Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

UAE News (the “App”) and the website at mjabbari.com/uaenews (the “Site”) are published by Mohammad Jabbari (“we”, “us”). We are the controller of the limited personal information described in this policy. This policy explains what information is processed when you use the App on iOS, iPadOS or Android, or visit the Site; why it is processed; who receives it; and the choices you have. It should be read together with our Terms of Use.

2. What we don't collect

The App has no user accounts and no backend of our own. We do not ask for, and the App does not collect:

• your name, email address, phone number or postal address;
• your contacts, photos, camera, microphone, calendar or files;
• your GPS or precise location. Your home emirate is something you choose yourself, and it stays on your device;
• health, biometric, financial or government-ID information.

If you email us, we receive your email address and whatever you choose to include. We use it only to reply and to keep a record of the conversation.

3. Stored only on your device

The following is stored locally on your device and is never sent to us:

• language, appearance, accent theme, text size and home emirate;
• followed topics, muted publishers, and feeds you add;
• saved stories, reading history and reading statistics;
• word-game progress and streaks;
• a cache of recent stories, images and weather, so the App works offline.

On iOS some of this is shared between the App and its widgets through a private app group on your device. Deleting the App deletes all of it. Your device's own backups (iCloud or Google) may include it, under your backup settings with Apple or Google.

4. Advertising (Google AdMob)

The free version of the App shows banner, native, app-open and optional rewarded ads served by Google AdMob. To show, measure and limit ads and to prevent fraud, Google may collect:

• your device's advertising identifier (IDFA on iOS, Advertising ID on Android), where you allow it;
• your IP address, which gives an approximate (city-level) location;
• device and app information;
• how you interact with ads.

Consent. Where the law requires it, for example in the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, you are first shown Google's consent form, managed through Google's User Messaging Platform. On iOS, the advertising identifier is used only if you allow tracking in Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompt. If you don't, ads are still shown but are not personalised using that identifier.

Change your choices at any time:

• in the App, under Settings → Ad privacy choices;
• on iOS, under Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking;
• on Android, under Settings → Privacy → Ads, where you can delete or reset your advertising ID.

The one-time “Remove ads” purchase turns ads off completely. For how Google uses data, see How Google uses information from sites or apps that use its services and the Google Privacy Policy.

5. Analytics and crash reports (Google Firebase)

We use Firebase Analytics to understand, in aggregate, how the App is used, such as which screens are opened and which features are popular. We use Firebase Crashlytics to receive crash reports so we can fix bugs. This involves:

• device model, operating-system version, app version, language and country;
• a random app-instance identifier, plus usage events and crash traces;
• approximate location derived from your IP address. Google does not log the IP address itself in Analytics.

We cannot see who you are from this data. Analytics follows the consent choices you make in the App. We do not use analytics data to identify you, and we do not combine it with other data about you.

6. Purchases and reviews

The optional “Remove ads” purchase is processed by Apple (App Store / StoreKit) or Google (Google Play Billing). We never receive your name, payment card or billing details. The App only asks the store whether the purchase is active on your account. If the App asks you for a rating, the system review prompt is shown by Apple or Google, and your review is handled under their terms.

7. Notifications and widgets

If you allow notifications, the daily briefing and breaking-news alerts are created on your device during background refresh. We do not run a push server, and no notification data or device token is sent to us. You can turn notifications off in the App or in your device's settings at any time. Home-screen widgets read data that the App has already stored on your device.

8. Content services the App connects to

To show you content, the App connects directly from your device to the services below. Like any internet request, each one receives standard technical information: your IP address, the time of the request, and basic device and app information such as a user agent. We do not control how they process it. Their own privacy policies apply.

When you open a full story, it loads on the publisher's website, in an in-app browser or your browser. That website may use its own cookies and trackers under its own privacy policy.

9. This website

The Site has no sign-up and uses no advertising or analytics cookies. Its fonts and images are hosted on our own server.

• Our hosting provider keeps standard server logs: IP address, pages requested, time, browser and referrer. These are used for security and for running the Site.
• The home page asks Open-Meteo and ExchangeRate-API, directly from your browser, for live weather and rates. Those requests carry your IP address.
• If you switch the page to Arabic, your choice is remembered in your browser's local storage. It never leaves your device.

10. Legal bases

Where data-protection laws require a legal basis, we rely on:

• your consent, for personalised advertising, tracking and analytics where consent is required. You can withdraw it at any time, as explained in section 16;
• our legitimate interests in providing a working, secure, free app, fixing crashes and preventing ad fraud, balanced against your rights;
• performing our agreement with you, such as delivering the features you use and honouring a purchase;
• legal obligations, where we must keep or disclose information by law.

We aim to comply with the UAE Federal Decree-Law No. 45 of 2021 on the Protection of Personal Data, and, where they apply to you, the EU and UK GDPR and U.S. state privacy laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA/CPRA).

11. Sharing and selling

We do not sell your personal information for money, and we do not share it with anyone except the service providers described in this policy (Google, Apple and the content services). We may also disclose information where the law, a court or a government authority requires it, or to protect our rights, users or the public.

Under some U.S. state laws, letting an ad network use your advertising identifier for personalised ads may count as “sharing” or “selling” for targeted advertising. You can opt out by declining tracking or personalised ads in the App's consent settings or your device settings, or by buying “Remove ads”.

12. International transfers

Google, Apple and the content services may process data on servers outside your country, including in the United States and the European Union. Where required, they rely on recognised safeguards such as standard contractual clauses.

13. Retention

• Data on your device is kept until you delete it in the App, for example by clearing history, or until you delete the App.
• Google keeps advertising, analytics and crash data under its own retention settings. Our Firebase Analytics data is set to Google's standard retention period, and Crashlytics keeps crash reports for up to 90 days.
• Support emails are kept only as long as needed to help you and to keep a reasonable record.

14. Security

Connections from the App use HTTPS wherever the source supports it. Your data stays in your device's protected app storage, and we keep as little as possible. Even so, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. We are not responsible for the security of your device, your network, or third-party services.

15. Children

UAE News is a general-audience news app and is not directed at children under 13, or under 16 where local law sets a higher age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided information to us, contact us and we will delete it.

16. Your choices and rights

• Ad consent: in the App, under Settings → Ad privacy choices.
• Tracking on iOS: Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking.
• Advertising ID on Android: Settings → Privacy → Ads, where you can delete or reset it.
• Notifications: in the App's settings or your device's settings.
• Delete local data: clear history in the App, or delete the App.
• No ads at all: buy the one-time “Remove ads”.

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to: access, correct or delete your personal information; restrict or object to its processing; data portability; withdraw consent; and complain to a data-protection authority. In the UAE, that is the UAE Data Office.

Because we do not hold accounts or identifiable profiles, most data about you is either on your device, which you control, or held by Google under the random identifiers described above. We will help with any request we can. Email us, and we may need information from you to verify the request. Requests about Google's data can also be made through Google's own privacy tools. We will not treat you differently for exercising your rights.

17. Third parties

We are not responsible for the privacy practices of publishers, websites, YouTube, Google, Apple, or any other service reached through the App or the Site. Please read their privacy policies.

18. Changes

We may update this policy, for example when the App gains new features or the law changes. The “Effective” date above shows the latest version. Material changes will be posted on this page, and where the law requires it we will ask for your consent again.

19. Contact

Mohammad Jabbari · apps.jabbari@gmail.com · mjabbari.com/uaenews