Privacy Policy

Last updated: May 13, 2026 | Effective date: May 13, 2026

Welcome to Niannian Diary (念念日记) ("the App", "we", "us", or "our"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, store, and protect your personal data. Our first target region is Singapore and the Asia-Pacific region, and we handle personal data in accordance with the Singapore Personal Data Protection Act 2012 (PDPA) and other applicable data protection requirements.

Summary: We collect the data needed to provide accounts, diary and note features, AI features, sync, export, feedback, and service security. Your content is protected in transit by encryption. We do not sell your personal data, and we do not use your diary content to train our own AI models. AI features are optional and can be turned off at any time in Settings; basic recording features remain fully available. You can export, edit, or delete your data.

1. Data We Collect

1.1 Data You Provide

Data TypeDetailsPurpose
Account informationApple Sign-In identifier, email address, display name, and avatar; or the email address you provide for email verification-code loginAccount creation, login, account management, and security
Verification and login recordsEmail verification-code sending records, verification status, login time, and login methodEmail login, account security, and abuse prevention
Diary and note contentDiary text, Q&A records, free-form notes, tags, mood, and weatherCore diary, note, storage, search, statistics, export, and AI features
Media uploadsPhotos and images you attach to diary entries or notesMedia storage and display
Location informationWhen you actively use the diary location feature, your device latitude/longitude. Reverse geocoding (converting coordinates to city/district/street text) is performed on-device via the iOS system framework (Apple CoreLocation / CLGeocoder) and handled by Apple. The resulting place text, together with any location text you manually enter, is stored on our servers with the relevant diary entryTo add location context to diary entries
Profile informationNickname and avatar you set manuallyPersonalisation
FeedbackContent and contact information you submit through in-app feedbackSupport, troubleshooting, and product improvement

1.2 Data Collected Automatically

Data TypeDetailsPurpose
Device and app informationDevice model, OS version, app version, and language settingsCompatibility, troubleshooting, and service optimisation
Usage and log dataFeature usage records, operation logs, error logs, and crash reportsService operation, security audit, troubleshooting, and product improvement
Network informationIP address, network type, and request timeSecurity, abuse prevention, service optimisation, and approximate region detection

1.3 Data We Do Not Collect

2. How We Use Your Data

We do not use your data for personalised advertising.

3. AI Services and Third-Party Data Processing

Important: We do not proactively use your diary content to train our own AI models.

For third-party AI services, we prioritise providers that commit not to use API request content to train models or that provide reasonable data protection commitments. A provider's handling of request data remains subject to its applicable service terms, privacy policy, and data processing commitments.

When you use AI diary generation, AI question recommendation, AI profile summary, or similar AI features, relevant diary entries, notes, tags, mood labels, location text, and other necessary content may be sent to third-party AI service providers for processing. We minimise the content sent and avoid sending account identifiers, email addresses, or payment information unless necessary.

3.1 AI Service Providers

ProviderRolePurposeData Processing Region
Qwen (Alibaba Cloud)PrimaryDiary generation, question recommendation, AI profile summary, and related AI featuresCurrently Alibaba Cloud Mainland China; we plan to migrate to Alibaba Cloud International (Singapore) in the future
Doubao (Volcengine)BackupUsed as automatic fallback when the primary provider is unavailableMainland China
Zhipu AI (GLM)BackupUsed as automatic fallback when the primary provider is unavailableMainland China

Backup providers are only invoked when the primary provider has availability issues (e.g., timeouts, quota exhaustion, or network failures), in order to maintain service continuity. When invoked, the relevant request content is sent to the corresponding provider for processing.

3.2 Data Minimisation

4. Data Storage and Security

4.1 Storage Location

We prioritise Singapore and Asia-Pacific cloud infrastructure where reasonably practicable. Depending on the actual deployment of cloud hosting, object storage, content delivery, email, and AI service providers, some data may be processed or transferred outside Singapore. For cross-border transfers, we use reasonable measures such as encrypted transmission, access controls, and contractual safeguards to seek a standard of protection comparable to the PDPA.

4.2 Security Measures

4.3 Encryption Disclosure (Important)

The current version of this App does not provide end-to-end encryption (E2EE).

This means:

End-to-end encryption is on our product roadmap and may be offered in a future version. We will announce it in release notes when available.

While we take reasonable security measures, no method of internet transmission or electronic storage is 100% secure. We recommend that you regularly export and back up your important data.

5. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to any third party. We may share your data only in the following limited circumstances:

ScenarioDetails
AI service processingData transfer necessary for AI diary generation (see Section 3)
Email servicesSending login verification codes, account-related emails, or support replies
Cloud services and content deliveryServer hosting, databases, image storage, content delivery, logs, and security protection
Media storage and deliveryImages stored on Cloudflare R2 object storage and delivered via Cloudflare's global CDN
Location and geocodingDevice location and reverse geocoding handled by Apple CoreLocation / CLGeocoder on iOS
Payment processingVIP subscriptions are processed through Apple In-App Purchase; we do not directly handle your payment card information
Security and complianceInvestigating fraud, abuse, security incidents, unlawful conduct, or Terms violations
Legal requirementsWhen required by law, regulation, court order, public authority, or regulator
User consentWith your explicit consent
Business transferIn the event of a merger, acquisition, or asset transfer, your data may be transferred; we will notify you in advance

6. Cross-Border Data Transfers

Your core data is processed primarily through Singapore and Asia-Pacific infrastructure where practicable. Cross-border data transfers may occur in the following situations:

We take reasonable steps under the PDPA Transfer Limitation Obligation to ensure that overseas recipients provide a standard of protection comparable to the PDPA, unless an applicable legal exception applies.

7. Data Retention

Data TypeRetention Period
Account and diary dataRetained for the duration of your account
Deleted diary entriesDeleted from your account-visible data and primary service database after you delete them; residual copies in backups, caches, or logs are cleared according to system cycles, except where retention is needed for legal, compliance, security, or dispute-resolution purposes
Account deletion dataAfter you request account deletion, your account enters an approximately 30-day recovery period. After the recovery period, personal data that is no longer required will be deleted or anonymised through our system process, except where retention is needed for legal, compliance, security, or dispute-resolution purposes
Server logsAutomatically purged after 90 days
Crash reportsAnonymous data retained for up to 180 days
Verification-code and abuse-prevention recordsRetained for a limited period as needed for security, anti-abuse, and audit purposes

We retain personal data only as long as needed for the purposes described in this Policy, to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, maintain security, or enforce agreements. When personal data is no longer required, we will delete, anonymise, or otherwise cease retaining it by reasonable means.

8. Your Rights

8.1 Rights Under Singapore PDPA

Under the Personal Data Protection Act 2012 (PDPA), you have the following rights:

We will review and handle requests as soon as reasonably practicable after verifying your identity and within any timeframe required by applicable law. If more time is needed, we will try to explain why and provide an estimated timeline.

8.2 Users in Other Asia-Pacific Jurisdictions

This App is currently available in the following Asia-Pacific countries and regions: Singapore, Japan, South Korea, Hong Kong SAR, Macao SAR, Taiwan, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Australia. If any of the following laws or similar local data protection laws apply to you, you may have rights of access, correction, deletion, withdrawal of consent, and the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority:

We will respond to rights requests in accordance with the law applicable to you, and on a standard no lower than the Singapore PDPA.

8.3 Users in Other Jurisdictions

If you are located in a jurisdiction with additional data protection rights (such as the EU/EEA under GDPR, or US states with privacy laws including California's CCPA/CPRA), you may also exercise those rights by contacting us. We will respond in accordance with applicable local laws.

8.4 How to Exercise Your Rights

9. Children's Privacy

This App is not intended for children under 13 years of age, for minors below a higher minimum age set by applicable local law (some APAC jurisdictions set 14 or 16 as the threshold), or for minors who require parental or guardian consent under applicable local law but have not obtained it.

10. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

This App does not use cookies or web tracking technologies (as it is a native mobile application).

We may use the following technologies for service optimisation:

We do not use any third-party advertising tracking SDKs and do not participate in cross-app tracking.

11. Data Breach Notification

In the event of a data breach that is likely to result in significant harm to affected individuals, or that meets a notification threshold under applicable law, we will:

12. Changes to This Policy

13. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your data protection rights, or need to make a complaint, please contact us:

Data Protection Officer
Email: support@niannian.app

We will review and respond to your request as soon as reasonably practicable after verifying your identity. If a request is complex or requires more time, we will let you know our estimated processing time.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) of Singapore at www.pdpc.gov.sg.