Effective Date: January 22, 2024
Please read this disclosure carefully before you agree to it. This disclosure outlines the personal data collected and transferred from users of our Android apps, their usage, and sharing practices.
We at Protectstar Inc. (“Protectstar”, “we”, “us”, “our”) values privacy, security, and online safety and is committed to protecting users' (“you” and “your”) information and activities.
We may update this disclosure to reflect changes in our business. Material changes will be communicated via email, in-product notification, or as required by law. Therefore, review the most current version of this disclosure regularly.
Our app ensures you are well-informed during its normal usage by providing an in-app disclosure without the need to explore menus or settings. Alongside the disclosure, we request your consent by following these guidelines:
For a better experience, while using our service, we may require you to provide us with your installed application information.
Our app transmits users' installed application information off the device to our servers at https://api.protectstar.com to provide and improve the services offered by the app.
The information we request is uploading users' installed application information to https://api.protectstar.com will be retained and used as described in this privacy policy.
The app does use third-party services that may collect information used to identify you. This data is sent to, but not limited to https://app-measurement.com.
Link to the privacy policy of third party service providers used by the app:
At Protectstar, we put your privacy at the forefront of what we do and only collect necessary information to provide our products and services effectively.
Note about the Firewall AI app:
The Firewall AI app forwards the traffic of allowed connections directly to their destination through the Android VPN Service without using a remote VPN server. Its mode of operation can lead to one of two scenarios concerning your internet traffic:
The Android VPN Service (https://developer.android.com/reference/android/net/VpnService.html) is utilized to locally route all internet traffic to Firewall AI. This design means that root access is not required to build or implement this firewall application.
Through transparently explaining these functions, we aim to instill confidence in our users regarding the privacy and integrity of their data when utilizing our Firewall AI applications.
To ensure the full performance of the cloud servers and to enable quick and precise analyzes, we process the following Service and Device Data:
Selective users’ installed app package information of the apps you
have installed on your device in the data type of
SHA-256 checksum and corresponding installed app package
names.
The data will be sent to our servers at https://api.protectstar.com
The type of data we collect include the following:
How We Handle Your Data:
Opting Out of Data Collection: If you prefer not to have your data collected, you may turn off your internet connection, which could lead to decreased detection of possible malware and other security threats.
The data transmission is performed in encrypted (AES-256 bit) form using the HTTPS protocol and cannot be tracked back to individuals.
When you use our Protectstar® apps, we collect certain information to enhance the security and functionality of our services. Here’s why we need specific types of data:
The purpose of sending users’ installed application information, the calculated
SHA-256/MD5 checksums to https://app-measurement.com and to
https://api.protectstar.com is to analyze the information by our
Protectstar® Artificial Intelligence Cloud (AI Cloud).
Operating on servers, rather than individual devices, the AI Cloud offers efficient,
precise analysis without taxing your device's resources.
The collected data is crucial for:
Overview about all our apps and their specific data collectection practices that is send to the related URL incl. their purpose as well as the Restricted Permissions:
Data Collection and Usage:
Restricted Permissions:
Data Collection and Usage:
Restricted Permissions:
Restricted Permissions:
Included Apps: Anti Spy, Antivirus AI, Firewall, DNS Changer, iShredder
Included Apps: Anti Spy, Antivirus AI, Firewall, DNS Changer, Camera Guard, Micro Guard
In summary, the data we collect is not just for detecting threats but also for adapting our security measures to the unique environment of your device, ensuring that you have the most effective protection against evolving digital threats.
Our purpose in collecting your information is to equip you with useful products and services that provide a more agile, dynamic response to new and unknown threats.
The purpose of sending users' installed application information to https://api.protectstar.com is to analyze the installed application information by our Protectstar® Artificial Intelligence Cloud (AI Cloud). Protectstar® AI Cloud runs on servers and not on individual devices, like the user's smartphone. This ensures the full performance of the AI Cloud servers and enables quick and precise analyzes. At the same time, it keeps the user devices resource-efficient with optimal performance.
The data processing ensures:
When you install or use one of our Services, it will run in the background of your
device or environment to help predict threats, and better protect you, your devices,
and your information.
We use the data we collect for:
Transmitted user information will only be used for the aforementioned limited purposes, which the user has agreed to.
The specific data processed depends on the product or service in use. We encourage users to carefully review the agreements and related disclosures during the installation or use of any software or service. Regardless of the type of data or the jurisdiction where the data is received or processed, we uphold the highest data protection standards and implement diverse legal, organizational, and technical measures to secure user data. This approach ensures the safety and confidentiality of data and respects user rights under applicable law.
The data we collect varies depending on the products and services you use and may include:
PROTECTSTAR ONLY PROCESSES PERSONAL DATA FOR SPECIFIC, PREDEFINED PURPOSES THAT ALIGN WITH APPLICABLE LAWS AND ARE RELEVANT TO OUR BUSINESS OPERATIONS.
When you install or utilize our Services, they operate in your device's background or environment, helping predict potential threats and providing enhanced protection for you, your devices, and your data. For example, Protectstar may leverage this information to:
We also use the information we collect for other business purposes, including to:
We may also utilize Personal Data for activities where we have a legitimate interest, such as direct marketing, individual or market research, anti-fraud protection, or any other purpose disclosed to you when you provide Personal Data or as per your consent.
The data we collect from you may be stored, with risk-appropriate technical and organizational security measures applied to it, on in-house servers in Germany.
Protectstar will keep your Personal Data for the minimum period necessary for the purposes set out in this Policy, namely (i) for as long as you are a registered subscriber or user of our products or (ii) for as long as your Personal Data is necessary for connection with the lawful purposes set out in this Policy, for which we have a valid legal basis or (iii) for as long as is reasonably necessary for business purposes related to the provision of the Services, such as internal reporting and reconciliation purposes, warranties or to provide you with feedback or information you might request. Where required by law, we will delete your biometric data within three years of your last interaction with the Services.The selective extracted and transmitted data, as listed above, are stored for the duration, as is technically necessary. As a rule, this is only a few seconds before the data is securely deleted from our servers by a high-security deletion standard. In addition, for randomized sample testing, some transmitted installed package information is stored anonymized in the form of statistics.
In all cases, we follow generally accepted standards and security measures to protect the personal data submitted to us, both during transmission and once we receive it.
At Protectstar, we value your privacy. Rest assured, we do NOT share or sell the data you provide with any third parties.
We use administrative, organizational, technical, and physical safeguards to protect the Personal Data we collect and process. Our security controls are designed to maintain data confidentiality, integrity, and an appropriate level of availability.
If one of our Android app products is installed on your device, you may stop Protectstar’s collection of Personal Data from your device by uninstalling that product.
In accordance with applicable law, you may have the right to:
If you would like to exercise any of these rights, don't hesitate to get in touch with us as set forth below. We will process such requests in accordance with applicable laws. To protect your privacy, we may take steps to verify your identity before fulfilling your request. For some requests and where permitted by law, an administrative fee may be charged. We will advise you of any applicable fee before performing your request.
Some of Protectstar’s Services provide security features that parents may use to monitor their child’s activity online, physical location, or use of a registered device. These Services require parental consent, and we do not knowingly use the Personal Data we collect from children’s devices for any purpose except to deliver the Services. These products allow parents to delete their child’s profile at any time. If you believe we have collected information from your child in error or have questions or concerns about our practices relating to children, please contact us as described below. If you are under 18, you must have your parent’s permission to access the Services. Protectstar urges parents to instruct their children never to give out their real names, addresses, or phone numbers, without parental permission. If you learn that your child has provided us with Personal Data without your consent, you may alert us by contacting us as described below. Suppose we know that we have collected any Personal Data from children under 13 (and in certain jurisdictions under 16). In that case, we will promptly take steps to delete such information and terminate the child’s account.
Protectstar is headquartered in the United States (see Contact Us for addresses), and we have operations, entities, and service providers in the United States and throughout the world. As such, our service providers and we may transfer your Personal Data to, or store or access it in jurisdictions that may not provide equivalent data protection levels as your home jurisdiction. We will take steps to ensure that your Personal Data receives an adequate level of protection in the jurisdictions in which we process it.
We do NOT transfer Personal Data to countries outside of the EEA or Switzerland through a series of intercompany agreements based on the Standard Contractual Clauses in accordance with EU law and applicable EU regulations.
Where you purchase one of Protectstar’s consumer products, Protectstar Inc. acts as the Controller of your Personal Data.
When we process your Personal Data, we will only do so in the following situations:
You may submit a request to exercise your rights in Personal Data using the mechanisms explained under “What Choices Do You Have About Your Personal Data?” above. If you initially consented to our processing of your Personal Data, you may withdraw your consent using those mechanisms or by contacting us using the contact information below.
Protectstar® respects your control over your information. Upon request, we will confirm whether we hold or process data collected from you. You have the right to amend or update inaccurate or incomplete personal data, request deletion of your personal data, or request that we no longer use it.
As a data subject, you are entitled to the following rights:
Under certain circumstances, we may not fulfill your requests, such as when it interferes with our regulatory obligations, affects legal matters, we cannot verify your identity, or it involves unnecessary cost or effort. However, we will respond to your request within thirty (30) days and provide an explanation in any event.
The rights holder treats the data received from the end-user as part of this statement under the privacy policy for rights holders. This policy can be viewed at https://www.protectstar.com/en/legal-notice.
If you are a California resident, you may have additional privacy rights.
We reserve the right to revise or modify this Disclosure to reflect changes in our data practices. If we make any material changes, we will notify you by email (sent to the address specified in your account) or through a notice on our website before the change becomes effective. We encourage you to periodically review this page for the latest information on our privacy practices.
This Policy is reviewed and updated at least annually, and we will use reasonable means to inform you and, where necessary, obtain your consent for material changes.
If you have questions or requests about personal data or privacy, please contact us at https://www.protectstar.com/en/contact. You can make a request online or email us at privacy@protectstar.com