Privacy Policy
This is a translation of the Japanese original. If the two differ, the Japanese version prevails.
1. Our approach
Buddies手帳 ("the App") does not collect information that identifies you. No account is required, and we never ask for your name, email address, or phone number.
2. Information stored on your device
Your settings are stored on your device, in your browser's local storage. We do not create accounts, and nothing is synced between devices.
The following are stored only on your device and are never sent anywhere.
- Items you added to favourites
- Your display language
The following are also stored on your device, but only when you turn notifications on, they are also stored on a server, to the extent needed to deliver notifications. Nothing is sent while notifications are off.
- Your notification preferences (which kinds to receive, and whether to limit them to your picks)
- The members and graduates you picked (only when "Notify me about my picks only" is on)
- The members and graduates you picked (once a month only the names are sent to count how many people chose each; see "7. Analytics tools")
See "5. Notifications" for details. Clearing your browser history or site data will erase the settings stored on your device.
3. Access logs
The App is served from servers operated by XSERVER Inc. Those servers keep technical records such as access times, IP addresses, and browser types. They are used to keep the service running and to prevent abuse; the operator does not use them to identify individuals.
4. Embedded third-party services
The App may display content from the following services. Once displayed, each provider may collect information on its own. Please see each provider's privacy policy for details.
- YouTube (Google LLC) — video playback
- X (X Corp.) — displaying posts
5. Notifications
Only when you turn on "Receive notifications" in the settings screen, the information below — everything needed to deliver notifications — is stored on a server (a database at XSERVER Inc., the same provider that hosts the App). If you leave it off, nothing is sent.
- The delivery address issued by your browser, and the keys used to encrypt notification content
- The kinds of notifications you want to receive (blogs, official news, and so on)
- The language used for the notification text
- Only when "Notify me about my picks only" is on, the names of the members and graduates you picked
We do not create accounts or device IDs. The only thing used to tell devices apart is the delivery address. We do not collect your name, email address, phone number, or location. While "Notify me about my picks only" is off, the names you picked are not sent, and are not stored on the server.
The kinds and the language are kept on the server because Web Push requires every message received to be shown on screen, so the filtering has to happen before sending.
Turning "Receive notifications" off deletes the record on the server immediately. If delivery becomes impossible because the App was removed or notifications were disabled in the browser, the record is deleted automatically once that is detected. Delivery records are kept for up to 30 days to prevent duplicate notifications, then deleted.
6. Advertising
The App shows advertising through Google AdSense, provided by Google LLC. Google and its partners may use cookies to show ads based on your interests, and may collect information about your visits to the App and to other sites.
You can turn off personalised ads in Google Ad Settings. For how Google handles information in advertising, see Google's advertising policies.
If you are in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we currently do not show ads. Before showing ads in those regions, we will first put in place a way to ask for your consent to the use of cookies.
7. Analytics
The App uses Google Analytics 4, provided by Google LLC, to understand how it is used. Cookies are used to collect information such as the pages you view, your approximate region, and your device environment. It does not include anything that identifies you, such as your name or email address.
If you would rather not be measured, you can install the Google Analytics opt-out browser add-on, or disable cookies in your browser. The information collected is handled according to Google's privacy policy.
The App also uses Microsoft Clarity, provided by Microsoft Corporation, to study how easy the screens are to use. Cookies are used to record clicks, scrolling, mouse and tap movement, and page transitions, so that sessions can be replayed later and frequently viewed areas can be aggregated. It is not intended to collect information that identifies you, such as your name or email address, and text typed into input fields is masked by default.
The recorded information is sent to Microsoft and handled according to the Microsoft Privacy Statement. If you would rather not be measured, please disable cookies in your browser.
To understand which members are chosen as favourites, the App sends only the names of the members and former members you selected to our own server once a month (and once more if you change your selection during that month), and counts how many people chose each name. Only the names are sent; no account, device ID, cookie, or anything else that identifies you is included. The server stores only the month, the member name, and a number. Which person chose which member is not recorded and cannot be reconstructed afterwards. To prevent repeated submissions in a short time, a value derived from your IP address that cannot be reversed is held temporarily.
8. Feature requests
Only when you submit a request from "Building it together" on the introduction page, the following is stored on the server (the same Xserver Inc. database used by the App).If you do not submit anything, nothing is stored.
- The text of your request (1 to 200 characters)
- A random anonymous string created by your browser (used to prevent duplicate likes and repeated posting from the same device)
- Your IP address and that string, converted into a form that cannot be reversed
We do not collect names, email addresses, or accounts.Your IP address and the anonymous string are converted into an irreversible form using a private key before being stored; the original values are not kept.
Submitted requests are published after the operator reviews them.Only the text of the request, its status, and the number of likes are made public; nothing identifying the sender is published. Requests we decide not to publish are also kept rather than deleted, so that we can notice the same content being sent again.
To prevent abuse, the App uses Cloudflare Turnstile, provided by Cloudflare, Inc. When you submit, technical information such as your IP address is sent to Cloudflare. It is handled according to Cloudflare's privacy policy.
Records used to limit repeated posting are deleted after a certain period.
9. About the content
The App is an unofficial app that collects and displays publicly available information. It is not affiliated with Sakurazaka46 or its management. Rights to the articles, images, and videos shown belong to their respective owners. For requests about the content shown, please use the contact below.
10. Changes to this policy
If we change this policy, we will update the "Last updated" date shown on this page.
11. Contact
Individual developer
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