dogechat Privacy Policy

Last updated: August 2025

Our Commitment

dogechat is designed with privacy as its foundation. We believe private communication is a fundamental human right. This policy explains how dogechat protects your privacy.

Summary

• No personal data collection - We don't collect names, emails, or phone numbers
• No servers - Everything happens on your device and through peer-to-peer connections
• No tracking - We have no analytics, telemetry, or user tracking
• Open source - You can verify these claims by reading our code

What Information dogechat Stores

On Your Device Only

1. Identity Key
   • A cryptographic key generated on first launch
   • Stored locally in your device's secure storage
   • Allows you to maintain "favorite" relationships across app restarts
   • Never leaves your device
2. Nickname
   • The display name you choose (or auto-generated)
   • Stored only on your device
   • Shared with peers you communicate with
3. Message History (if enabled)
   • When room owners enable retention, messages are saved locally
   • Stored encrypted on your device
   • You can delete this at any time
4. Favorite Peers
   • Public keys of peers you mark as favorites
   • Stored only on your device
   • Allows you to recognize these peers in future sessions

Temporary Session Data

During each session, dogechat temporarily maintains:

• Active peer connections (forgotten when app closes)
• Routing information for message delivery
• Cached messages for offline peers (12 hours max)

What Information is Shared

With Other dogechat Users

When you use dogechat, nearby peers can see:

• Your chosen nickname
• Your ephemeral public key (changes each session)
• Messages you send to public rooms or directly to them
• Your approximate Bluetooth signal strength (for connection quality)

With Room Members

When you join a password-protected room:

• Your messages are visible to others with the password
• Your nickname appears in the member list
• Room owners can see you've joined

What We DON'T Do

dogechat never:

• Collects personal information
• Tracks your location
• Stores data on servers
• Shares data with third parties
• Uses analytics or telemetry
• Creates user profiles
• Requires registration

Encryption

All private messages use end-to-end encryption:

• X25519 for key exchange
• AES-256-GCM for message encryption
• Ed25519 for digital signatures
• Argon2id for password-protected rooms

Your Rights

You have complete control:

• Delete Everything: Triple-tap the logo to instantly wipe all data
• Leave Anytime: Close the app and your presence disappears
• No Account: Nothing to delete from servers because there are none
• Portability: Your data never leaves your device unless you export it

Bluetooth & Permissions

dogechat requires Bluetooth permission to function:

• Used only for peer-to-peer communication
• No location data is accessed or stored
• Bluetooth is not used for tracking
• You can revoke this permission at any time in system settings

Children's Privacy

dogechat does not collect personal information from anyone, including children, as it requires no accounts, names, emails, or other identifiers. We are committed to preventing child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE) and ensuring a safe environment for all users. For details on our zero-tolerance policy for child sexual abuse material (CSAM), and compliance with child safety laws, see our Child Safety Policy.

Data Retention

• Messages: Deleted from memory when app closes (unless room retention is enabled)
• Identity Key: Persists until you delete the app
• Favorites: Persist until you remove them or delete the app
• Everything Else: Exists only during active sessions

Security Measures

• All communication is encrypted
• No data transmitted to servers (there are none)
• Open source code for public audit
• Regular security updates
• Cryptographic signatures prevent tampering

Contact

dogechat is an open source project. For app, privacy, or child safety questions:

• Review our code: https://github.com/GreatApe42069/dogechat-android
• Open an issue on GitHub
• Email: GreatApe42069@proton.me
• Join the discussion in public rooms
• For child sexual abuse material (CSAM) concerns, please report directly to authorities, such as:
  • United States: National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) at www.missingkids.org/gethelpnow
  • United Kingdom: Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command (CEOP) at www.ceop.police.uk/safety-centre
  • Other regions: Your local law enforcement or child protection agency

Philosophy

Privacy isn't just a feature—it's the entire point. dogechat proves that modern communication doesn't require surrendering your privacy. No accounts, no servers, no surveillance. Just people talking freely.