Beijing Zhidong Infinite Information Technology Co., Ltd. ("we", "us") operates StepForest. We take your personal information and privacy seriously. This policy explains how StepForest collects, uses, stores, protects and manages information when providing step tracking, activity analysis, streak records, forest and Green Space content, goal settings, Pro membership, account and feedback services, product usage statistics, and ads in versions that include them.
This policy applies to the iOS StepForest app and related services. Please read and understand it before using the app. If you do not agree with all or part of this policy, please stop using the relevant features; some features may not work if you decline the corresponding permission.
We collect only the information necessary for clear purposes: providing product features, keeping the service secure, and complying with applicable law.
| Scenario | Information we may collect | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Account sign-in and deletion (not offered in the current version) | Sign in with Apple authorization identifier, account ID, account status | Create and identify the account, sign-in verification, account security, syncing and restoring data, handling account deletion requests |
| Activity records and analysis | Steps, walking or running distance, active time, step goal, streak records, historical activity records | Show steps on the home screen, trend insights, streaks, goal completion and analysis statistics |
| Apple Health and motion sync | Steps, walking and running distance read from Apple Health after your explicit authorization, and step data from the device motion sensor | Read and organize activity data to show steps, distance, trends and streaks, and to make on-device walking reminder decisions when reminders are enabled. Not used for advertising, marketing or ad profiling |
| Avatar, photos and feedback | Photos from your library or camera, avatar, feedback content, contact details, device model, OS version, screen scale, app version, URL of uploaded images | Change your avatar, submit feedback, and help us investigate and resolve issues |
| Service security and operation | Device model, OS version, app version, system language, network request logs, error information, disk space status, local preferences | Keep the app stable, troubleshoot failures, prevent abnormal requests and protect the service |
| Product usage statistics (Firebase Analytics) | App instance identifier, app launch and session information, page or feature usage events, device model, OS version, app version, system language, and coarse region inferred from network information | After you agree to the Privacy Policy in mainland China, or separately opt in to Product Analytics in other regions, aggregate feature usage and stability analysis to improve the product. We do not upload steps, Apple Health data, avatars, photos, feedback content or account identifiers as analytics events |
| Ad display and measurement (free users of ad-supported versions) | Approximate location inferred from IP address; device or app identifiers, excluding the advertising identifier; ad views and interactions; app and device technical information; crash and performance information | Use Google AdMob to show and measure ads, prevent invalid traffic, and maintain the ad service. The app does not request tracking permission, does not access the advertising identifier, and does not use ad requests for cross-app tracking. Processing depends on your regional privacy choices. We do not send step counts, Apple Health or Motion & Fitness data, goals, avatars or feedback text to ad services |
Unless you authorize it or the law provides otherwise, we do not collect information unrelated to the features above, and we do not use information for purposes inconsistent with this policy.
About accounts: the current version does not offer account registration or sign-in (the entry points were removed from the app), and we do not collect new account information through them. The account rules in the table above apply to users who registered in an earlier version, and to the case where we offer accounts again in the future.
StepForest may request the following iOS permissions. You can manage them at any time in iOS Settings.
| Permission | Why we ask | If you decline |
|---|---|---|
| Health (HealthKit) | After you tap sync or connect, read steps and walking/running distance for activity statistics and trend analysis. The app never writes data to Apple Health | Historical activity in Apple Health cannot be synced |
| Motion & Fitness | Read device motion data when you sync, to record and display steps and distance | Step records and activity display may be incomplete |
| Camera | Take a photo for your avatar or a feedback attachment | You cannot take a photo to upload |
| Photo library (read and write) | Choose an image as your avatar or feedback attachment, and save images when needed | You cannot choose or save images |
| App Tracking Transparency (ATT) | The app does not request ATT permission and does not access the advertising identifier (IDFA) | Not applicable. Step tracking and all core features are unaffected |
StepForest may use local storage to keep your privacy consent state, goal settings, step cache, streak records, Pro entitlement state and interface configuration so the experience stays continuous and stable.
Firebase Analytics stays disabled until you agree to the Privacy Policy in mainland China. In other regions, it stays disabled until you separately opt in to Product Analytics. You can turn Product Analytics off anytime in Privacy & Data; an existing opt-out remains in effect. We use an Analytics configuration without advertising identifier capability and with IDFV collection turned off for Analytics. Product Analytics does not use IDFA, target ads, or receive health data. Ad-supported versions use Google AdMob separately; its identifiers and choices are explained below. Product Analytics settings do not control ad processing.
In mainland China, the app shows its own first-launch privacy notice. Firebase analytics and advertising services are not initialized before acceptance. After acceptance, they follow the existing membership, onboarding and ad-display conditions; no additional UMP flow is used. Outside mainland China, including Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, this notice is not shown and accepting mainland-China terms is not required to enter the app. Ad-supported versions outside mainland China use Google User Messaging Platform (UMP) for regional ad choices. UMP determines whether a European or US state message is required; ads are requested only after required choices are completed and UMP permits requests. Overseas ad consent, the separate analytics choice and system permissions are independent of mainland-China consent. The actual App Store Storefront determines the region, with device-region fallback only when Storefront is unavailable; interface language and time zone do not determine it.
To provide necessary features we use the following system capabilities and services. We require these providers to protect information under applicable law and our agreements, and to process it only as needed for the corresponding feature.
| Service | Information processed | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Apple HealthKit | Steps and walking/running distance you authorize us to read | Activity statistics, trend analysis and streak records. We never write to Apple Health |
| Sign in with Apple (not enabled in the current version) | The authorization identifier Apple provides and the account information you choose to share | Create, sign in to and restore your account |
| Apple StoreKit / App Store | Product identifier, purchase result, subscription status, expiry date, restore results | Process and restore monthly, yearly and lifetime Pro purchases, and determine entitlements |
| Alibaba Cloud OSS | Avatars, feedback images and corresponding resource URLs that you upload | Store and serve avatar and feedback image resources |
| Google Firebase Analytics | App instance identifier, app and device technical information, session and page/feature usage events, coarse region | After you agree to the Privacy Policy in mainland China, or separately opt in to Product Analytics in other regions, provide aggregate product usage statistics and stability analysis. We do not send health data, account details, contact information, photos or feedback text, we do not set a personally identifying User ID, and we do not use it for ad targeting, cross-app tracking or personalized advertising. Google's handling of its service data is governed by Firebase's privacy and security documentation |
| Google AdMob / User Messaging Platform (ad-supported versions) | Ad privacy choices; IP address and approximate location inferred from it; device or app identifiers; ad views and interactions; app and device technical information; crash and performance information. The app does not request ATT permission or access IDFA | Manage regional ad choices; show and measure ads; prevent invalid traffic; and maintain the ad service. Google and the ad partners listed in the privacy message may process relevant data according to your choices. Where required, you can review or change these choices in the app's Privacy & Data screen under Ad privacy options. See Google's Privacy Policy. |
We do not sell your personal information for money. In ad-supported versions, identifiers and related information may be provided to Google and its ad partners to show or measure ads. Some regions may define this processing as a “sale” or “sharing”; you can use the applicable ad privacy options to opt out. We otherwise share personal information with third parties only:
In ad-supported versions, free users may see banners in designated areas of Home, Analysis, and the bottom of the Home Day page. The Green Space tab has no dock banner. Pro members do not see ads. Your ad choices do not affect step tracking or Pro purchases.
Users in the European Economic Area, the UK and Switzerland can consent, decline, or manage ad purposes through the UMP message and reopen applicable choices from Privacy & Data in the app. Users in applicable US states can use the corresponding message to opt out of targeted ad processing that may be considered a sale or sharing. Other regions remain subject to applicable local requirements and your iOS permissions. The app does not request ATT permission or access IDFA. Ads that do not depend on IDFA may still appear, subject to regional choices and the app's ad-display conditions.
We do not give Apple Health data, step counts, distances, goals, or Motion & Fitness data to ad services or use them to target ads. You can review applicable ad choices in the app's Privacy & Data screen. Contact us using the details below to exercise other rights.
Pro membership includes monthly, yearly and lifetime entitlements. Products and prices are shown on the App Store. In-app purchases are handled by Apple's App Store; we never receive your card number, payment password or full payment details. We receive the product identifier, purchase result, subscription status, expiry date and restore results to grant, maintain or restore Pro entitlements.
If auto-renewal is enabled, you can cancel or manage the subscription in your Apple ID subscription settings. Refunds and billing are handled by Apple under its rules.
Steps, goals and streak records may be stored on your device, and are transferred to our servers when you use features that require a server. Feedback images and avatars may be stored on Alibaba Cloud OSS. We protect information with HTTPS encryption, access controls, least-privilege permissions, and log and data security management.
Our servers are located in mainland China. If you use the app outside mainland China, your information may be transferred to and processed in China, where data protection rules may differ from those in your country or region. We take the measures described above for such transfers, and we process the information only for the purposes in this policy.
Unless the law requires otherwise, we keep personal information only for as long as necessary for the purposes described here; for accounts created in an earlier version, account information is kept until the account is deleted. Firebase Analytics data is kept according to the retention period configured in our Firebase/Google Analytics project and Google's service rules, and is used only for the statistical purposes above. After you delete your account or make a deletion request, we delete or anonymize account details (if any), server-side activity records, avatars and feedback attachments; where feasible we also help delete or stop further processing of associated Analytics data. Information that law requires us to retain, such as transaction records or security audit logs, is handled after the retention period ends.
You may access, correct, copy and delete your personal information, withdraw consent, delete your account, or ask questions and raise complaints about how we process information. You can:
We will handle your request within a reasonable period after verifying your identity.
UK and EEA users. We use the information needed to provide the features you request, including local step tracking, Pro purchases and support, to provide the service; we rely on your consent before accessing Apple Health data and before enabling optional Product Analytics; we may process limited technical information where necessary for security, fraud prevention and legal obligations. We do not use health data for advertising, marketing or automated decisions. You may withdraw either optional consent at any time in the app's Privacy Center without losing access to core non-Health features. You may also lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office, or with the data-protection authority where you live in the EEA.
StepForest is intended for users with full legal capacity. If you are a minor, please use the app with the consent and guidance of a guardian. If we learn that we have collected a minor's personal information without guardian consent, we will delete it or take other necessary measures promptly.
Notifications are optional. After you allow notifications in iOS, you can separately control walking encouragement and goal reminders. Turning notifications off does not affect step tracking or access to records. Reminder decisions use synced steps on your device. Reminder state and health data are not sent to servers, advertising services or third-party analytics for this feature. We do not use remote push to transmit health information. Notification text does not show step counts; details are available inside the app.
The app stores reminder preferences, a valid step-comparison baseline, dates on which a goal was reached and dates on which a goal notification opportunity was used. These dates are retained when goals, switches or time zones change to prevent duplicate reminders. Uninstalling the app removes this on-device state. Background syncing and notification display may be delayed; scheduled reminders can only be cancelled based on data already synced.
We may update this policy to reflect product features, laws or regulatory requirements. For material changes we will notify you in the app or by other reasonable means. The updated policy takes effect on the effective date shown on this page.
Operator: Beijing Zhidong Infinite Information Technology Co., Ltd.
For any question, suggestion, complaint or request about this policy or personal information
protection, contact us through in-app feedback or email
[email protected].
Note: this policy reflects the current iOS StepForest feature set, including steps, activity analysis, streaks, Pro membership, forest and Green Space content, the profile page, avatars, feedback, local walking reminders, Firebase product statistics, and advertising in versions that include Google AdMob. Older versions do not gain an ad SDK from this policy update. Before ads go live, we will align App Store privacy labels and in-app regional messages. If we later enable remote push notifications, social sharing or new SDKs, we will update this policy and the relevant choices.