The Short Version
Velari is a free AI news digest, available as a website and as iOS and Android apps. We collect as little data as possible. We don't require accounts, we don't use cookies on the website, and we don't track you across the web or across other apps. The mobile apps collect anonymous usage and crash statistics, described below.
What Data We Collect on the Website
Velari is a static website. We do not require registration, login, or any personal information to use the site. When you visit Velari, we do not collect or store any personal data on our servers.
The site uses your browser's localStorage to remember your preferences (such as light/dark theme and reading history). This data stays entirely on your device and is never sent to us.
Cookies
Velari does not use cookies of any kind — no tracking cookies, no analytics cookies, no advertising cookies.
Website Analytics
On the website we use Umami, a privacy-friendly, open-source analytics tool that does not use cookies, does not collect personal data, and does not track users across sites. It only provides us with aggregate page view counts. The mobile apps use Firebase Analytics instead, described above.
What Data We Collect in the Mobile Apps
The Velari iOS and Android apps use Google Firebase. Unlike the website, this means some data does leave your device:
- Firebase Analytics — anonymous usage statistics such as screens viewed, sessions, and app launches, together with your device model and operating system version. This tells us which parts of the app get used.
- Firebase Crashlytics — crash and error diagnostics, so we can find and fix problems.
- Firebase Cloud Messaging — only if you turn on new-issue alerts. Your device registers a notification token and subscribes to a shared topic, so we can announce a new issue without knowing who you are. We never store a list of devices, and turning the setting off unsubscribes you.
This data is tied to a randomly generated app instance identifier, not to your name, email, Apple ID, or Google account. The app has no accounts, so we have no way to connect it to you personally.
We do not use advertising identifiers on either platform, we serve no ads, and we do not track you across other apps or websites. On iOS the app therefore does not ask for App Tracking Transparency permission; on Android it declines the advertising ID permission that the analytics library would otherwise request.
Your bookmarks, reading history, and quiz progress are never sent to us. They are stored on your device, and are included in your own device backup (iCloud on iOS, Google backup on Android) if you have that turned on — that backup goes to your personal account, not to us.
Firebase is operated by Google, which processes this data on our behalf. See Firebase's privacy documentation and Google's privacy policy. You can stop analytics and crash collection entirely by deleting the app.
Contact Form
If you contact us via email, we will receive your email address and the content of your message. We use this information only to respond to your inquiry and do not share it with third parties.
Third-Party Services
Velari uses the following third-party services:
- GitHub Pages — hosts the website. GitHub may collect basic server logs (IP addresses, browser info) as part of their infrastructure. See GitHub's privacy statement.
- Google Fonts — serves the DM Sans and DM Serif Display typefaces. Google may log font requests. See Google's privacy policy.
- Google Firebase — used by the mobile apps, for anonymous analytics, crash reporting, and new-issue notifications. See Firebase's privacy documentation.
AI-Generated Content
Story summaries on Velari are generated using Claude by Anthropic. No user data is sent to any AI service. The AI processes only publicly available news articles to produce summaries.
Children's Privacy
Velari does not knowingly collect any personal information from children. Since we don't collect personal data from anyone, this applies equally to all visitors.
Your Rights (GDPR)
We hold no accounts and no personal profiles, so on the website there is generally nothing to access, correct, or delete. The mobile apps' analytics and crash data are tied to a random app instance identifier rather than to you, which means we cannot look up or delete an individual person's records — deleting the app stops collection and resets that identifier.
If you have contacted us by email, you can request that we delete your correspondence by emailing jafforgedev@gmail.com.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this policy from time to time. Changes will be reflected on this page with an updated date.
Contact
If you have questions about this privacy policy, you can reach us at jafforgedev@gmail.com.