Privacy Policy

Effective May 30, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains what information CartSignal collects across our website (shoppingcartsignal.com) and mobile applications (Android and iOS), how we use it, and your choices. By using CartSignal you agree to this policy.

1. Information We Collect

Account information — When you register, we collect your email address, display name, home ZIP code, and home state.

Price submissions — When you submit a price, we record the store, product, reported price, and date observed. Submissions are associated with your account for contributor tier and activity tracking.

Product request photos — If you attach a photo to a product request, the image is uploaded to secure cloud storage. Photos are used solely for admin review to identify the product and are deleted once the request is approved or rejected.

Location data — The mobile app may request your device location to find nearby stores and show relevant local prices. Location is used only in the moment you request it and is not stored on our servers or tracked in the background.

Usage data — We track basic account activity such as your submission count and contributor tier level.

2. Information Stored on Your Device

The CartSignal mobile app stores a small amount of data locally on your device using encrypted secure storage:

  • Your authentication session token (so you stay logged in)
  • Your preferred ZIP code (for local price lookups)
  • Your recent search history (up to 6 terms, stored only on your device)

This data never leaves your device except as necessary to authenticate with CartSignal servers. You can clear it by signing out or uninstalling the app.

3. Cookies and Session Storage (Web)

The CartSignal website uses cookies solely for authentication and session management. Specifically:

  • Authentication cookies — Set by Supabase Auth when you sign in to keep your session active. These are essential to the operation of the service and cannot be disabled while you remain signed in.

We do not use advertising cookies, cross-site tracking cookies, or analytics cookies. If you sign out, authentication cookies are cleared. You can also clear cookies through your browser settings, which will sign you out of CartSignal.

4. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Authenticate and manage your account across web and mobile
  • Display relevant local grocery prices to you and other users
  • Calculate your contributor tier based on submission activity
  • Locate nearby stores when you use location-based features
  • Review product requests and identify products from submitted photos
  • Send account-related emails such as email confirmation, password reset, and service notices

We do not use your information for advertising or sell it to third parties.

5. Information Visible to Other Users

Price submissions — including the store, product, price, and date reported — are visible to all CartSignal users. Submissions are not publicly linked to your email address or full name. Your display name is used only within your account and is not shown on price listings.

6. Third-Party Service Providers

CartSignal relies on the following third-party services to operate:

  • Supabase (supabase.com) — database storage, user authentication, and file storage for product images
  • Vercel (vercel.com) — web application hosting and serverless functions; Vercel may log request metadata such as IP addresses for security and performance purposes
  • Resend (resend.com) — transactional email delivery
  • Expo / EAS (expo.dev) — mobile app build and distribution infrastructure
  • Open Food Facts (openfoodfacts.org) — public product database used to pre-fill product information when you scan a barcode; no personal data is sent to Open Food Facts

These providers process your data solely to deliver CartSignal's service and are governed by their own privacy policies.

7. Data Retention

We retain your account information and price submissions until you delete your account. Upon account deletion, your personal information is removed; past price submissions are anonymized and may remain in the database as community data. Product request photos are deleted from storage once the associated request is approved or rejected.

8. Your Rights and Choices

You may access, update, or request deletion of your personal information at any time by managing your account on the Profile page or by contacting us at support@shoppingcartsignal.com. Note that certain emails — such as password reset and email confirmation — are essential to account security and cannot be disabled.

Mobile app permissions (camera, location, photo library) can be revoked at any time through your device settings. Revoking a permission disables only the associated feature.

9. Security

Passwords are hashed by Supabase Auth and never stored in plain text. All data is transmitted over HTTPS. Session tokens on mobile devices are stored in encrypted secure storage. Product images are stored in access-controlled cloud storage. While we take reasonable steps to protect your information, no system is completely secure and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. Children's Privacy

CartSignal is not directed to children under 13 and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have inadvertently done so, please contact us and we will delete the information promptly.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as CartSignal evolves. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date. Continued use of CartSignal after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.

12. Contact Us

Privacy questions or data requests? Email us at support@shoppingcartsignal.com.