1. Who this policy covers
This Privacy Policy applies to the Bloom iOS app, Bloom’s website, and related cloud services operated under the Bloom name by Ashton McHardy, operating under the Bloom name in New Zealand (“Bloom”, “we”, “us” or “our”).
Bloom is designed for parents, adult guardians and the adult family members they invite. Children do not create Bloom accounts. A family owner creates and manages child profiles and is responsible for having the authority to provide each child’s information and media.
2. Information Bloom handles
Account and sign-in information
When you use Sign in with Apple, Bloom may receive your Apple-provided user identifier, name and email address, including an Apple private relay address if you choose Hide My Email. Bloom uses the identity token from Apple to authenticate your account with Firebase. We store an internal user ID, family ID and account creation date.
Family and child profile information
You may provide a family name and, for each child, a name, optional birth date and optional profile photograph. Child profiles belong to the adult account holder; they are not child accounts.
Moments and other content
Bloom handles the photos and videos you select or capture, post dates, optional captions, reactions, comments, download permissions, the child or children you assign content to, family-member authorship and the time content was created. To make the app fast and support viewing and exports, Bloom may preserve a supported photo master and create display, thumbnail, poster or standardised HD video copies.
Bloom normally re-encodes selected images to create those copies, but does not promise that every embedded metadata field is removed in every processing path. In particular, a source image may contain metadata added by your camera or photo library. Bloom itself does not request your device location.
Subscription information
Apple processes purchases and payment details. Bloom uses RevenueCat to verify and synchronise subscription access. Bloom and RevenueCat may process an internal Bloom customer identifier, the subscription product, billing period, entitlement status, purchase or renewal dates, and transaction verification information needed to unlock paid features and restore access. Neither Bloom nor RevenueCat receives your full payment card or bank account details.
Technical and security information
Bloom and its infrastructure providers may process app and device information needed to authenticate requests, prevent abuse, operate cloud sync and diagnose failures. This can include app version, device or operating-system characteristics, network request data, Firebase user identifiers, App Check or App Attest security signals, and non-linked diagnostic information.
Bloom records limited product and notification events through Firebase Analytics so we can understand whether core features work, measure delivery and engagement, and diagnose failures. These events may include an internal user identifier, app and device information, subscription status, campaign identifiers, and actions such as opening Bloom or saving a moment. Bloom does not use this information for third-party advertising, does not use advertising identifiers, and does not track you across other companies’ apps or websites. You can turn optional Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics collection off in Bloom Settings; Bloom then resets Firebase Analytics data on that device and stops sending new optional analytics and crash reports.
Website information
Bloom’s website does not use advertising cookies. Its hosting provider may process ordinary request and security logs—such as IP address, browser type, requested page and timestamp—to deliver and protect the site.
3. Device permissions and access
| Access | Why Bloom asks | What Bloom does not do |
|---|---|---|
| Photos | Apple’s system photo picker lets you choose photos or video for a post or child profile image. Bloom prepares local previews and print-ready copies only for the items you select. | Bloom does not enumerate or upload your entire photo library. Only the photos and videos you select are loaded for posting, and nothing is uploaded until you choose to post it. |
| Camera | The camera opens when you tap Take Photo or Retake so you can capture a photo or supported video. | Bloom does not activate the camera or record in the background. |
| Microphone | Used only when you deliberately capture supported video or use an audio feature offered in the app. | Bloom does not listen continuously, record in the background, or use recordings for advertising, profiling or AI training. |
| Speech Recognition | After you ask Bloom to transcribe an optional private voice note, Bloom requests permission and uses Apple’s on-device speech recogniser when the device supports it. | Bloom does not run speech recognition in the background or send the recording to a cloud speech-recognition service. |
| Notifications | If you opt in, Bloom schedules local reminders and may send remote service, trial, family-activity, or product messages through Apple Push Notification service and Firebase Cloud Messaging. | Bloom does not require notifications, does not include family photographs in notification payloads, and does not use push tokens for cross-app tracking or third-party advertising. |
| Sign in with Apple | Used to create, authenticate and restore your Bloom account and cloud memories. | Bloom does not receive your Apple Account password. |
| App Attest | Apple and Firebase security checks help confirm that requests come from the authentic Bloom app. | These checks are not used for advertising or cross-app tracking. |
Bloom does not request access to your contacts, precise or approximate location, calendars, reminders, health or fitness data, Bluetooth, local network, biometrics or other installed apps.
4. How Bloom uses information
Bloom uses information to:
- create and authenticate your adult account;
- save, organise, sync and restore your family’s private posts;
- preserve supported photo masters and create display images, thumbnails, video posters and standardised playback copies;
- associate a shared post with each selected child Story without storing a separate copy of the post for every child;
- show authorship, reactions and comments to authorised members of the same private family space;
- create signed family invitations and revoke any browser-only link issued by an older Bloom build;
- verify subscriptions, restore purchases and provide paid access;
- schedule reminders you choose on your device;
- secure the service, prevent abuse and investigate failures;
- respond to support, privacy and legal requests; and
- comply with law and enforce Bloom’s Terms.
Bloom does not sell family information, serve third-party advertising, build advertising profiles, use Photo or Camera data for data mining, or train artificial-intelligence models on your photographs.
6. Children’s information
Bloom is a service for adults, not a service directed to children. We process a child’s profile and memories only at the direction of the adult account holder. The account holder confirms that they are the child’s parent or guardian, or otherwise have the authority and any necessary consent to upload and manage the child’s information.
We apply the same protections to children’s content as to other family content and do not use it for advertising, marketing databases, facial recognition or AI training. If you believe a child’s information was provided without appropriate authority, contact us so we can investigate and remove it.
7. Storage and international processing
Bloom keeps app state and media copies inside the app’s private sandbox on your device. When cloud mode is enabled, account records, membership, child and post metadata, reactions, comments, and private media copies are also stored through Firebase so Bloom can sync and restore the family space.
Bloom’s cloud functions are configured for an Australian region. Firestore metadata and private media use the cloud locations configured for Bloom’s production Firebase project; those locations may differ from the Cloud Functions region. Firebase, Apple and their subprocessors may process information in other countries where they operate. Where required, Bloom relies on contractual and legal transfer safeguards.
8. Retention and deletion
- While your account and eligible access remain active, Bloom retains the account data and memories needed to provide the service.
- Ending a subscription does not delete your account. New capture and other paid features may pause. Bloom provides a 90-day grace period before intentionally reducing the quality of print masters or applying a deletion schedule, and will give notice and an opportunity to reactivate or request an available export first.
- Deleting a moment or child profile removes the corresponding association or active app record and asks Bloom’s storage systems to remove media only when it is no longer used by a shared post or another child Story. Device caches, failed cleanup requests and protected service backups can take additional time to clear. Contact us if content remains visible after a deletion.
- If a family owner deletes their account, Bloom removes that account and the family archive it owns, including its active Family Content, except for protected backups, security, provider or legal records covered below.
- If an invited adult deletes their account, Bloom removes their account, membership access and records directly linked to that signed-in identity. Posts, comments, likes and other contributions already shared into another owner’s family may remain under that family owner’s custody, with the invited adult’s displayed attribution, until the family owner removes them or Bloom Support acts on a valid request.
- Legal and security records may be retained for the minimum period required for tax, accounting, fraud prevention, dispute resolution or other legal obligations.
- Subscription-provider records are handled through Bloom’s verified in-app account-deletion flow. Bloom first requests permanent deletion of the corresponding RevenueCat customer record and completes Firebase account deletion only after RevenueCat confirms deletion or that the customer was not found. This does not cancel an App Store subscription. Apple purchase records remain subject to Apple’s own controls and retention. Contact support@storybybloom.com to request a review of personal data held through Bloom’s provider account; deletion remains subject to applicable requirements and provider retention obligations.
Removing the app from your device may delete local copies but does not by itself cancel an Apple subscription or delete cloud content. Keep your own backup of photographs that are irreplaceable.
You can start account deletion from Bloom’s in-app settings. You may also contact the privacy address below if you cannot access the app. Account deletion and data export requests may take time to complete where cloud media or protected backups are involved.
9. Your choices and privacy rights
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:
- access a copy of personal information associated with you;
- correct inaccurate account or child profile information;
- request deletion of your account and, where applicable, Family Content you own or have authority to manage;
- request a portable export where available;
- object to or restrict certain processing; and
- withdraw consent without affecting earlier lawful processing.
You can change Camera, Photos, Microphone, Speech Recognition and Notification permissions in iOS Settings. You can turn Bloom reminders and optional app analytics off in Bloom Settings. Apple subscriptions must be cancelled separately in Apple Account Settings. Deleting a Bloom account does not automatically cancel Apple billing.
We may ask you to verify your identity before fulfilling a request. An authorised guardian may also contact us about a child profile managed through their account.
10. Security
Bloom uses Sign in with Apple, Firebase Authentication, App Check with App Attest, family-scoped database and storage authorisation, private cache controls and encrypted network transport to protect information. Access to production systems is limited to people and providers who need it to operate the service.
No service can guarantee absolute security. If you believe your account or family content has been accessed without permission, contact us promptly and secure your Apple Account.
11. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as Bloom changes or legal requirements evolve. The page will show the new effective date. We will provide additional notice before a material change that reduces privacy protections, changes how family photos are used, or materially changes retention, export or deletion rights.
12. Contact
For privacy questions, access or deletion requests, contact Ashton McHardy, operating under the Bloom name in New Zealand at support@storybybloom.com. Please do not attach children’s photographs to an initial privacy request. If you used Hide My Email, include the Apple relay address associated with Bloom so we can locate the correct account.
You may also complain to the privacy or data-protection regulator in your country. Contacting us first gives us an opportunity to resolve the issue quickly.