Privacy Policy

Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how EpisodeTime collects, uses, stores, and shares information when you use the EpisodeTime website or the EpisodeTime Android application, package com.episodetime.app. It applies to visitors, registered users, and people who contact EpisodeTime or submit an account-deletion request.

Information We Collect

Depending on the features you use, EpisodeTime may collect information you provide, account and activity information, and technical information generated when the website or Android application communicates with EpisodeTime services. This can include your name, email address, internal user ID, profile information, authentication records, watchlist and viewing activity, preferences, community activity, device information, IP address, approximate country or timezone, and diagnostic server logs.

The Android application does not request precise or approximate Android location permission and does not collect GPS location. Country or general location may instead be inferred from an internet address by EpisodeTime or its infrastructure providers.

Account and Profile Information

When you create or maintain an account, EpisodeTime stores an internal account ID and may store your name, username, display name, email address, avatar, banner image, biography, website, social links, account role, profile visibility choices, account preferences, account creation and update dates, and last-login information. Optional profile information is collected only when you provide or save it.

Passwords submitted for email registration are stored as password hashes rather than readable passwords. EpisodeTime also stores authentication-provider and email-verification status where applicable.

Google Sign-In and Email Authentication

You may create or access an account using an email address and password or Google Sign-In through Google Identity Services, Android Credential Manager, and Google Play services. For Google Sign-In, the application sends a Google ID token to EpisodeTime for verification. EpisodeTime may receive and store the Google account identifier, verified email address, name, and profile image supplied by Google.

EpisodeTime creates authentication sessions for signed-in users. The Android API stores hashed access and refresh token records, device labels, session creation and use times, expiration times, and revocation status. Login and registration events may be recorded with an IP address, user agent, and device description for account security and troubleshooting.

Watchlist and Viewing Activity

When you use tracking features, EpisodeTime stores watchlist entries and statuses, favourites, watched episodes, viewing progress, timestamps, show or episode ratings, reviews, personal lists, notification choices, and related interactions. This information is used to synchronize your account across devices, calculate progress, display your library, support recommendations and schedules, and provide the features you request.

Watchlist, progress, review, and other profile visibility settings may allow some activity to be shown publicly. Review those settings before making activity public.

Approximate Location and Timezone

EpisodeTime uses timezone information to convert episode schedules and notification times into local time. The Android application sends the device timezone when requesting schedules or registering notification preferences. The website may use a timezone cookie, browser-provided timezone, Cloudflare country information, or an IP-based location service to infer a country, city-level area, or timezone.

This information is approximate. EpisodeTime does not request or use precise GPS location. IP addresses and country codes may also appear in security, support, and first-party website analytics records.

Device Information and Push Notifications

The Android application may create an installation identifier and send it with a Firebase Cloud Messaging token, account ID, platform, device manufacturer and model, application version, timezone, notification-enabled status, and recent-use timestamps. EpisodeTime and Firebase use this information to register the device, deliver requested episode or account notifications, manage notification preferences, and revoke notification access when you sign out.

The application includes Firebase Analytics. Firebase may process app-instance identifiers, device and operating-system information, application version, general usage events, and related diagnostics under Google's terms. EpisodeTime does not include Firebase Crashlytics or another dedicated crash-reporting SDK at the date shown above. The application removes advertising-ID permissions and does not request an advertising identifier.

Community Content

EpisodeTime provides community and contribution features. Information you choose to submit may include posts, comments, replies, reactions, likes, votes, rankings, reviews, group memberships, group activity, uploaded images, reports, follows, contribution history, and moderation records. Content posted to public profiles, public groups, discussions, rankings, or reviews can be viewed by other users and visitors.

Do not include sensitive personal information in public content. EpisodeTime may retain moderation or contribution records where necessary to protect users, document database changes, preserve discussion integrity, or prevent abuse.

Cookies and Website Sessions

The website uses essential cookies for sessions, login, security, CSRF protection, language or timezone preferences, and requested functionality. It also uses first-party visitor and session identifiers for website analytics. Those analytics can record page paths, searches performed on the website, viewed show or episode identifiers, referring domains, IP address and hashed IP address, country code, device category, browser, operating system, and a hashed user-agent value. Googlebot and other recognized crawlers are excluded from this first-party analytics collection.

Registered users may also choose to save named searches and search filters to their account. Browser settings can remove or block cookies, but essential website functions may then stop working correctly.

How We Use Information

EpisodeTime uses information to:

• create, authenticate, secure, and manage accounts;
• sync profiles, watchlists, favourites, ratings, and viewing progress across devices;
• convert schedules and episode release times to local timezones;
• provide search, schedules, recommendations, community features, and other requested functionality;
• send notifications users enable or request;
• maintain security and prevent spam, abuse, fraud, and unauthorized access;
• measure website and application use, diagnose errors, and improve reliability and performance;
• moderate community content and maintain contribution history; and
• respond to support, privacy, and account-deletion requests.

Legal Basis, Where Applicable

Where data-protection law requires a legal basis, EpisodeTime processes information as necessary to provide the service or perform its agreement with users; with consent for optional features such as notifications or Google Sign-In where consent applies; for legitimate interests such as security, abuse prevention, service improvement, support, and moderation; and to comply with legal obligations. Users may withdraw consent for optional processing, but this does not affect processing already performed lawfully.

When Information Is Shared

EpisodeTime does not sell personal information. Information may be processed by service providers acting for EpisodeTime when necessary to provide authentication, cloud messaging, analytics, content delivery, security, hosting, database, backup, or email and support services. EpisodeTime may disclose information when required by law, legal process, or a valid government request, or when reasonably necessary to protect users, EpisodeTime, or the public from harm, fraud, abuse, or security threats.

Information you voluntarily publish in public profiles or community areas is shared with the audience selected by the feature and may be indexed or copied by others. EpisodeTime does not send personal account information to TV metadata providers merely because you view or track a show.

Third-Party Services

Confirmed third-party services used by EpisodeTime include:

• Google Identity Services, Android Credential Manager, and Google Play services for Google authentication;
• Firebase Analytics and Firebase Cloud Messaging for application analytics and requested push notifications;
• Cloudflare for content delivery, traffic routing, performance, country information, and security protection;
• IPinfo as a fallback for approximate country, city-level area, or timezone inference from an IP address;
• The Movie Database (TMDB) and TVMaze for television metadata, images, schedules, and related content; and
• JustWatch where streaming-availability widgets or provider links are displayed.

EpisodeTime also relies on hosting, database, backup, and email or support infrastructure providers. These providers process information under their own privacy policies and contractual terms. TMDB and TVMaze requests are for television metadata and are not designed to include EpisodeTime account records, watchlists, passwords, or authentication tokens.

Relevant third-party policies include the Google Privacy Policy, Firebase Privacy information, Cloudflare Privacy Policy, IPinfo Privacy Policy, TMDB Privacy Policy, TVMaze Privacy Policy, and JustWatch Privacy Policy.

Data Retention

EpisodeTime retains account and feature data while an account is active and as needed to provide the service. Authentication sessions have expiration and revocation controls. Device registrations remain until revoked, replaced, deleted, or no longer operationally required. Support requests, analytics, security logs, community moderation records, and backups may be retained for reasonable operational, security, fraud-prevention, dispute-resolution, or legal periods.

Retention periods vary by record type and operational need. Deleted information may remain temporarily in backups until those backups are rotated. EpisodeTime does not promise immediate deletion where identity verification, legal obligations, security review, or backup handling requires additional time.

Security

EpisodeTime uses reasonable administrative and technical safeguards, including HTTPS encryption in transit, password hashing, hashed API session tokens, access controls, CSRF protection, session revocation, and security monitoring. The Android application stores account tokens in app-private storage and excludes its authentication-token datastore from Android backup. No internet service can guarantee absolute security.

International Data Transfers

EpisodeTime and its service providers may process information in countries other than the country where a user lives. Where required, EpisodeTime relies on appropriate contractual or legal safeguards for international transfers. Privacy protections and government-access rules can differ between countries.

Children and Target Audience

EpisodeTime's intended Google Play target audience is age 13 and older. EpisodeTime is not directed to children under 13 and does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If EpisodeTime learns that a child under 13 submitted personal information, it will take reasonable steps to delete it. Users who are not old enough to consent under the law where they live should use account or community features only with permission from a parent or guardian.

User Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to request access to, correction of, deletion of, or a copy of personal information; object to or restrict certain processing; withdraw consent; or complain to a data-protection authority. EpisodeTime may need to verify account ownership before acting on a request. Applicable law may permit or require EpisodeTime to retain some information or refuse part of a request.

Account and Data Deletion

Users may request deletion through the public EpisodeTime Account Deletion page. EpisodeTime may contact the requester to verify account ownership. Once verified, deletion may include profile information, watchlist entries, favourites, viewing progress, ratings, account preferences, and authentication or session records where applicable.

Limited records may be retained when legally required or reasonably necessary for security, fraud prevention, dispute resolution, moderation integrity, contribution attribution, or system backups. Public community content may require separate review where removing it would affect other users or the integrity of a discussion.

Privacy Policy Changes

EpisodeTime may update this policy when its website, Android application, legal obligations, or service providers change. The “Last updated” date identifies the current version. Material changes may also be communicated through the website, application, or another appropriate notice.

Contact Information

For privacy questions or requests, email [email protected] or use the EpisodeTime contact page. To request account deletion, use https://episodetime.com/account-deletion.