Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Appliance Code Hub. We respect your privacy and are committed to protecting it through our compliance with this policy. This policy describes the types of information we may collect from you or that you may provide when you visit the website ApplianceCodeHub.com ("our Website"), use our Chrome Extension or our iOS and Android mobile application (the "Mobile App"), and our practices for collecting, using, maintaining, protecting, and disclosing that information.

2. Information We Collect

We may collect several types of information from and about users of our Website, including:

• Personal Information: such as name, email address, or other identifiers if you register an account or contact us.
• Usage Data: information about your internet connection, the equipment you use to access our Website, and usage details.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use information that we collect about you or that you provide to us, including any personal information:

• To present our Website and its contents to you.
• To provide you with information, products, or services that you request from us.
• To fulfill any other purpose for which you provide it.
• To notify you about changes to our Website or any products or services we offer or provide though it.

4. Comments and User Contributions

You may provide information to be published or displayed ("posted") on public areas of the Website, or transmitted to other users of the Website or third parties (collectively, "User Contributions"). Your User Contributions are posted on and transmitted to others at your own risk.

5. Cookies

We use cookies and similar tracking technologies to track the activity on our Service and hold certain information. You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent.

6. Chrome Extension

The Appliance Code Hub Chrome Extension is designed with your privacy in mind.

Information We Collect via the Extension

• Search Queries: When you use the Extension to search for error codes or symptoms, your query is sent to our API to retrieve results. We do not use Extension searches to build an advertising profile. Queries may be processed in short-lived server security logs.
• Selected Text: When using the right-click menu or floating button feature, the selected text is used solely for searching and is not stored.

Information We Do NOT Collect via the Extension

• Personal identification information
• Browsing history or websites you visit
• Cookies or tracking data from other sites
• Any data from web pages you view

Extension Permissions

The Extension requires certain permissions to function:

• contextMenus: To add a search option to your right-click menu
• activeTab: To enable the floating search button on web pages
• storage: Reserved for saving user preferences (currently unused)
• host_permissions: To connect to ApplianceCodeHub.com's API

All communications between the Extension and our servers use HTTPS encryption.

7. Mobile App

The Appliance Code Hub Mobile App is currently available without registration or login. If account-based features or cross-device synchronization are introduced, we will update this Privacy Policy and applicable in-App and app store disclosures before those features become available.

Data Stored Only on Your Device

• Favorites: identifiers and small display snapshots for content you save.
• Browsing and Search History: recent items and queries used to improve your experience inside the App.
• Preferences: settings such as analytics consent and display preferences.

This local data is not uploaded for account synchronization. You can delete it from the App's privacy settings, and it is removed when you uninstall the App or clear its storage.

Data Sent to Our Servers

• Requests: selected appliance, brand, error code, search terms, and other inputs needed to return the content you request.
• Essential Technical Data: network request information, security logs, App version, platform, and information needed to prevent abuse and keep the service reliable.
• Diagnostics: if enabled in the released App, crash and performance data such as error type, affected screen, App version, and device environment.

We do not use an advertising identifier, IMEI, IMSI, SIM serial number, contact list, precise location, or a complete hardware fingerprint for App analytics. We do not include email, username, authentication tokens, complete IP addresses, photos, comments, or complete appliance model numbers in analytics events.

8. App Analytics and Search Privacy

The App creates a random installation identifier. Our analytics system stores only a keyed hash of that identifier. It is used for first-party product measurement, reliability, rate limiting, and abuse prevention, and is not combined with third-party advertising data.

Search terms are sent to our API because the server must process them to return results. Search history shown in the App remains on your device. When a search returns no results, we may retain a shortened, normalized token after filtering common sensitive patterns so we can identify missing content. We do not provide administrators with a screen for reconstructing an individual user's search trail.

Optional product analytics is controlled through the App's privacy settings. Where consent is required, we ask before enabling it. Turning it off stops future optional analytics events; it does not prevent essential API processing, security logging, or fraud prevention.

9. How We Use and Share Information

We use information to provide search and troubleshooting content, remember requested settings, secure and operate our services, diagnose failures, understand aggregate feature usage, improve content coverage, communicate with you, and comply with law.

We may disclose information to service providers that support hosting, content delivery, security, crash diagnostics, analytics, email, and customer support. They may process data only to provide services to us and must protect it consistently with this policy and applicable law. The providers actually enabled in a released App are also reflected in the App Store privacy disclosures and Google Play Data safety section.

We may also disclose information when reasonably necessary to comply with law, protect users or our services, investigate abuse, or complete a merger, acquisition, financing, or sale with appropriate notice and safeguards. We do not sell personal or sensitive user data. We do not use Mobile App data for cross-company tracking or third-party targeted advertising.

10. Cookies, Analytics, and External Services

Our Website may use cookies and Google Analytics to understand Website usage. Browser controls can block or delete cookies. Where required by law, we request consent before using non-essential cookies. This privacy policy page does not load our Google Analytics tag.

The Mobile App may contain user-initiated links to Amazon, Reddit, appliance manufacturers, and other external services. Once you leave Appliance Code Hub, the external service's terms and privacy policy apply. Some merchant links may be affiliate links. We may record that an outbound link was selected, together with non-sensitive context such as content and destination, to measure referrals; we do not send your local browsing or search history to the merchant.

11. Data Retention and Deletion

• On-device App data: retained until you delete it, clear App storage, or uninstall the App.
• Raw App analytics events: normally retained for no more than 90 days.
• Aggregated statistics: may be retained longer when they no longer contain raw event records or information reasonably used to identify an individual.
• Server and security logs: retained only as long as reasonably necessary for reliability, security, fraud prevention, and legal obligations, normally no more than 90 days unless an incident or law requires longer retention.
• Website accounts and contributions: retained while the account or content is active and as necessary for moderation, security, legal obligations, and dispute resolution.
• Support communications: retained as needed to resolve the request and meet security or legal obligations.

Backup copies may remain for a limited period until they are overwritten under our backup cycle. We may retain information when required by law or necessary to establish, exercise, or defend legal claims.

12. Your Privacy Choices and Rights

• Use the Mobile App's privacy settings to enable or disable optional analytics and clear favorites, browsing history, search history, preferences, and the local installation ID.
• Use browser settings and, where available, our Website consent controls to manage cookies.
• Request access, correction, or deletion of eligible information by emailing us.
• Request deletion of server-side App analytics associated with the current installation by providing the Installation ID shown in the App's privacy settings. We hash it to locate the matching records and do not use it to verify a real-world identity.

Because the Mobile App has no account, we may be unable to locate anonymous information after you reset or lose the Installation ID. Raw App analytics is still deleted under the retention schedule above. Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to processing, or to withdraw consent. We may need to verify and document a request as permitted by law.

13. Security, International Processing, Children, and Changes

We use reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards. Communications with our servers use HTTPS, access is limited, and analytics properties are allow-listed. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Our service providers and systems may process information in countries other than your own. Where required, we use legally recognized safeguards for international transfers.

Appliance Code Hub is a general-audience troubleshooting service and is not directed to children under 13 or the minimum age required by local law. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. A parent or guardian who believes a child supplied personal information should contact us.

We may update this policy when our products, providers, or legal obligations change. We will post the revised policy here, update the effective date, and provide additional notice when required. Store privacy disclosures will be updated when a released App's data practices change.

14. Contact Information

Appliance Code Hub is the product and service covered by this policy. For privacy questions, requests, or complaints, email support@appliancecodehub.com.

If the legal developer name displayed in an app store differs from the product name, that developer operates Appliance Code Hub and can be contacted through the same address.