Privacy Policy - SH Helper Data Protection

At SH Helper, accessible from your website URL (currently hosted locally), one of our main priorities is the privacy of our visitors. This Privacy Policy document contains types of information that is collected and recorded by SH Helper and how we use it. As a comprehensive data protection and online privacy policy, we are committed to safeguarding your personal information.

If you have additional questions or require more information about our Privacy Policy, do not hesitate to contact our Support Desk. Our website privacy policy ensures your data is handled with the utmost care and security.

1. General Information

This Privacy Policy applies only to our online activities and is valid for visitors to our website with regards to the information that they shared and/or collect in SH Helper. This policy is not applicable to any information collected offline or via channels other than this website.

2. Consent

By using our website, you hereby consent to our Privacy Policy and agree to its terms.

3. Information We Collect

The personal information that you are asked to provide, and the reasons why you are asked to provide it, will be made clear to you at the point we ask you to provide your personal information.

Google OAuth Authentication:

When you choose to sign in with Google, we collect the following basic information from your Google account to authenticate your session:

• Account Name - Used as a starting template for your public account name (which you can customize at any time).
• Email Address - Used as your unique, private identifier and for secure account management.
• Google Photo Exemption: To protect your personal privacy, SH Helper does not display, share, or store your real Google profile picture anywhere across our platform.

Direct Contact:

If you contact us directly through our Support Desk, we may receive additional information about you such as your name, email address, phone number, the contents of the message and/or attachments you may send us, and any other information you may choose to provide.

Tool Usage:

Most of our tools across various utility categories operate on a "Client-Side" basis, meaning we do not see or store the data you input into these tools.

4. Public Profile, Display Name & Avatar Policy

At SH Helper, we prioritize user privacy, data minimization, and transparent community interaction. This section details our legal framework, technical processes, and safeguards governing your public display name and avatar image.

4.1 Zero Google Profile Photo Disclosure

When you sign in with Google, your real Google account profile picture is strictly omitted and is never exposed publicly, stored in public databases, or accessible to other visitors or search engines.

4.2 Sequential Spectrum Letter Avatars

Unless you explicitly upload a custom profile picture, SH Helper generates an initial-based SVG Letter Avatar for your account. This avatar is dynamically rendered using a 120+ color spectrum palette where new users receive distinct background colors sequentially. This ensures complete privacy with zero biometric or facial data exposure.

4.3 Custom Profile Photo Uploads & Circular Cropper

If you choose to upload a custom profile picture:

• Client-Side Framing & Cropping: You are provided with an interactive circular viewfinder allowing you to zoom, rotate, pan, and center your photo directly within your web browser before submission.
• Circular PNG Processing: The final image is cut into a round circular format, minimizing unnecessary background data.
• Secure Cloudinary CDN Storage: The cropped circular avatar is transmitted over TLS/SSL encryption and securely hosted on Cloudinary CDN for optimized global delivery.
• No Automated Facial AI Training or Resale: Your uploaded images are used solely for your SH Helper account and community identity. We never sell, license, or feed user profile photos into external AI training models.

4.4 Where Your Public Name and Avatar Are Displayed

Your chosen Public Display Name (up to 25 characters) and Profile Picture (Letter Avatar or Custom Photo) may be visible publicly across the following areas of SH Helper:

• Tool Comments & Feedback: Displayed alongside public questions, reviews, and comments you post under web tools.
• Developer Studio & Creator Attribution: If you publish tools as a registered creator, your public name and avatar appear as the author credit on your tools.
• Account Header & Navigation: Displayed within your personal header and mobile navigation bar when you are logged in.

4.5 User Control, Modification & Right to Erasure

You have full autonomy over your public identity at all times:

• Real-Time Updates: You can edit your public name or replace your avatar picture at any time.
• Right to Deletion: Clicking "Delete Account" in your Profile settings permanently removes your user document from our Firestore users database and deletes local cached session tokens.

5. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect in various ways, including to:

• Provide, operate, and maintain our website and developer ecosystem
• Improve, personalize, and expand our website (adding new tools)
• Understand and analyze how you use our website
• Develop new products, services, features, and functionality
• Communicate with you regarding customer support, important security updates, or policy changes
• Detect, prevent, and mitigate security threats and fraudulent activities

Specific Use of Account Data:

The information collected through account authentication is used specifically to:

• Personalize your experience - Display your customized name and chosen avatar within the application
• Maintain your account - Provide secure access to your personalized features and developer studio
• Save your tool history and preferences - Store your usage patterns and settings for a consistent experience across sessions
• Enable account recovery - Use your email address for account verification processes

6. Log Files

SH Helper follows a standard procedure of using log files. These files log visitors when they visit websites. All hosting companies do this as part of hosting services' analytics. The information collected by log files includes internet protocol (IP) addresses, browser type, Internet Service Provider (ISP), date and time stamp, referring/exit pages, and possibly the number of clicks. These are not linked to any information that is personally identifiable.

7. Cookies and Web Beacons

Like any other website, SH Helper uses 'cookies'. These cookies are used to store information including visitors' preferences, and the pages on the website that the visitor accessed or visited. The information is used to optimize the users' experience by customizing our web page content based on visitors' browser type and/or other information.

Authentication Cookies:

When you sign in with Google, Google and Firebase may use essential cookies to keep you logged into your account across browsing sessions. These cookies are necessary for maintaining your authenticated session and enabling access to personalized features. They are automatically managed by the authentication providers and are deleted when you sign out or clear your browser cookies.

8. Google DoubleClick DART Cookie

Google is one of the third-party vendors on our site. It also uses cookies, known as DART cookies, to serve ads to our site visitors based upon their visit to our site and other sites on the internet. However, visitors may choose to decline the use of DART cookies by visiting the Google ad and content network Privacy Policy.

9. Advertising Partners

Some of the advertisers on our site may use cookies and web beacons. Our advertising partners include:

• Google AdSense

Each of our advertising partners has their own Privacy Policy for their policies on user data.

10. Third-Party Data Processors

We use Firebase (Google Cloud) and Cloudinary as our third-party data processors for authentication, database services, image CDN, and analytics.

Third-Party Infrastructure:

• Firebase Authentication - Handles the Google OAuth sign-in process and verifies your identity
• Cloud Firestore - Securely stores your public profile record (name, avatar URL), tool history, and preferences
• Cloudinary CDN - Securely hosts user-uploaded circular cropped avatar images over HTTPS
• Firebase Analytics - Helps us understand how users interact with our platform to improve our services

11. Third-Party Privacy Policies

SH Helper's Privacy Policy does not apply to other advertisers or websites. Thus, we are advising you to consult the respective Privacy Policies of these third-party ad servers for more detailed information. It may include their practices and instructions about how to opt-out of certain options.

12. Data Retention & Account Deletion

We retain your personal information for as long as your account remains active. You may request or trigger instant deletion of your account and all associated data at any time via Profile Settings or by reaching out to our Support Desk.

13. Tool-Specific Privacy (Important)

Measurement Tools:

These tools may require access to your screen's PPI (Pixels Per Inch) data to provide accurate measurements. This data is processed locally and never uploaded.

70% Client-Side Processing Rule:

Roughly 70% of our tools process data entirely within your browser (JavaScript). For any tools requiring server-side processing, data is processed in-memory and deleted immediately upon task completion.

14. GDPR & CCPA Data Protection Rights

We would like to make sure you are fully aware of all of your data protection rights. Every user is entitled to the following:

• The right to access – You have the right to request copies of your personal data.
• The right to rectification – You have the right to request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate.
• The right to erasure – You have the right to request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.

15. Children's Information

Another part of our priority is adding protection for children while using the internet. We encourage parents and guardians to observe, participate in, and/or monitor and guide their online activity. SH Helper does not knowingly collect any Personal Identifiable Information from children under the age of 13.

16. Security

We employ commercially reasonable security measures to protect your data. However, please remember that no method of transmission over the internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

17. Contact Us

If you have any questions or suggestions about our Privacy Policy, do not hesitate to contact our Support Desk. Our comprehensive data protection and online privacy policy ensures your information is handled with the highest standards of security and confidentiality.