Effective date: 27 October 2026 · Version 0.3 (beta)
Beta build
In short: Aluta keeps what it needs to connect you with the
people you care about — your account, your conversations, what you share in
Our Space — and no more. We don't sell your information or show ads based on
it. Most shared files leave our server within about 24 hours once they've been
delivered. Messages are not end-to-end encrypted in this beta.
This policy is a good-faith description written by the developer, not legal
advice.
1. Who we are
Aluta is a social app for chats, calls, Stories and music with the people you
love. It is built and run by Ozilane, based in Dar es Salaam,
Tanzania (“Aluta”, “we”, “us”). We are responsible for the personal information
described here.
Privacy questions and requests: support@ozilane.com,
or Menu → Send feedback in the app.
2. Information we collect
What we hold depends on the features you use.
Your account
Username, email address and, if you add them, your phone number and profile picture.
Your password — stored only as a one-way hash, never in plain text.
Security settings: a two-factor (authenticator) secret if you turn it on, and,
if you link Ozilane Key, a random identifier for your account
(never your name or email).
Which version of these documents you accepted, and when; your plan (free or
“Aluta Together”).
When your account was created, when you last signed in and were last active.
Messages, calls and what you share
Messages you send and receive — text, photos, videos, voice notes, files,
songs, GIFs, polls, locations and contact cards you choose to share — with
details like time, delivery/read status, replies, reactions, edits and pins.
Secret hearts: the note, any photo, clip or song inside, its
mood and, for timed hearts, when it opens and when it was opened. A sealed heart's
content is withheld by the server until its time.
Messages you schedule to arrive at a friend's morning, and your time-zone
offset so “their morning” can be worked out.
Calls connect your devices directly (peer-to-peer). We never
record or store call audio; we keep a call log entry (who, when, how long, outcome).
Listen Together sends the song directly between the people in
the session (peer-to-peer). Our server only passes the small “play / pause /
position” signals and does not keep the audio.
Stories you post and who viewed them; they expire after about
24 hours.
Our Space and Our Diary
Everything you add to a Space you share with someone — pinned moments, the shared
playlist, diary entries and comments, love capsules, dedications, daily-question
answers, streaks and kept hearts. Both members of a Space can see all of
it.
Presence and status
Whether you're online, when you were last seen, a quick status you set
(e.g. “Busy”), and “tell me when they're online” requests you make.
What you're listening to right now, shown to friends — or only the people you
choose — while you play music.
Music
Your music files stay on your device; we don't upload your library.
So they follow you to a new phone, we keep on your account: song details you
edit (title, artist…), your listening history and music insights (for example
your week in music and top songs), and the songs you share.
If you're bonded with someone in Our Space, your weekly top songs can be shown
to that person in your shared recap, unless you've turned off sharing what you
listen to.
“Identify a song” sends a short audio sample to a song-recognition provider,
only when you use it.
Contacts (only if you allow it)
To find friends, the app sends the phone numbers in your address book to our
server to check which belong to Aluta users. People it finds are added to your
circle. We don't keep the full list of numbers for any other purpose.
Your saved names for those contacts can be stored on your account, privately,
so they show on your other devices.
Your settings
App preferences that follow your account — theme, chat wallpaper, equalizer,
pinned chats, notification and Gallery choices — so a reinstall keeps them.
Device and technical information
A push-notification token, so we can tell your phone about new messages and calls.
The kind of device and app you use: platform (Android, Windows or web, and for
the web whether it's a phone or computer), operating-system version, app version
and a random install identifier. We use this to support each device and decide
which ones to build for.
Devices you've linked (for example a computer you linked by QR).
Network information such as IP address, in server logs and for security
(for example to warn you about a new sign-in).
Crash and error reports, to fix problems.
Feedback you send
What you write in Send feedback, your optional rating, the part
of the app it's about, and your app version and device type, so we can act on it
and reply.
Kept only on your device
Fingerprint/face unlock is handled by your phone; we never receive biometric data.
Copies the app saves to your phone — chat history, songs from hearts, and photos
it saves to your Gallery if you turn on Save to Gallery. Once saved
there, they are outside Aluta's control.
3. How we use it
To run Aluta: deliver messages and media, connect calls and Listen Together,
show Stories, presence and Our Space, and sync your account across devices.
To keep your account safe: sign-in, two-step verification, recovery, alerts
about new devices and sign-ins.
To send notifications you'd expect: new messages, calls, reactions, hearts,
friends coming online, replies to your feedback.
To show you insights about your own listening, and gentle reminders you can
turn off in settings.
To understand how Aluta is used overall (for example how many people are active
and on which devices), fix bugs and decide what to improve — including from your
feedback.
We do not sell your personal information, and we don't use your messages
for advertising.
4. Who can see your information
People you talk to: whatever you send or share reaches the people
in that chat, group, call, Story or Space — and they may save, screenshot or forward it.
Friends: your profile, presence, status and (if allowed) what
you're listening to.
The Aluta team: a small admin panel, available only to the owner
on specially approved devices and with every action recorded, shows overall figures
(sign-ups, active users, device types, storage), who is online, and the feedback
people send. It is used to run and improve the service, help with account problems
you raise, and act on abuse. It does not include a way to browse your messages.
Service providers listed below, only for what they do for us.
Authorities, only where Tanzanian law requires it.
5. Services we rely on
Service
What for
What they receive
Railway
Hosting our servers and database
The data we store, as our host
Google Firebase Cloud Messaging
Push notifications
Device push token; the notification (sender name and a short preview)
Zoho ZeptoMail
Email — password-reset codes and security alerts
Your email address and the email itself
Sentry
Crash and error reports
Error details, device and app information
GIPHY
GIF and sticker search
Your search words and the GIFs you open
AudD
“Identify a song”
A short audio sample, only when you use it
STUN/TURN relays
Connecting calls and Listen Together through firewalls
Network connection data
Ozilane Key (auth.ozilane.com)
Optional phone approval for sign-in
A random account identifier, and the sign-in's IP address and browser/device
6. How long we keep it
Chat files, large videos and shared songs leave our server about
24 hours after they're sent, or soon after the recipient's phone has downloaded them.
Voice notes and small videos are removed about 24 hours after everyone in the chat
has them. After that, your devices keep their own copies; if a copy is lost, ask the
sender to resend.
Message text and photos stay so your history works across
devices, until deleted or your account is deleted.
Our Space keeps one copy of what you add, up to the Space's
storage limit (currently 150 MB per couple), until a member deletes it or the
Space is removed.
Stories expire after about 24 hours.
Feedback is kept while it's useful for improving Aluta; ask us
and we'll delete it.
Security records (sign-in and admin activity logs) are kept as
long as needed to protect accounts.
When you delete your account, we delete your account and its data within 30
days, except what the law requires us to keep. Messages you sent remain with the
people who received them on their devices.
7. Security
Everything travels over encrypted connections (HTTPS/WSS). Passwords and one-time
codes are stored only as hashes, files are served only to the people they were sent
to, and the admin panel needs both the owner's password and an approved device,
with alerts and a one-tap lock. Still, no system is perfectly secure, and because
messages are not end-to-end encrypted in this beta, please don't use
Aluta for highly sensitive information. End-to-end encryption is planned.
8. Your choices and rights
Under Tanzania's Personal Data Protection Act, 2022, and similar laws where you
live, you can ask to see, correct,
delete or get a copy of your personal information,
and object to how we use it.
In the app: edit your profile; delete messages; leave or delete
Spaces; sign out linked devices; turn off contacts, location, notifications or
Save to Gallery in settings; choose who sees what you're listening to.
Delete your account: email
support@ozilane.com from your account's email
(an in-app option is coming). We'll confirm and complete it within 30 days.
You can also complain to Tanzania's Personal Data Protection Commission.
9. Children
Aluta is not meant for children. You must be at least 13, and old enough to
agree to this policy where you live. If you believe a child has an account, tell us
and we'll remove it.
10. Where your information is processed
Aluta is run from Tanzania, but our hosting and service providers may process
information in other countries. We use providers that protect it, and only for the
purposes in this policy.
11. Changes
When this policy changes in a way that matters, we update the date above and ask
you to review and accept it in the app before continuing.
12. Contact
support@ozilane.com · Ozilane, Dar es Salaam,
Tanzania · or Menu → Send feedback in the app.