled code (a keyed hash made with a secret unique to your account) instead of its title, text, file name or web address, so we don’t store what you’re reading. Because we hold that secret, this stops outsiders from matching your documents and stops anyone linking documents across users, but it doesn’t hide them from us.
• Books from the Tempo catalog. Tempo’s built-in catalog of public-domain books is hosted on our servers. When you download one, our hosting provider records standard request information such as your IP address.
• Reminders. If you turn on a daily reading reminder, it’s scheduled on your device. We don’t receive anything when it fires.

Faithful Way

• Account information. Faithful Way requires an account, which you create during onboarding. We collect your email address (or Apple’s private relay address if you use Sign in with Apple and choose to hide your email) and assign you a user ID.
• What you share about yourself and your faith. During onboarding and as you use the app, you may share information such as your first name, confirmation that you’re 13 or older, where you are in your faith, your goals, your answers to the faith quiz, and your daily check-ins about how you’re doing. We use it to choose prayers and lessons for you and to track your progress.
• Activity. The prayers and lessons you complete, your streaks and badges, and your reminder preferences.
• Friends and church features. If you choose to connect with friends or with a church or pastor, we store those connections, the information you choose to share with them (such as your name and progress), and any messages you send through the app. Only the people you connect with can see what you share with them.
• Push notifications. If you allow notifications, we store a push token for your device so we can send your reminders. You can turn notifications off at any time in your device settings.
• Scripture. Bible passages come from API.Bible, a service of the American Bible Society, and from public-domain translations included in the app. When the app requests a passage, it doesn’t send your name, email address or account information.
• Sensitive information. Some of what you share in Faithful Way may reveal your religious beliefs. We treat it as sensitive: we use it only to provide and personalize Faithful Way, we never use it for advertising, and we never sell it. You choose what to share, and you can remove it at any time by deleting your account.

Both Apps

• Purchases. Subscriptions are processed by Apple (App Store) or Google (Google Play). We receive your subscription status and purchase history, such as the plan, dates and whether you’re in a free trial, through our subscription service provider, RevenueCat. We never receive your payment card details.
• Usage analytics. Pseudonymous information about how the Apps are used, for example which screens you open, steps in onboarding and purchase, how long a reading or prayer session lasts (rounded), and settings you change, along with basic device information such as model, operating system and app version. Analytics never include the text, titles, file names or web addresses of what you read in Tempo, or the content of your check-ins, prayers or messages in Faithful Way. If your device’s region is set to the EEA, the UK or Switzerland, analytics stay off unless you choose to allow them. Elsewhere they’re on by default, and you can turn them off at any time in the app’s settings. If you sign in, analytics are linked to your user ID.
• Crash reports. If an App crashes or hits an error, we receive a diagnostic report with your device model, operating-system version, app version and technical details of the error. Crash reports don’t include your user ID or anything you read or write in the Apps.
• Support messages. If you email us, we receive your email address and whatever you include in your message.

This website

forwardvision.org is run on WordPress by our web host, which keeps standard server logs (such as IP address, browser type and the pages requested) for security and operations. The site loads fonts from Google Fonts, so Google receives your IP address when you visit. We don’t use advertising cookies on this site.

3. How we use information

• To provide the Apps and their features, including syncing, reminders, and personalized prayers and lessons.
• To process and verify subscriptions and restore purchases.
• To send account messages such as sign-in codes, and to answer support requests.
• To understand how the Apps are used and to find and fix problems, using analytics and crash reports.
• To keep the Apps and their users safe, prevent abuse, and comply with the law.

We don’t sell your personal information, share it for cross-context behavioral advertising, or use it to build advertising profiles, and we don’t track you across apps and websites owned by other companies.

Legal bases (EEA, UK and Switzerland). We process your information to perform our contract with you (providing the Apps and your subscription); for our legitimate interests in keeping the Apps secure, fixing errors and improving them, where those interests aren’t overridden by your rights; with your consent (for analytics where consent is required, for notifications, and for the faith information you choose to share in Faithful Way); and to comply with legal obligations.

4. Who we share it with

We share information only with service providers that help us run the Apps, only as much as they need to do that work, and under agreements that require them to protect it:

• Supabase: database, accounts and sign-in, and file hosting (both Apps).
• RevenueCat: subscription status and purchase records (both Apps).
• PostHog (EU cloud): usage analytics (both Apps).
• Sentry: crash and error reports (both Apps).
• An email delivery provider: sends sign-in codes and account emails.
• Apple and Google: payments, Sign in with Apple and Google sign-in, and delivery of push notifications.
• Expo: delivery of push notifications (Faithful Way).
• API.Bible: Scripture text (Faithful Way; no personal information is sent).

Every third party that receives user data from us, including these service providers and any parent, subsidiary or other related company, must give it the same or equal protection as described in this policy.

We may also disclose information if the law or valid legal process requires it; to protect the rights, safety or property of our users, the public or Forward Software; or as part of a merger, acquisition or sale of assets, in which case this policy will continue to apply to your information.

5. How long we keep it

• Account, sync and Faithful Way profile data are kept while your account exists. When you delete your account, we delete this data from our database immediately, delete your records at RevenueCat and your analytics profile at PostHog, and revoke Sign in with Apple. Copies in our providers’ backups are overwritten within 30 days.
• Crash reports are kept for up to 90 days.
• Usage analytics are kept in pseudonymous form only as long as they’re useful for improving the Apps. Analytics linked to your account are deleted when you delete your account.
• Support emails are kept as long as needed to help you and keep a record of our conversation.
• Data on your device, such as your Tempo library, stays until you delete it or remove the App.
• Purchase records held by Apple and Google are kept under their own policies, and we can’t delete them.

6. Your choices and rights

• Analytics: turn usage analytics off at any time in each App’s settings.
• Notifications: turn them off at any time in your device settings.
• Delete your account: in either App, go to Settings → Account → Delete account, or follow the steps on our support page. Deleting your account doesn’t cancel your subscription; cancel it in your Apple or Google account settings.
• Access, correction, deletion and copies: email us at hello@forwardvision.org with the subject “Privacy request.”

Depending on where you live, including the EEA, the UK, Switzerland, California and other US states, you may have the right to access, correct or delete your personal information, to receive a copy of it, to object to or restrict how we use it, and to withdraw consent at any time (this doesn’t affect anything we did before you withdrew it). We’ll respond within the time the law requires, we may need to verify your identity first, and we won’t treat you differently for exercising your rights. If you’re in the EEA, the UK or Switzerland, you can also complain to your local data-protection authority.

7. Children

The Apps aren’t directed to children under 13, and Faithful Way asks users to confirm they’re 13 or older. We don’t knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has given us personal information, contact us and we’ll delete it.

8. Security

We use encryption in transit (HTTPS), database access rules that limit each user to their own data, and encryption for sensitive tokens. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your information and will notify you of a security breach where the law requires.

9. International users

We’re based in the United States, and our service providers process information in the United States and the European Union. If you use the Apps from another country, your information will be transferred to and processed in those places, with safeguards such as Standard Contractual Clauses where the law requires them.

10. Changes to this policy

We’ll post any changes on this page and update the date at the top. If a change is significant, we’ll also let you know in the App or by email before it takes effect.

11. Contact us