To deliver automated watering, environmental monitoring, and device control, we collect the following types of information:

A. Account & Identity Data

• Credentials: Username, securely salted & hashed password, authentication tokens.
• Contact details: Email address (used for password reset, critical alerts, and account management).

B. IoT Device, Sensor & Telemetry Data

• Sensor Readings: Soil moisture levels, ambient temperature, humidity, and light levels reported by sensors connected to your hub.
• Actuator & Hardware States: Pump, valve, and relay on/off states, irrigation durations, flow status, and manual override logs.
• Schedules & Rules: Automation schedules, moisture threshold triggers, and operational timers configured by you.
• Hardware Identifiers: Hub device ID, firmware version, and MQTT client identifiers required for device authentication.

C. Mobile Device & Technical Permissions

• Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE): Required locally during initial setup to discover and pair newly installed IoT Hub hardware with your Wi-Fi network. BLE is only used for local provisioning and is not used for location tracking.
• Notifications: Optional push notification permissions to send urgent alerts (e.g., low soil moisture, pump timeout, or device offline status).
• System Diagnostics: Application version, operating system version, crash reports, and network connection status for troubleshooting.

We process collected data exclusively for the following operational purposes:

• Smart Irrigation & Automation: Executing automated watering schedules and responsive threshold-based triggers on your physical hardware.
• Live Monitoring & Analytics: Providing real-time charts, moisture trends, and historical telemetry through your mobile dashboard.
• System Notifications & Alerts: Dispatching push notifications and operational status updates when attention is needed.
• Access Control & Security: Authenticating users and ensuring only authorized accounts can command your physical garden hardware.
• Customer Support & Maintenance: Assisting you with troubleshooting hub connectivity, sensor calibration, or firmware updates.

We only share data under the following limited circumstances:

• Core Infrastructure Providers: Cloud hosting, database infrastructure, and notification gateways bound by strict data processing and confidentiality agreements.
• Legal & Regulatory Compliance: When strictly required by law, subpoena, or valid legal order from competent authorities.
• Safety & Integrity: To prevent fraud, system abuse, or physical harm to equipment or individuals.

We apply industry-standard technical and operational safeguards to protect your data:

• Encrypted Transport: All communication between mobile apps, backend servers, and IoT Hubs uses TLS 1.2/1.3 encryption (HTTPS and MQTTS).
• Authentication & Tokens: Secure token-based authentication (JWT) with server-side signing keys and cryptographic password hashing.
• Access Control: Strict role-based access control (RBAC) and audit logging for sensitive system interactions.
• Data Resiliency: Regular automated database backups and system health monitoring.

Retention: Your account information and device associations are retained for as long as your account remains active. Historical sensor data is retained to provide analytics and is purged periodically according to our retention policies.

You have full control over your personal data and permissions:

• Access & Review: View all account details, paired devices, and sensor records at any time.
• Rectification: Edit or update your account information directly in app settings.
• Permission Control: Enable or revoke device permissions (Bluetooth, Notifications) at any time through your mobile operating system settings.
• Inquiries & Requests: Contact our support team for any privacy-related questions or data requests.

Sophic Gardener is designed for managing gardening hardware and is not targeted at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If we become aware that personal data from a child under 13 has been collected, we will take immediate steps to delete such data from our servers.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect improvements in our app features or changes in applicable regulations. Any modifications will be posted on this page with an updated "Last Updated" date. Significant changes will be announced via application notifications.

If you have any questions, feedback, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please reach out to us:

• Email: privacy@sophicgardener.com or hello@sophicgardener.com
• Organization: Sophic Gardener Development Team
• Location: Vietnam
• Support Hours: Monday – Friday, 09:00 – 17:00 (GMT+7)