Privacy Policy

GitaPearls — Bhagavad Gita Verses Widget App

Last updated: April 4, 2026

Overview

GitaPearls is designed with privacy at its core. We believe that spiritual wisdom should be accessible without compromising your personal data. This privacy policy explains what information we collect (spoiler: none) and how the app works.

What Data Is Stored

The only data stored on your device is:

• Your favorite verses — Saved as a list of verse IDs in your device's UserDefaults (local storage only)
• Onboarding status — A simple flag to know if you've seen the setup instructions
• Personal reflections — Notes you write on individual verses are saved locally on your device using UserDefaults via an App Group shared between the app and widget extension

All of this data is stored locally on your device. It is never transmitted to any server we operate, never synced to iCloud, and is not accessible by us or any third party. However, like most app data stored in UserDefaults, it may be included in iCloud device backups if you have iCloud Backup enabled on your device (see Personal Reflections below).

Personal Reflections

GitaPearls allows you to write personal reflections on any verse. These notes are:

• Stored on your device using Apple's UserDefaults storage via an iOS App Group
• Shared between the app and its widget extension locally (not a network transfer)
• Not synced to iCloud — they do not appear in iCloud Drive or any iCloud-synced storage
• Not transmitted to any server we operate
• May be included in iCloud device backups if you have iCloud Backup enabled, meaning Apple's backup servers may receive a copy as part of your overall device backup

To prevent reflections from being backed up, you can disable iCloud Backup for GitaPearls in Settings → [Your Name] → iCloud → iCloud Backup → Manage Backups, or turn off iCloud Backup entirely.

If you delete the app, your reflections will be removed from your device along with all other local app data. Deleting the app does not remove any data already included in existing iCloud backups — those backups persist until you manage or delete them in your iCloud settings.

How the App Works

GitaPearls is completely self-contained:

• All 150 verses are bundled with the app — no internet connection required
• Widget updates are handled by iOS's native widget system
• Verse selection uses a time-based algorithm (seeded random) so all users see the same verse at the same time

Permissions

GitaPearls requests no special permissions. It doesn't access your:

• Location
• Contacts
• Camera or microphone
• Photos
• Health data

Children's Privacy

GitaPearls is suitable for all ages. We do not knowingly collect any data from children or adults. The app contains only spiritual text from the Bhagavad Gita.

Changes to This Policy

If we ever make changes to this privacy policy (unlikely, given how simple the app is), we will update this page and the "Last updated" date at the top.