Privacy

Effective August 21, 2026. Ruff Hour is offline-first, but the features you choose to use can send data to our service. We do not sell personal data, serve behavioral ads, or use third-party advertising identifiers.

Data Ruff Hour handles

Ruff Hour creates a random device identifier and dog identifier so the app can protect and synchronize dog-scoped records without requiring an account. A dog profile can include a name, photo, friendliness, space needs, and Sniff preference.

During a walk, Ruff Hour processes precise location to record the private route, show chosen live presence, attach locations to pee, poop, photo, and Sniff moments, and warn about nearby hazards. Routes, moments, photos, care-circle records, blocks, and reports can be stored in Railway-hosted infrastructure so they remain available to the authorized dog and devices.

What becomes public

An active location is visible only while the walker chooses Visible and expires after the walk or a short disconnect window. Only hazards intentionally reported as Foxtails, Broken glass, or Unpicked poop publish a point. Ordinary private moments never become public map reports. Sniff spots are coarse aggregates and appear only after multiple distinct dogs contribute. If you explicitly leave a Scent Flag at an eligible Sniff spot, Ruff Hour can show your dog’s name, profile photo, and Top Dog standing at that coarse spot; it does not publish the exact mark coordinate.

Shared walks

A shared replay removes photos and trims both ends of the route. Anyone with its opaque link can view it until it expires after 30 days or you revoke it. Shared pages are excluded from search indexing.

Attribution

Ruff Hour records the share destination category, replay opens, and App Store button taps by opaque share identifier so we can understand whether shared walks help people discover the app. We do not attach an advertising identifier to these events. Hosting and network providers may process ordinary request metadata needed to operate and secure the service.

Retention and deletion

Live presence is removed when sharing ends and otherwise expires shortly after connection loss. Shared links expire after 30 days. Public hazard visibility follows its stated expiration window. Private dog-scoped history remains until it is deleted. Minimal safety and abuse records may be retained as reasonably necessary to protect walkers and enforce blocks.

There is no Ruff Hour login. To request access to or deletion of server records, use Privacy & Safety in the app; it prepares an email containing the private dog ID needed to locate the records. You can also email privacy@ruffhour.app.

Service providers

Railway provides application hosting and PostgreSQL storage. Apple provides MapKit, push and Live Activity system services, and App Store distribution. These providers may process data as needed to provide their services under their own terms.

Children

Ruff Hour is not directed to children under 13 and does not knowingly collect their personal information.

Contact

Email privacy@ruffhour.app with privacy questions or requests.