Privacy Policy
Effective September 22, 2026
Old Friend is a text-message service run by Ba Thien Tran, an individual (“I”, “we”, “us”), not a company. It sends you one question a day by SMS and keeps the answers you text back so it can show them to you later. This policy explains what we collect, why, and what we never do with it.
What we collect
- Your mobile phone number, when you text us to join.
- The first name and handle you choose when you sign up.
- Your time zone, inferred from your phone number’s area code or from the city you tell us.
- Every answer you text us, and the questions they answer.
- The messages between you and the service, with timestamps and delivery status, so we can support you and fix problems.
- Which friends you have connected with, and which answers you chose to share with them.
We do not collect your contacts, your location, or anything from your phone beyond the texts you send us. There is no app.
How we use it
- To send you the daily question, an optional evening reminder, and replies to your texts.
- To show you your own past answers.
- To deliver an answer to friends you have connected with, only when you reply SHARE.
- To operate, debug and improve the service.
We do not use your answers for advertising, and we do not train models on them.
Who can see your answers
Your answers are private by default. The only people who can ever see one are friends you have connected with through the service, and only after you reply SHARE for that specific answer. Once a shared answer has been delivered to a friend’s phone, we cannot recall it.
Who else handles your data
We use service providers to run the service, each of which processes only what it needs: Telnyx delivers and receives text messages, Supabase hosts our database, and Vercel hosts this website. We may disclose information if required by law.
No mobile information will be sold or shared with third parties for promotional or marketing purposes.
We do not sell personal information.
Text-message program details
- You join by texting our toll-free number, usually from a friend’s invite link that fills the text in for you, and confirming with YES.
- Message frequency: one question a day at 1pm your time, a reminder at 8pm if you have not answered, replies to texts you send, and notifications when a connected friend shares an answer. Frequency varies with how you use it.
- Message and data rates may apply.
- Reply STOP at any time to stop all messages. Reply UNSTOP to start again.
- Reply HELP for help, or email hi@oldfriend.app.
- Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages.
Keeping and deleting your data
We keep your answers for as long as you use the service, because showing them back to you is the point. Reply DELETE and confirm, and we permanently delete your account and every answer, share and connection. Replying STOP pauses messages but keeps your data so you can come back. Our messaging provider keeps its own delivery logs for a limited period under its own policy.
Security
Your data is stored in a managed database with access limited to the people who run the service. We take reasonable measures to protect it. SMS itself is not encrypted end to end, and no system is perfectly secure.
Children
The service is for adults. It is not directed to anyone under 18, and we do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 13. If you believe a child has signed up, email us and we will delete the account.
Changes
If this policy changes in a way that matters, we will text you a short notice with a link to the new version before it takes effect.
Contact
Ba Thien Tran, operating Old Friend
hi@oldfriend.app