Privacy Policy

Effective date: June 7, 2026 · Last updated: June 7, 2026

SwapChat is built on a simple privacy principle: collect as little as possible, store only what the app needs to function, never sell your data.

1. Who This Policy Applies To

This Privacy Policy applies to all users of the SwapChat website and application at swapchat.live. By using the Service you agree to the practices described here.

Our server is hosted in Falkenstein, Germany (EU) via Hetzner. If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), your data is stored within the EU and we process it in accordance with GDPR principles.

2. What We Collect

SwapChat does not require you to create an account or provide any personal information such as your name, email address, or phone number. Here is exactly what we store:

Data	What it is	Where it's stored	Why
Device ID	A randomly generated UUID created in your browser on first visit	Your browser (localStorage) + our server database	Links your inventory and balance to your device
Username	A display name you choose (max 32 characters)	Your browser + our server database	Shown to your trading partner during sessions
Inventory	Which virtual collectible items you own and their quantities	Your browser + our server database	Persists your progress between sessions
Virtual currency balance	Your Heart (💚) and Coin (🪙) totals	Your browser + our server database	Persists your balance between sessions
Server logs	Standard process logs (room events, errors) via PM2	Our server only	Debugging and stability monitoring

That is the complete list. We do not collect analytics, track page views, use advertising pixels, or build behavioral profiles.

3. What We Do NOT Collect

Your real name, email address, or phone number
Your IP address (beyond what Cloudflare processes in transit — see Section 7)
Your location or device type
Your video or audio stream — live video is transmitted directly peer-to-peer via WebRTC and is never routed through or stored on our servers
Chat message content — messages are relayed in real time and not logged or stored
Payment information — SwapChat has no real-money transactions
Cookies — we do not use cookies of any kind

4. Camera and Microphone

SwapChat requests permission to access your camera and microphone to enable live video trading sessions. This access is used only for that purpose.

Your video and audio are streamed directly to your session partner via WebRTC (peer-to-peer). In cases where a direct connection cannot be established, traffic may pass through a TURN relay server (see Section 7) — but is still not stored.
We do not record, capture, or store any video or audio at any point.
You can deny camera/microphone access and still use other parts of the app. Your video frame will show a placeholder to your partner.
Your browser will ask for permission each time you start a session (or remember your choice if you allow it permanently).

5. How We Use Your Data

The data we store is used exclusively to operate the Service:

Device ID + profile data — to save and restore your inventory and balance across sessions and devices
Username — to display your name to your trading partner during a live session
Server logs — to diagnose errors and maintain uptime; logs are not reviewed routinely and are rotated periodically

We do not use your data for advertising, analytics, machine learning training, or any purpose beyond operating SwapChat.

6. Data Sharing

We do not sell, rent, or trade your data. The only data shared with another party during normal use is:

Your username, which is sent to your session partner so they can see who they are trading with.
Your video and audio stream, which goes directly to your partner via WebRTC (or through a TURN relay if needed — see Section 7). Neither is stored by us or your partner's device beyond the live session.

We may disclose data if required to do so by law or in good-faith belief that such action is necessary to comply with legal process, protect our rights, or protect the safety of users.

7. Third-Party Infrastructure

SwapChat relies on a small number of third-party services to operate. Each may process some data as part of providing their service:

Service	Purpose	Data involved	Privacy policy
Cloudflare	DNS, CDN, DDoS protection	Your IP address and HTTP request metadata pass through Cloudflare's network in transit	cloudflare.com
Metered.ca	TURN relay for WebRTC when direct P2P fails	If a TURN relay is used, your IP address and encrypted media stream pass through Metered's servers; the stream content is not accessible to Metered	metered.ca
Hetzner	VPS hosting (Falkenstein, Germany)	All server-side data (database, logs) is stored on Hetzner infrastructure in the EU	hetzner.com

8. Data Retention

Your profile (device ID, username, inventory, currency) is retained on our server indefinitely so your progress is preserved between sessions. There is currently no automatic deletion.

Server process logs are rotated periodically and are not kept long-term.

You can permanently delete all server-side data associated with your device at any time by clearing your browser's localStorage for swapchat.live — this removes your device ID, and any future session will be treated as a new user. If you would like us to manually remove your data, contact us as described in Section 12.

9. Local Storage

SwapChat stores the following in your browser's localStorage (not cookies):

Your device ID (UUID)
Your username
Your inventory and currency balance (cached locally for fast load)

This data lives only on your device and is not shared with any third party directly. Clearing your browser's site data for swapchat.live will erase it.

10. Children's Privacy

SwapChat is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has used SwapChat, please contact us and we will delete any associated data.

Users aged 13–17 may use SwapChat with parental consent as described in our Terms of Service. The video chat feature means parents should be aware of and supervise younger teens' use of the Service.

11. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights regarding your personal data. We honor the following for all users regardless of location:

Access — you can request a copy of the data we hold about you (your device ID, username, inventory, and balances)
Deletion — you can request deletion of all data associated with your device ID
Correction — if your stored data is incorrect you can request a correction
Portability — you can request your data in a machine-readable format

Because we store no email address, we cannot proactively notify you of changes. To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the information in Section 12 and include your device ID (found in your browser's localStorage under the key swapchat_uid).

If you are in the EEA and believe we are not handling your data in accordance with GDPR, you have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

12. Security

We take reasonable measures to protect the data we store:

All traffic between your browser and our server is encrypted via TLS (HTTPS)
WebRTC media streams are encrypted end-to-end by the WebRTC standard (DTLS-SRTP)
Our server database is not exposed to the public internet
WebSocket connections include rate limiting to prevent abuse

No system is perfectly secure. During the beta period in particular, we cannot guarantee the security of data transmitted to or stored on our servers.

13. 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. We encourage you to review this page periodically. Continued use of the Service after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact

For any privacy questions, data requests, or concerns, please reach out via the feedback mechanism within the app or visit swapchat.live. We aim to respond to all data-related requests within 30 days.