Privacy Policy

Effective September 9, 2026 · Applies to the HertzShift app for iPhone and this website, hertzshift.com

HertzShift is made by Ocean Path Ventures. This page explains what the app collects, why, who receives it, and how to ask us to delete it. We have tried to write it the way we would want to read it: specific to this app, and true to what the code actually does.

What we collect, and why

1. Crash and diagnostic reports

If HertzShift crashes or hits an internal error, the app sends a report to Sentry, a crash-reporting service, using the Sentry Cocoa SDK (version 8.58.2). A report contains the error and stack trace, your device model, iOS version, app version, free memory and similar device state, and whether the previous session ended cleanly (Sentry's "session tracking", which is how we measure crash-free rate). We use these reports for one purpose: finding and fixing bugs.

We have turned off Sentry's performance tracing and user-interaction tracking, so the app is not sending timing data about your taps and screens. Before a report leaves your phone, the app scrubs soundscape and pattern identifiers out of the diagnostic breadcrumbs, because names like "anxiety_release" say something about why you were listening, and that has no business in an error log. Reports are not tied to your name, email, or Apple ID. Sentry receives your IP address as part of the network request; we do not store it as part of the report.

2. Anonymous usage analytics

The app sends short usage "signals" to TelemetryDeck, a privacy-focused analytics service, using the TelemetryDeck Swift SDK (version 2.12.0). Each signal is an event name and a few parameters, for example:

• which soundscape or category was played, and for how long (presetPlayed, sessionEnded, playAllStarted, categoryViewed, presetFavorited);
• which breathing pattern, program, or brainwave setting was chosen (breathingEnabled, programStarted, brainwaveOverride, hapticsToggled);
• onboarding progress and the goals you pick on the goals screen, such as sleep, focus, or calm (onboardingStepViewed, goalSelected, onboardingCompleted);
• whether the Premium screen was shown, dismissed, or led to a purchase or free trial, with the product identifier (paywallShown, purchaseCompleted, trialStarted);
• whether you allowed notifications (notificationPromptAnswered), and when a free sample of a Premium soundscape ended (sampleExpired).

When you search the library, the app sends only the length of what you typed, never the words. Search terms in a sleep and calm app can be personal, and we chose not to have them.

TelemetryDeck identifies your device with a one-way hash of Apple's "identifier for vendor", a value that is specific to apps from Ocean Path Ventures on your phone. The hash cannot be turned back into the original identifier, and it is not linked to your name, email, Apple ID, or any advertising identifier. TelemetryDeck also records the app version, iOS version, device type, and a coarse locale. We use this to count active devices, to see which soundscapes and features get used, and to understand where people leave onboarding. We do not use it to build a profile of you.

We know that goals like "sleep" or "less pain" hint at health. They are collected as a category label attached to an anonymous device hash, not to a person, and we never combine them with anything that could identify you.

3. Purchases and Premium

HertzShift Premium is an auto-renewing subscription sold through the App Store. Apple handles the transaction. We receive a signed receipt that says which product is active (monthly or annual) and whether a free trial is in effect. We never see your name, billing address, card number, or Apple ID, and we cannot look up who bought what. Apple's handling of your purchase is covered by Apple's Privacy Policy.

4. iCloud sync of favorites and history

The app keeps two small records: the soundscapes you have favorited, and a play history (the soundscape's identifier and the date you played it). If you are signed into iCloud, these sync across your devices through CloudKit's private database. That database belongs to your Apple ID, is encrypted by Apple, and is not readable by Ocean Path Ventures. If iCloud is unavailable, the app keeps the same records only on your phone. You can turn iCloud Drive off for HertzShift in Settings, and you can remove the synced data under Settings, your name, iCloud, Manage Account Storage.

5. Notifications

The app can show two kinds of notifications, both created and scheduled on your phone: a reminder a few days before a free trial ends, and a "time to wake up" alert when a sleep program finishes. There is no push server. If you decline notification permission, the app works the same; the trial reminder simply cannot be delivered.

6. Settings on your phone

Preferences such as your chosen breathing pattern, haptics, and onboarding state are stored in the app's own settings on your device. They stay there.

7. This website

hertzshift.com is a static site served by Cloudflare. It sets no cookies and runs no analytics. Cloudflare sees ordinary request logs (IP address, browser, page requested) to serve and protect the site; see Cloudflare's Privacy Policy.

What we do not collect

• No account or login. We do not ask for your name, email, or phone number.
• No HealthKit. The app does not read or write heart rate, sleep, or any Health data.
• No microphone, camera, contacts, photos, or location access.
• No advertising, no ad identifiers, no advertising SDKs.
• No tracking across other companies' apps or websites. The app's privacy manifest declares tracking as off, and it does not ask for App Tracking Transparency permission because it has nothing to track.
• No selling or renting of data, to anyone, ever.

Who receives data

These providers process data on our behalf and are not permitted to use it for their own purposes. Sentry and TelemetryDeck store data on servers in the United States and the European Union respectively; by using the app you understand that data may be processed outside your country.

How long we keep it

• Crash reports: Sentry retains error events for a limited period (90 days by default) and then deletes them.
• Usage signals: kept as aggregate counts so we can see trends over time. Because the device identifier is a one-way hash, we cannot single out one person's records from the pool.
• Favorites and history: stay in your iCloud account and on your device until you delete them or delete the app.
• Email: if you write to us, we keep the conversation as long as we need it to help you, then delete it.

Children

HertzShift is not directed at children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect information from them. If you believe a child has used the app and sent us something, email us and we will delete it.

Your rights, and how to delete your data

Depending on where you live (for example under the GDPR in Europe or the CCPA in California), you may have the right to know what we hold about you, to have it corrected or deleted, and to object to how it is used. We honor these requests for everyone, wherever you are, and we will not treat you differently for making one.

In practice:

• Favorites and history: delete them in the app, or remove HertzShift's iCloud data in Settings. Deleting the app removes the local copy.
• Crash reports and usage signals: these are not linked to your identity, so we cannot match a request to a specific device by name. Email us with the approximate date and device model and we will delete any Sentry events that match. Deleting the app stops all further signals; if no other Ocean Path Ventures app remains installed, Apple also resets the vendor identifier, so a reinstall looks like a new device.
• Anything you emailed us: ask and it is gone.

Send requests to support@oceanpathventures.com. We answer within 30 days, usually much sooner.

Not a medical device

Changes to this policy

If we change what the app collects, we will update this page and the effective date at the top before the change ships. Material changes will also be noted in the app's release notes.

Contact

Ocean Path Ventures
support@oceanpathventures.com
hertzshift.com/support