Privacy Policy

Pentangle · Last updated: February 2026

Pentangle ("we", "us", or "our") is a social shelf-ranking app that lets you create ranked lists of your favourite music, movies, books, games, podcasts, and TV shows, and share them with people you follow. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have.

1. Information We Collect

Account information. When you create an account we collect your email address, a username you choose, and optionally a display name and profile photo. If you sign in with Apple or Google, we receive only the information those services pass to us (typically an email address and display name).

Content you create. We store the shelf items (titles, categories, rankings, notes) you add, shelves you create, items you send to other users, and any profile bio you write.

Usage information. We collect standard app-usage data such as which features you use and when. We do not use third-party analytics SDKs.

Device information. Firebase, our backend provider, automatically records basic technical information (device type, iOS version, app version, crash logs) to help us maintain reliability.

2. How We Use Your Information

To provide and operate the app — creating shelves, ranking items, following other users, and sending items.
To display your profile to users who visit it or search for you.
To let you sign in securely via email/password, Apple Sign In, or Google Sign In.
To store your profile photo (uploaded to Firebase Storage).
To investigate reports of content that violates our guidelines.
To fix bugs, improve performance, and develop new features.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not use your data to serve you targeted advertising.

3. Third-Party Services

Pentangle uses the following third-party services, each governed by its own privacy policy:

Firebase (Google LLC) — authentication, database (Firestore), and file storage. Data is stored on Google's servers. Firebase Privacy Policy
Google Sign In — optional OAuth sign-in. Google Privacy Policy
Apple Sign In — optional OAuth sign-in. Apple Privacy Policy
The Movie Database (TMDB) — movie and TV metadata for search results. We do not share user data with TMDB. TMDB Privacy Policy
Spotify — music metadata for search results. We do not share user data with Spotify. Spotify Privacy Policy
IGDB (Twitch/Amazon) — video game metadata for search results. We do not share user data with IGDB. Twitch Privacy Notice
Open Library (Internet Archive) — book metadata for search results. We do not share user data with Open Library. Internet Archive Terms
iTunes Search API (Apple) — podcast metadata for search results. We do not share user data with Apple through this API.

4. Data Sharing

We do not sell or rent your personal information to any third party. We may share data only in the following limited circumstances:

With other users. Your username, profile photo, bio, and public shelves are visible to other users of the app.
Service providers. We use Firebase (Google) to store and process your data on our behalf, under a data processing agreement.
Legal requirements. We may disclose information if required by law or to protect the rights and safety of our users.

5. Data Retention

We retain your data for as long as your account is active. You can delete your account at any time from within the app (Settings → Delete Account), which permanently removes all of your personal information, shelf data, and uploaded photos from our systems.

6. Children's Privacy

Pentangle is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us so we can delete it.

7. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights regarding your personal information, including the right to access, correct, or delete it. You can exercise these rights by:

Editing your profile directly in the app (username, bio, profile photo).
Deleting your account from within the app to remove all stored data.
Contacting us at the email address below for other requests.

8. Security

We use industry-standard security measures including Firebase Authentication for credential management and Firebase Security Rules to restrict data access. No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. Continued use of Pentangle after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

10. Contact Us

If you have any questions or requests regarding this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:

Jonathan Zawada
jonathan.zawada@gmail.com