Privacy Policy
Last Updated: June 2026
RHD Studio ("we", "our", or "us") operates the SettleMate: Split Expenses mobile application and related services (the "Service").
This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect your information when you use our Service. By using SettleMate, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
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1. INTERPRETATION AND DEFINITIONS
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Account
A unique account created for you to access our Service and manage your expense groups.
Application
The SettleMate: Split Expenses software application provided by us.
Company
RHD Studio.
Country
Pakistan.
Device
Any device capable of accessing the Service, including mobile phones, tablets, and computers.
Group
A virtual collection of users within the Service created to track shared expenses among members (e.g., trips, roommates, events).
Personal Data
Any information that identifies or can be used to identify an individual.
Service
The SettleMate application and associated expense tracking, splitting, and settlement services.
Usage Data
Data collected automatically when using the Service.
You
The individual accessing or using the Service.
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2. INFORMATION WE COLLECT
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Personal Information
When you use our Service, we may collect the following information:
• Full Name
• Email Address
• Profile Picture (optional)
• Password (stored in encrypted form by Firebase Authentication)
Group and Expense Data
When you create or participate in groups, we collect:
• Group titles, descriptions, and images
• Expense records including amounts, descriptions, dates, and who paid
• Settlement and payment records between users
• Group membership information and invite codes
• Activity logs (e.g., who added expenses, who made payments)
Usage Data
We may automatically collect information including:
• Device type and operating system version
• IP address
• Device identifiers
• App version
• Pages or screens viewed
• Time spent within the application
• Diagnostic and crash information
• Push notification tokens (FCM tokens) for delivering notifications
Advertising Identifiers
To display advertisements through Google AdMob, we may collect:
• Advertising ID (Google Advertising ID on Android, IDFA on iOS)
• Device information for ad targeting
• Approximate location data (if permission is granted)
• App usage data for ad relevance
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3. ADVERTISING
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Google AdMob
SettleMate displays advertisements through Google AdMob to support the free operation of the Service.
How Ads Work:
• We use Google AdMob to display banner ads, interstitial ads, and native ads within the app
• Google AdMob uses cookies and similar technologies to collect information about your use of the app
• This information is used to serve relevant advertisements based on your interests
• Google may use your advertising ID to personalize ads
Data Collected by AdMob:
Google AdMob may collect and process the following data:
• Advertising identifier (GAID/IDFA)
• Device information (device model, OS version, screen size)
• Approximate location (based on IP address or GPS if permitted)
• App usage data (screens viewed, time spent)
• Click and interaction data with advertisements
• Cookie data and similar tracking technologies
How to Opt Out of Personalized Ads:
You can control how Google uses your data for advertising purposes:
• Android: Go to Settings → Google → Ads → Enable "Opt out of personalized ads"
• iOS: Go to Settings → Privacy → Tracking → Disable "Allow Apps to Request to Track"
• Web: Visit https://adssettings.google.com to manage ad preferences
• Within the app: You may find ad preference settings in the app's settings menu (if available)
Note: Even if you opt out of personalized ads, you will still see advertisements, but they may be less relevant to your interests.
Third-Party Advertising Partners:
In addition to Google AdMob, we may use other advertising networks and services that have their own privacy policies. We encourage you to review their policies:
• Google AdMob Privacy Policy: https://support.google.com/admob/answer/6128543
• Google Advertising Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads
Ad-Free Experience:
We may offer options to remove advertisements through in-app purchases or premium subscriptions in the future. Check the app for current availability.
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4. HOW WE USE YOUR INFORMATION
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We use your information to:
• Create and manage your account
• Authenticate users through email and password
• Enable group creation and membership management
• Track shared expenses and calculate balances between users
• Record settlements and payments between group members
• Send push notifications for group activities (invitations, new expenses, settlements)
• Display statistics and analytics about your group spending
• Maintain activity feeds showing group history
• Improve application performance and user experience
• Provide customer support
• Detect fraud and unauthorized access
• Comply with legal obligations
• Display relevant advertisements through Google AdMob
• Measure ad performance and effectiveness
• Prevent ad fraud and ensure ad quality
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5. SHARING OF INFORMATION
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We do not sell your personal information.
We may share information in the following cases:
Within Your Groups
When you create or join a group, other members of that group can see:
• Your name and profile picture
• Expenses you've added to the group
• Settlements you've made within the group
This information is visible only to members of the specific group and is essential for the Service's functionality.
Service Providers
We may share data with trusted third-party services such as:
• Google Firebase (for authentication, database, storage, and push notifications)
• Google AdMob (for displaying advertisements and ad analytics)
• Cloud storage providers (for storing group images and profile pictures)
Advertising Partners
We share non-personally identifiable information with advertising partners to:
• Serve relevant advertisements
• Measure ad performance
• Prevent ad fraud
• Comply with advertising industry standards
Legal Requirements
We may disclose information if required by law, court order, or government authority.
Business Transfers
If SettleMate is involved in a merger or acquisition, user data may be transferred.
With Your Consent
We may share information when you give explicit permission.
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6. DATA RETENTION
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We retain personal information only as long as necessary for providing our Service:
• Account data is retained while your account is active
• Group and expense data is retained as long as the group exists
• Settlement records are retained as long as the group exists for historical accuracy
• Usage data may be retained for analytics, security, and operational purposes
• Advertising data (cookies, ad identifiers) is retained according to Google's data retention policies (typically 26 months for AdMob data)
• Non-essential personal data is deleted when no longer required
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7. ACCOUNT DELETION
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Users may request deletion of their account and associated data by contacting:
📧 rhdstudio10729@gmail.com
Please include the email address used in SettleMate when making a request.
Please note:
• Deleting your account will remove your personal profile data
• Groups you created may be transferred to another member or deleted
• Your expenses and settlements within groups may be retained for the group's historical records
• Information may also be retained where required for legal, security, or fraud prevention purposes
• Non-essential personal data associated with the account will be deleted where possible after processing the request
• Advertising identifiers and cookies may persist until they expire or are manually cleared through your device settings
Processing Time
Account deletion requests are typically processed within 7 days after verification.
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8. PUSH NOTIFICATIONS
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SettleMate uses push notifications to keep you informed about:
• Invitations to join groups
• New expenses added to your groups
• Settlements made by other members
• Group activity updates
You can control notification preferences within the app settings or through your device's notification settings. We use Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) to deliver these notifications.
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9. THIRD-PARTY SERVICES
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SettleMate uses the following third-party services:
• Google Firebase (Authentication, Firestore, Storage, Cloud Messaging)
• Google AdMob (Advertising services)
• Google Play Services
• Google Analytics (if enabled)
These services may collect information according to their own privacy policies:
• Google Privacy Policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy
• Firebase Privacy and Security: https://firebase.google.com/support/privacy
• Google AdMob Privacy Policy: https://support.google.com/admob/answer/6128543
• Google Advertising Policies: https://policies.google.com/technologies/ads
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10. SECURITY OF YOUR INFORMATION
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We implement reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your data:
• Passwords are encrypted and never stored in plain text
• Data is transmitted over secure HTTPS connections
• Firebase security rules restrict access to authorized users only
• Group data is only accessible to group members
• Advertising data is handled according to Google's security standards
However, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.
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11. CHILDREN'S PRIVACY
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Our Service is not intended for children under 13 years of age.
We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13.
If we discover such data, we will delete it promptly.
Advertising to Children:
• We do not direct personalized advertisements to children under 13
• Google AdMob complies with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)
• If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately
For users aged 13-18:
• We limit behavioral advertising for users under 18
• Ad personalization is restricted for younger users
• Parents/guardians can request deletion of their child's data
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12. YOUR RIGHTS
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Depending on your location, you may have the following rights:
• Access the personal data we hold about you
• Correct inaccurate personal data
• Request deletion of your personal data
• Object to processing of your personal data
• Data portability (receive your data in a structured format)
• Withdraw consent for advertising data collection
• Opt out of personalized advertisements
To exercise these rights, please contact us at rhdstudio10729@gmail.com.
For advertising-specific rights:
• Manage ad preferences: https://adssettings.google.com
• Opt out of Google advertising cookies: https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout
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13. INTERNATIONAL DATA TRANSFERS
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Your information may be processed on servers located outside your country (including Google's global infrastructure in the United States and other countries).
By using our Service, you agree to such data transfers.
Google maintains appropriate safeguards for international data transfers in compliance with applicable data protection laws.
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14. COOKIES AND TRACKING TECHNOLOGIES
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SettleMate and our advertising partners use cookies and similar tracking technologies:
What Are Cookies:
Cookies are small text files stored on your device that help us and our partners recognize your device and understand how you use the app.
How We Use Cookies:
• Essential cookies: Required for app functionality (authentication, session management)
• Analytics cookies: Help us understand how users interact with the app
• Advertising cookies: Used by Google AdMob to serve relevant ads and measure ad performance
Managing Cookies:
• You can control cookies through your device settings
• Clearing cookies may affect app functionality
• You can opt out of advertising cookies through Google's ad settings
Third-Party Cookies:
Our advertising partners may place their own cookies on your device. These are governed by their respective privacy policies.
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15. LINKS TO OTHER WEBSITES
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Our Service may contain links to external websites (including advertiser websites).
We are not responsible for their privacy practices.
We encourage you to review their policies before providing personal information.
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16. CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY
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We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time.
Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last Updated" date.
For material changes, we will notify you through:
• In-app notification
• Email (if you've provided one)
• Push notification
Continued use of the Service after changes means acceptance of the updated policy.
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17. CONTACT US
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If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, you can contact us:
SettleMate: Split Expenses
📧 rhdstudio10729@gmail.com
🏢 RHD Studio
🌍 Pakistan
For advertising-related inquiries:
📧 rhdstudio10729@gmail.com (subject line: "AdMob Privacy Inquiry")
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