RECESS
Legal
Privacy Policy
Last updated 30 July 2026
The short version
- We collect the minimum we need to run your account and make your creations.
- Your source photos are deleted automatically once your creation finishes.
- We do not use your photos to train AI models.
- We do not sell your personal information, and we do not track you across other apps.
- You can delete your account and your media from inside the app at any time.
This summary is here for readability. The sections below are the policy.
1. Who we are
Recess is an iPhone application operated by SaveSmart, a company registered in South Africa (registration number [COMPANY REGISTRATION NUMBER], registered address [REGISTERED ADDRESS]). In this policy, "Recess", "we", "us" and "our" mean SaveSmart.
We are the responsible party (data controller) for the personal information described in this policy. You can reach us at pete@savesmart.co.za.
2. What this policy covers
This policy covers the Recess iPhone app and this website. It explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and the choices you have.
3. Information we collect
Information you give us
- Account details. Your email address, and a display name if you set one. If you sign in with Apple or Google, we receive the identifier and email address that provider releases to us — including Apple's private relay address if you choose to hide your email.
- Photos and videos. The images you upload to make a creation, and any text you type when you describe an edit.
- Messages you send us. Anything you include when you contact support.
Information we generate
- Creations. The images or videos Recess produces for you, and the record of which finish produced them.
- Spark balance and ledger. Your credit balance and the record of grants, charges and refunds against it.
- Purchase records. Confirmation from Apple that a purchase completed, and which product it was. We never see your card details.
- Technical and security data. Account and device identifiers, session records, app version, and error and diagnostic logs needed to keep the service working and secure.
What we do not collect
We do not track you across other companies' apps or websites, we do not use advertising identifiers, we do not build advertising profiles, and we do not collect your contacts, location or health data.
4. Why we use your information
| What we use | Why | Lawful basis |
|---|---|---|
| Email address and sign-in identifiers | To create your account, sign you in, keep your account secure, and contact you about the service | Performance of our contract with you |
| Photos, videos and edit descriptions | To produce the creation you asked for | Performance of our contract with you |
| Spark balance and purchase records | To charge and refund credits correctly and honour your purchases | Performance of our contract with you; legal obligation for tax records |
| Technical, security and error data | To prevent abuse and fraud, fix faults, and keep the service reliable | Our legitimate interests in a safe, working service |
| Content reported or flagged for review | To enforce our Terms and comply with the law | Legitimate interests; legal obligation |
We do not use your photos, videos or prompts to train AI models — ours or anyone else's.
5. How your photos are handled
This is the part that matters most, so we have set it out step by step.
- When you upload a photo, it goes into private storage that is not publicly readable and not browsable by URL.
- To produce your creation, the photo is sent to the AI processing providers listed in section 6, who process it on our instructions solely to generate your result.
- As soon as your creation reaches a final state — finished, failed or cancelled — your uploaded source photos are deleted automatically.
- Your finished creation stays available in the app for a limited period (currently up to seven days) so you can save it to your device, after which it is removed from our servers. Anything you have already saved to your device stays with you.
- You can delete a creation yourself at any time from inside the app.
6. Who we share information with
We do not sell your personal information and we do not share it for advertising. We share it only with the service providers we need to run Recess, and only for that purpose.
| Provider | What they handle |
|---|---|
| Cloudflare | Hosting, the account database, and private media storage |
| fal.ai | Runs the AI models that generate your creations |
| Google (Gemini models) | Some finishes are produced using Google's image and video models |
| OpenAI | Interprets plain-English edit descriptions in the Photo Edit feature |
| Apple | Sign in with Apple, App Store purchases and payment processing |
| Sign in with Google, if you choose it | |
| RevenueCat | Confirms your purchases so Sparks are credited to the right account |
| Resend | Delivers sign-in codes and service emails |
We may also disclose information if the law requires it, to enforce our Terms of Service, to prevent fraud or abuse, or to protect someone's safety. If our business is ever sold or restructured, your information may transfer with it, and this policy will continue to apply until you are told otherwise.
7. International transfers
Our providers operate globally, so your information may be processed outside South Africa, including in the United States and the European Union. When information leaves South Africa or the European Economic Area, we rely on the safeguards available to us — including contractual protections such as standard contractual clauses — to require a comparable level of protection.
8. How long we keep things
- Source photos: deleted automatically as soon as your creation reaches a final state.
- Finished creations: available in the app for a limited period (currently up to seven days), then removed from our servers.
- Account details: kept while your account is open.
- Sign-in codes and sessions: short-lived; codes expire quickly and sessions can be revoked by you at any time.
- Purchase and credit records: kept for as long as tax and accounting law requires, in a minimised form.
9. Deleting your account
You can delete your account from Profile → Account settings in the app. When you do, we remove your email address and display name, unlink your Apple, Google and email sign-in identities, revoke every active session, cancel any creation still in progress, and delete your uploaded photos and stored creations. We retain a minimal, anonymised record of the account and its transaction history where we are legally required to — for example for financial records — and that record cannot be used to identify you.
Deleting your account does not automatically refund unused Sparks. See the Terms of Service.
10. Security
Your sign-in tokens are stored in the iOS Keychain on your device. Access tokens are short-lived and refresh sessions rotate, so a stolen token stops working quickly. Media is held in private storage and served only through short-lived, authenticated links. Data is encrypted in transit. No system is perfectly secure, but we take this seriously and will tell you and the Information Regulator if a breach affects your personal information, as the law requires.
11. Your rights
Under South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), and under the GDPR if you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, you have the right to:
- ask what personal information we hold about you and get a copy of it;
- have inaccurate information corrected;
- have your information deleted;
- object to or ask us to restrict certain processing;
- receive your information in a portable format;
- withdraw consent where we relied on it, without affecting what we did before you withdrew it; and
- complain to a regulator.
Email pete@savesmart.co.za to exercise any of these. We will respond within the time the law allows. If you are unhappy with our response, you can complain to the Information Regulator of South Africa (inforegulator.org.za) or, in the EEA or UK, to your local supervisory authority.
12. Children
Recess is not for children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If you are between 13 and 18, you may only use Recess with the consent of a parent or guardian. If you believe a child has given us personal information, email us and we will delete it.
13. Photos of other people
If you upload a photo that includes someone else, you are responsible for having their permission. Please do not upload photos of other people without their consent, and never upload photos of children who are not in your care.
14. Changes to this policy
If we change this policy we will update the date at the top of this page. If the change is significant, we will tell you in the app or by email before it takes effect.
15. Contact us
Questions, requests or complaints: pete@savesmart.co.za.