Onward Privacy Policy

Information we collect

• Account information. Your account identifier, name and email address when provided by your chosen sign-in method, sign-in provider, and email-verification status. If you use Sign in with Apple and hide your email address, we receive Apple’s relay address. Email/password accounts are managed by Firebase Authentication.
• Call information. The business name and number you enter, your callback number, scheduled date and time zone, call preferences and any notes you provide. We also keep call status, timestamps, duration, minute usage, and provider identifiers needed to connect and troubleshoot your calls.
• Phone verification. Your callback number, verification attempts and verification status. Twilio processes the number and verification code to confirm that you control it.
• Audio and speech. While a call is waiting, the business’s incoming audio is streamed through Twilio to our service and Google Speech-to-Text. If replay is enabled, we briefly store up to 12 seconds of recent audio and the detected greeting text.
• Purchase information. Apple transaction and product identifiers, purchase and refund status, an account token linking purchases to your Onward profile, and your available, reserved and used minute balance. Apple handles your payment details; Onward does not receive your full payment-card information.
• Service and security information. Our hosting and authentication providers process information such as IP addresses, request times, device or user-agent information and error records to operate the service and prevent abuse. Google Sign-In may infer your approximate location from your IP address and collect device identifiers, SDK usage and other technical information. Our authentication SDKs also collect diagnostic information for analytics.
• Messages you send us. If you contact us, we receive the information you include in your message so we can respond.

Your callback and replay preferences are also saved on your device. Onward does not need access to your address book or precise location to place a call.

How we use information

We use this information to authenticate your account; verify your callback number; save, start and manage requested calls; detect an agent and deliver optional replay; reconnect you by phone; credit and deduct purchased minutes; handle refunds; provide support; and protect the service against duplicate purchases, fraud and misuse. Google’s authentication SDKs also use identifiers, usage and technical or diagnostic information for analytics to understand SDK use, maintain service quality and improve authentication features.

We do not sell your personal information or use it for advertising or tracking across other companies’ apps and websites.

Audio monitoring and optional replay

Before you submit a call, the app asks for your permission to monitor business audio and explains that Google Speech-to-Text processes it. Monitoring is needed to detect when an agent returns. Onward plays an announcement to the business that audio is being monitored and, when replay is enabled, that a short replay may be recorded.

While waiting, Onward holds a rolling buffer of up to 12 seconds in memory. Speech recognition converts incoming audio to text so Onward can identify a likely agent greeting. This automated detection can make mistakes. With replay enabled, only the short recent-audio clip and detected greeting text are saved for the handoff. With replay disabled, Onward still processes waiting audio but does not save a replay clip or greeting text.

Monitoring stops when the call is handed off for you to join, and resumes if you choose Wait for me again. Onward does not record or transcribe your full connected conversation. The business and telephone carriers may have their own recording practices.

You can turn replay off before submitting a call. You can stop monitoring by ending or cancelling the call. Declining monitoring means Onward cannot perform that monitored call. Please use Onward only where you have the permissions needed for the call and its audio processing.

Who processes information

Onward shares the information needed to provide its features with these service providers:

• Google Firebase and Google Cloud: account authentication, call and purchase data storage, hosting, scheduling and private replay storage. Firebase Authentication also collects SDK diagnostic information for analytics; these SDK diagnostics are not linked to a user or device identifier. Firebase privacy information and Firebase SDK data collection.
• Google Cloud Speech-to-Text: business audio and speech-recognition results while you wait. This is an automated speech-recognition service, including AI processing. Speech-to-Text data processing information.
• Twilio and telephone carriers: destination and callback numbers, voice audio, call-routing information, call records and SMS verification. Twilio privacy information.
• Apple: Sign in with Apple when selected, App Store payments, signed purchase verification and refund information. Apple privacy information.
• Google Sign-In: authentication information when you choose Google as your sign-in method, together with the approximate location, device identifiers, SDK usage and technical information described above. Google uses this information for sign-in functionality, fraud prevention and SDK analytics. Google privacy policy and Google Sign-In data collection.

When providers process personal information on our behalf, we require them to protect it consistently with this policy under the applicable service and data-protection terms. They receive information needed for their role in delivering the service.

The business you call and the person answering your callback receive the call audio necessary for the connection. We may also disclose information when necessary to comply with law, respond to valid legal requests, prevent fraud or protect people and the service.

Information is processed in the United States and may be processed in other countries where our providers operate. Providers’ independent payment, telecommunications and security records are subject to their own privacy policies and legal obligations.

How long information stays

Your account, saved calls, call history, verified callback information and minute balance remain available while you keep your account, unless you delete it. We do not automatically erase call history after a fixed number of days.

Replay audio and greeting text are scheduled for deletion after 10 minutes and are also cleared when the call ends. Private audio storage has a one-day deletion rule as a fallback if the immediate cleanup is delayed. These are cleanup schedules rather than a guarantee that every provider copy disappears at the same instant.

We retain service, security and support records only as needed for their purposes and applicable legal obligations. Our providers may retain their own billing, telecommunications, security or backup records under their policies. Deleting an Onward account does not delete records held independently by Apple, your telephone carrier or a business you called.

Your choices and account deletion

To delete your account, open the account settings in Onward and choose Delete account. You will be asked to confirm and sign in again to protect your account.

Deletion blocks further use of that profile, cancels saved future calls, safely ends any active call, and removes your account, call history, private replay and greeting text, verified callback data and remaining minute balance from Onward’s active systems. The app also removes your locally saved Onward preferences. If cleanup is interrupted, deletion can be retried until it completes.

Minimal hashed identifiers for a deleted profile and its purchases remain to prevent previously credited or refunded purchases from being credited again. We also retain shared daily verification counters keyed by a hash of the phone number and the day, to prevent SMS abuse. These records do not contain your name, email, raw phone number, call details or minute balance.

Account deletion is permanent and does not automatically refund an Apple purchase. You may request a refund through Apple. Deletion does not delete your Apple or Google account. See the purchase terms for the effect on purchased minutes.

You can view your call history and minute balance in the app, change your callback preferences, or contact us to request access, correction or deletion of personal information. Depending on where you live, you may have additional privacy rights. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling a request.

Protecting information

Onward uses authenticated access to account data, private replay storage and restricted, short-lived replay links. Telephone connections travel through Twilio and telephone networks. No storage or transmission system can guarantee absolute security.

Policy changes

We may update this policy as Onward changes. The effective date above identifies the current version. If a change materially affects how we use your information, we will provide notice and obtain new permission where required.