privacy policy

account information — information you provide when creating or updating your account, including your name, phone number, profile photo, age or eligibility information, account settings, and login and authentication information.

verification information — phone verification status; school, work, or organization email address; organization domain and name; organization verification status; and verification timestamps.

organization verification only confirms access to an eligible email domain. it does not mean hytch performed a background check, safety screening, criminal history check, employment check, or identity investigation.

location and route information — approximate or precise location depending on your device settings; route origin and destination; pickup and dropoff areas; route timing and status; detour estimates; route match information; and live route activity while a route is active.

vehicle and driving information — if you use driver features: vehicle make, model, color, and license plate; seat availability; max detour preference; driver route details; and driver activity status.

matching preferences — gender and same-gender matching preference, which are used privately for matching and are not displayed on your public profile.

optional savings information — after a completed route, an amount you choose to record for voluntary expense sharing that occurred outside hytch, along with hytch-generated comparison estimates. this information never affects matching or route access.

user activity and interaction information — route searches; shared routes; route requests; accepted, declined, cancelled, expired, or completed route activity; blocked users; reports; support requests; app interactions; and feature usage.

communications and support information — if you contact hytch or submit a report: your message, report details, screenshots or attachments you provide, contact information, and support history.

device and technical information — device type, operating system, app version, IP address, crash logs, diagnostics, performance data, and security and fraud prevention signals.

hytch may use information to:

• create and manage accounts;
• verify phone numbers and organization emails;
• provide route matching and show relevant route results;
• help users request, accept, decline, cancel, and manage routes;
• display route activity and history;
• estimate pickup distance, detour time, and route overlap;
• provide private post-route savings estimates when you choose to record voluntary expense sharing;
• provide safety, report, and block features;
• personalize app settings and saved places;
• provide support;
• detect fraud, abuse, spam, unsafe behavior, and policy violations;
• improve app performance, reliability, and debug crashes;
• comply with legal obligations;
• enforce our terms, community guidelines, and safety rules.

hytch shares limited information with other users when needed to coordinate route activity. depending on the feature and route status, other users may see:

• your first name or profile name and profile photo;
• phone verification status;
• organization verification badge, such as “UIC verified”;
• route origin or pickup area, and destination or dropoff area;
• estimated pickup time and route status;
• vehicle information, if you are a driver and a request is accepted;
• route-related details needed to coordinate the shared route.

hytch does not intentionally show your full organization email to other users. hytch may show an organization badge or organization name instead.

hytch may share information with third-party service providers that help operate the app, such as hosting and database providers (including supabase), authentication providers, SMS or phone verification providers, email verification providers, map and location service providers (including google maps platform), analytics providers, crash reporting providers, customer support tools, and app store platforms.

these providers may process information only as needed to provide services to hytch, subject to their own terms and privacy practices.

hytch may share information if we believe it is reasonably necessary to comply with law, legal process, or government requests; enforce our terms or community guidelines; investigate fraud, abuse, security issues, or safety concerns; protect the rights, safety, and property of hytch, users, or others; respond to emergencies; or support a merger, acquisition, financing, restructuring, or sale of assets.

hytch needs location and route information for core features.

you can control location permissions through your device settings. if you disable location access, some hytch features may not work properly, including route matching, pickup estimates, live route activity, and nearby route discovery.

hytch may use approximate or precise location depending on your permission settings and the feature being used.

hytch does not process ride payments, fares, tips, payouts, or driver earnings.

if users choose to discuss optional cost-sharing outside hytch, that transaction is not processed by hytch and is not covered by hytch payment systems.

after a completed route, you may optionally record an amount that already changed hands outside hytch. the record is used only for your savings summary and does not create, enforce, or prove a payment obligation.

hytch keeps information for as long as reasonably necessary to provide the service, maintain accounts, support safety features, comply with legal obligations, prevent fraud or abuse, resolve disputes, enforce terms, and improve the app.

some route, report, safety, or account information may be retained after account deletion where required or permitted for legal, safety, security, fraud prevention, or dispute resolution reasons.

you may delete your account in the app (profile → account → danger zone) or by contacting hytch at support@hytchapp.com.

when your account is deleted, hytch will delete or de-identify account information unless retention is required or permitted for legal, safety, security, fraud prevention, or dispute resolution reasons.

depending on your location and applicable law, you may have choices or rights related to your information, such as accessing certain information, correcting inaccurate information, deleting your account, changing location permissions, opting out of certain communications, and contacting hytch about privacy questions.

to make a privacy request, contact hytch at privacy@hytchapp.com.

hytch is not intended for users under 18. hytch does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 18. if you believe a child has provided information to hytch, contact us so we can take appropriate action.

hytch uses reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect information. however, no system is perfectly secure. hytch cannot guarantee that information will always remain secure.

hytch may contain links or connections to third-party services, such as map providers, app stores, websites, or support tools. hytch is not responsible for the privacy practices of third parties.

hytch may update this privacy policy from time to time. if changes are material, hytch may provide notice through the app, website, or other reasonable means. your continued use of hytch after the updated policy becomes effective means you acknowledge the updated policy.

for privacy questions or requests, contact hytch at privacy@hytchapp.com.