Privacy Policy

heystranger is an anonymous chat service. This page explains exactly what we collect, what we do not, and how long anything is kept. It is written to be read, not to protect us.

What we never ask for

No name. No email address. No phone number. No date of birth. No payment details. There is no account to create and no profile to fill in. You can use heystranger without telling us anything about yourself.

Your conversations

Ordinary stranger text chats are not stored in the app database. Text messages are relayed by the matching service and are not written to the application database during an ordinary stranger chat. Message text is sent to the automated moderation endpoint configured for the service before delivery. The code defaults to Groq's Llama Guard endpoint, but the operator can configure another endpoint; the live production configuration is not visible on this page. If you file a report, the recent messages you submit are stored as report evidence, and the other participant is asked to submit their copy too. The service can therefore retain reported chat messages.

Messages to accepted friends are stored in the service database. The database migration describes a 15-day deletion job, but the checked-in migration does not enable that schedule. The operator must verify that the job is active before a 15-day deletion period can be promised. Removing the friendship or blocking the person deletes the friendship and its messages through the database relationship.

What we do store

• A random device ID. Your browser generates a random identifier and keeps it in local storage. It is a pseudonymous identifier, not proof that the service cannot connect your sessions. The service uses it for matching, blocks, bans, friendships, and reports. Clearing your browser data creates a new one.
• Blocks. If you block someone, we store the two device IDs so you are never matched again.
• Reports. If you file a report, the service stores the reason and the recent messages your browser submits. It asks the other participant for their copy and stores it if received. The code provides no report review dashboard or automatic deletion schedule, so the operator must define and verify report access and retention.
• Bans. If a device is banned, we store the device ID, the reason, and when the ban expires.
• Friendships. Who is friends with whom, as device IDs.

Content moderation

Text messages are checked automatically before delivery when moderation is configured. The checked-in code defaults to Groq's Llama Guard endpoint and can be configured to use a different moderation endpoint. Only the message text is included in that provider request. If the provider is unavailable or not configured, the code currently allows messages through; this is not a guarantee that every message is filtered.

Voice calls

Voice chat asks for microphone permission and uses WebRTC. Call setup messages and ICE connection candidates are exchanged through the matching service. Audio may travel directly between the two browsers or through a Cloudflare TURN relay when the network requires it. The application code does not record call audio. Connection details needed to establish a call may be processed by the other participant and the networking providers; the precise route depends on the browsers and network in use.

Your country

Your browser's time zone is used to guess a country label on your device. The label is sent as a matching preference and may be shown to your conversation partner. The app does not use an IP geolocation service for this label. Hosting and network providers may process your IP address and technical request data; their logs and retention settings are not defined in this application code and must be confirmed by the operator.

Cookies and tracking

The application code does not set first-party cookies or load an analytics service. It stores a random device ID, age confirmation, blocked-chat labels, friend nicknames, recent call history, and a few interface preferences in your browser's local storage. Temporary match preferences use session storage. Server-side blocks, bans, reports, friendships, and friend messages are stored separately as described above.

The current application build does not load the Google AdSense script or another advertising SDK. A Google publisher entry remains in the site's ads.txt file; that file does not itself load ads or set browser storage. If advertising is enabled later, this policy and consent controls must be updated first. Google requires publishers serving personalized ads in the EEA, UK, or Switzerland to use a Google-certified CMP integrated with the IAB TCF.

Who else sees your data

The application is configured to use these service providers; the live deployment settings are not available in this repository:

• Supabase — hosts the database holding blocks, bans, reports, friendships, and friend messages.
• Cloudflare — serves the website.
• Groq by default — the checked-in moderation code sends message text to its Llama Guard chat completion endpoint unless the operator configures another endpoint.
• Cloudflare Realtime — provides temporary TURN credentials for voice calls when configured. WebRTC media may connect peer-to-peer or pass through a TURN relay.

The application sends the data described above to these providers to operate the service. The app code does not implement a data sale. The operator should confirm each provider's live configuration, data processing terms, and retention settings before relying on this policy.

Age requirement

heystranger is for people aged 18 and over. We ask you to confirm this before using the service. We cannot verify anyone's age, and we do not pretend otherwise — this is a stated requirement, not a check. If you believe you are talking to someone under 18, please use the Report button.

Deleting your data

There is no account deletion feature. Clearing your browser data removes the local device ID and browser-stored preferences, but does not delete server-side records such as blocks, bans, reports, friendships, or friend messages. Removing a friendship deletes that friendship and its messages. The code has no deletion or retention schedule for reports and bans; the operator must establish and publish those periods and a process for handling data requests.

Changes to this policy

If what we collect changes, this page changes with it, and the date at the top is updated. We will not quietly start collecting something not listed here.

Contact

Questions about this policy, or a request about your data, can be sent to [email protected].