Privacy Policy
SurvivalKnife is a household preparedness education and planning app made by Atherton Labs LLC ("Atherton Labs," "we," "us," or "our"). This policy explains what information the SurvivalKnife mobile application ("SurvivalKnife" or the "App") and the website at survivalknife.ai (the "Site") handle, where it goes, and the choices you have.
The short version: your preparedness data lives on your device, accounts are optional, and we don't sell data or show ads.
1. Our approach
SurvivalKnife is designed to be useful when you have no internet connection. The core knowledge base, plans, inventory, and reference content are built to operate on-device. As a general principle we collect as little personal information as possible, name every third party that helps us operate the App, and do not sell personal information.
2. Data that stays on your device
Most of what you create in SurvivalKnife is stored only on your device and is never sent to us:
- Your household profile (names, ages, medical and mobility notes);
- Plans and checklists, including meeting places and contact trees;
- Inventory and supply lists;
- Saved materials and routes;
- Key contacts and addresses;
- Quiz progress and streaks;
- The Personal Vault, which is additionally encrypted on your device with a key derived from a PIN you set.
Deleting the App deletes this data. iCloud device backups may include this data under Apple's backup terms.
3. Optional household account
If you sign in with Apple to use Family Edition household sharing, we store on our servers:
- Your Apple account identifier;
- The name and email Apple shares with us (you can hide your email through Apple's "Hide My Email" option);
- Your household membership and role;
- Invite records;
- Subscription entitlement records derived from your App Store purchase.
Account data is stored on Cloudflare (U.S. regions) solely to connect your family's devices to one household. You can delete your account at any time in the App (Family Management → Delete Account), which removes these records.
4. AI features
When you choose to use AI plan generation or other AI features, your request and the relevant App context needed to answer it (for example, household composition for a plan) are sent through our server to Google Gemini. The App shows a disclosure and asks for your consent before the first use of any AI feature.
Google processes this data under its API terms; we don't use it to train models. The offline knowledge base, plans, inventory, and reference features all work without AI consent.
5. Maps and location
Map tiles, search, and routing are provided by Mapbox; map requests are subject to the Mapbox privacy policy. Your precise location is used on-device to show your position and navigate, and is only included in a network request when a route or place search requires it.
Hazard and environment layers (weather alerts, earthquakes, wildfires, air quality, flood context) query public U.S. government services by approximate area. Offline map packs are downloaded by state, which necessarily tells our server which state pack you requested — not where you are within it.
6. Feedback and diagnostics
If you submit feedback or content disputes in the App, we receive the message you write plus basic context (App version, the screen or content it concerns). If you email us, we receive the contents of that message and your email address. We do not use third-party analytics or advertising SDKs in the App.
Our website hosting provider may automatically log basic technical information (such as IP address, browser type, requested URL, and timestamp) for security, fraud prevention, and operational purposes.
7. Purchases
Subscriptions are processed by Apple. We never see your payment details. If you use a household account, we receive Apple's signed transaction info to confirm your subscription tier.
8. Affiliate links
Some shopping suggestions open Amazon with our affiliate tag. Amazon may pay us a commission. The link contains no personal data from the App.
9. How we use information
We use information to:
- Operate the household account, AI features, and map functionality you choose to use;
- Respond to inquiries, feedback, and content disputes;
- Operate, secure, and improve the Site and the App;
- Comply with legal obligations and enforce our Terms.
10. How we share information
We do not sell personal information and do not share it with third parties except the processors named in this policy (Apple, Cloudflare, Google for AI requests you initiate, Mapbox for map requests, Amazon for affiliate links you click), our hosting and email providers, and where required by law (for example, in response to a valid legal request) or to protect rights, safety, and property. If Atherton Labs is involved in a business transaction such as a merger or acquisition, information may be transferred as part of that transaction subject to this policy.
11. Children
SurvivalKnife's content is designed to be family-friendly, and Child View limits what children see on a shared device. Household accounts, Apple Sign-in, and purchases are for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13, and child profiles a parent creates stay on-device unless the parent shares them within their own household account. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us so we can delete it.
12. Your choices and rights
You can use the entire offline core of the App without an account, without AI consent, and without granting location access. You can delete your household account in-app, decline or revoke AI consent in Settings, and manage location permission in iOS Settings.
Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights regarding your personal information, such as the right to access, correct, delete, or port it, or to object to or restrict certain processing. To exercise these rights, email dev@survivalknife.ai. We will respond consistent with applicable law.
13. Data retention and security
Household account data is retained until you delete your account. Feedback and content-dispute messages are retained as long as needed to act on them. We use reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to protect personal information; no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure.
14. International users
Atherton Labs LLC is registered in Wyoming, USA, and our servers run in U.S. regions. If you access the Site or App from outside the United States, you understand that your information may be processed in the United States, where data-protection laws may differ from those in your jurisdiction.
15. Changes to this policy
We will update this policy as the App evolves and revise the "Effective date" above. Material changes will be highlighted on this page or in the App as appropriate.
16. Contact us
Questions about this policy or requests regarding your information? Email dev@survivalknife.ai.
Atherton Labs LLC, a Wyoming limited liability company.