theciples ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the rights you have over your data when you use the theciples platform at theciples.com and our mobile applications (collectively, the "Service").
theciples is operated from the Republic of the Philippines. As a personal information controller under the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10173) and its Implementing Rules and Regulations, enforced by the National Privacy Commission (NPC), we are committed to protecting your personal data in accordance with Philippine law. For users outside the Philippines, we also respect applicable international privacy laws including the GDPR (EU) and CCPA (California).
By creating an account and using theciples, you give your explicit consent to the collection, processing, and use of your personal data — including sensitive personal information such as your religious beliefs and affiliations — as described in this Privacy Policy. You may withdraw this consent at any time (see Section 7.5). If you do not agree to this policy, please do not use the Service.
Under Section 3(l) of the Data Privacy Act of 2012, the following information we collect is classified as sensitive personal information and is subject to heightened protection:
We process this sensitive personal information based on your explicit consent given when you create your account and use the Service. You may withdraw this consent at any time by deleting your account or contacting privacy@theciples.com.
We process your personal data based on the following legal grounds under Sections 12 and 13 of the Data Privacy Act of 2012:
Where we rely on consent as the legal basis, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.
Content you post publicly is visible to all theciples users. Content you share with a specific group or church is visible to members of that group or church. Anonymous prayer requests hide your identity from other users, including group leaders, unless you choose to reveal it.
We share data with trusted third-party service providers who help us operate the platform. Some of these providers are located outside the Republic of the Philippines. In accordance with Sections 21 and 22 of the Data Privacy Act of 2012, we disclose that your personal data may be transferred to and processed in the United States and other countries by the following providers:
We have entered into or rely on data processing agreements with each provider to ensure your data is protected to a standard at least equivalent to that required under Philippine law. All service providers are contractually prohibited from using your data for any purpose other than providing their services to us.
We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or government authority, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect the safety of any person, prevent fraud, or enforce our Terms of Service.
theciples does not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to any third party for marketing or advertising purposes. This applies to all users globally, including users in California under the CCPA and users in the EU under the GDPR.
We treat prayer requests as sensitive personal content. Anonymous prayer requests are stored with your user ID attached internally for moderation purposes only, but your identity is never exposed to other users. We do not use the content of prayer requests for advertising or AI model training.
Your private prayer journal is encrypted at the application level before it is stored. Only you can access your journal entries. theciples staff cannot read the contents of your private journal.
Direct messages between users are encrypted in storage. theciples does not read private messages except when required to investigate a report of a serious policy violation (such as harassment, threats, or child safety concerns).
If you share content that suggests you may be in crisis, our systems may flag it for review by a trained moderation team member. We may reach out to provide support resources. We handle this content with the highest level of care and confidentiality.
theciples takes the privacy of users under 18 seriously. Under the Data Privacy Act of 2012, the processing of personal data of minors requires the consent of their parent or legal guardian.
We use the information we collect to:
As a user of theciples, you have the following rights under the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (RA 10173) and, where applicable, international privacy laws. To exercise any of these rights, contact privacy@theciples.com. We will respond within 30 days.
You have the right to be informed of how your personal data is collected, processed, and used, including the legal basis for processing. This Privacy Policy fulfills that obligation.
You can request a copy of all personal data we hold about you. We will provide this as a downloadable file within 30 days of your request.
You can update most of your information directly in your account settings. For corrections we cannot make available in-app, contact us at privacy@theciples.com.
You can permanently delete your account at any time from Settings > Account > Delete Account. See Section 9 for what happens to your data upon deletion. You may also request erasure by emailing privacy@theciples.com.
You may withdraw your consent to the processing of your personal data at any time, including sensitive personal information such as your religious affiliation. Withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal. You may also object to or request restriction of specific processing activities. To withdraw consent or object, contact privacy@theciples.com or delete your account.
You may request your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format for transfer to another service.
You have the right to be indemnified for damages sustained as a result of inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, false, unlawfully obtained, or unauthorized use of your personal data. If you believe your data rights have been violated and you have suffered damages, you may file a complaint with the National Privacy Commission and/or pursue legal action under applicable Philippine law.
If you believe your data privacy rights have been violated, you have the right to lodge a complaint directly with the National Privacy Commission of the Philippines:
If you are located in the European Economic Area, you also have rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), including the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory data protection authority.
California residents have the right to know what personal information we collect, request deletion, and opt out of the sale of personal information. As stated in Section 3.4, theciples does not sell personal information.
Our web application uses essential cookies required for authentication and session management. We do not use advertising cookies or third-party tracking cookies. You may disable cookies in your browser, but this will prevent you from logging in.
We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account:
We may retain certain records longer if required by law or to resolve an active dispute.
We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your data, including:
No system is 100% secure. In the event of a personal data breach that is likely to cause harm to affected users, we will notify the National Privacy Commission (NPC) within 72 hours of discovery as required by RA 10173 and NPC Circular 16-03. Affected users will also be notified within 72 hours by email where required.
theciples may display links to external websites, YouTube videos, or other third-party content. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before interacting with their content.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make significant changes, we will notify you by email and by posting a notice in the app at least 30 days before the change takes effect. For changes that affect the legal basis of processing or your rights, we will request fresh consent where required. If you do not agree to the updated policy, you may close your account before the effective date.
In compliance with the Data Privacy Act of 2012, theciples has designated a Data Protection Officer (DPO) responsible for overseeing data privacy compliance and handling privacy-related concerns. The DPO is registered with the National Privacy Commission as required under NPC Circular 17-01.
You may contact the DPO directly for any concerns about how your personal data is handled.
Because theciples processes sensitive personal information (religious beliefs and affiliations under Section 3(l)(3) of RA 10173), we are required to register with the National Privacy Commission prior to processing any personal data, regardless of the number of data subjects. theciples has completed or is in the process of completing NPC registration as required under NPC Circular 17-01 and its amendments.
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:
We will respond to all privacy-related requests within 30 days.
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