- Your business details, clients, invoices and estimates are stored on your iPhone and in your own iCloud account. We can't see them.
- There's no Svalbard account, and we don't run servers that hold your data.
- No ads, no analytics, no tracking, and we never sell or share personal information.
- Apple handles subscription payments. We never see your card details.
Who we are
Svalbard is made by an independent developer based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. In this policy "we" and "us" means the developer of Svalbard. We are responsible for the small amount of personal information described below that we actually receive.
Questions about privacy: support@svalbard.work.
What the app stores, and where
To make invoices, you enter information into Svalbard: your business name, contact details and logo; the payment details you choose to print on invoices (for example a Zelle number, Venmo handle or check address); your clients' names, emails, phone numbers and addresses; and the items, prices, invoices, estimates and payments you record.
All of this is kept:
- On your iPhone, in the app's private storage.
- In your private iCloud database, if you're signed in to iCloud, so it's backed up and appears on your other iPhones. This uses Apple's CloudKit service. The data sits in your iCloud account, under Apple's privacy policy, and is not accessible to us.
We don't receive copies of this information, and we have no way to read it, recover it or delete it for you. You control it: deleting an invoice or client in the app deletes it everywhere it syncs, and deleting the app removes it from your iPhone. To remove the iCloud copy, go to Settings ▸ your name ▸ iCloud ▸ Manage Account Storage on your iPhone.
Your clients' information
When you add a client, you're responsible for having a reason to keep their details, as you would in any invoicing system. Svalbard uses client details only to fill in the invoices and estimates you create.
Contacts and photos
If you tap "Import from Contacts", iOS shows its own contact picker. Svalbard only receives the one contact you pick, and only copies the name, email, phone and address into that client. It can't see the rest of your address book. If you add a logo, Svalbard only receives the one image you choose.
Home screen widgets
To show what you're owed on your home screen, the app saves a small summary (totals, and the client name, number, amount and due date of open invoices) in a folder shared only with Svalbard's own widgets on your iPhone. It doesn't leave your device.
Sending invoices
Svalbard creates a PDF and hands it to the iPhone share sheet. Whatever you choose next (Mail, Messages, WhatsApp, AirDrop and so on) sends it under that app's own terms. Svalbard doesn't send anything itself.
What we receive
Subscriptions
Subscriptions are sold and billed by Apple through the App Store. Apple gives us sales and subscription reports, such as which plan was bought, in which country, and renewal or cancellation status. These don't include your name, email or payment details. The app checks your subscription status with Apple on your device.
Crash reports
If you've chosen to share analytics with app developers in your iPhone's settings, Apple may send us anonymous crash reports and usage statistics. These don't identify you. You can turn this off under Settings ▸ Privacy & Security ▸ Analytics & Improvements.
Emails to support
If you email us, we receive your email address and whatever you write, and we use it to help you. We keep support emails for up to two years and then delete them, unless they're needed for an ongoing issue. The lawful basis is our legitimate interest in answering you.
What we don't do
- No advertising, and no advertising or analytics software in the app.
- No tracking across other companies' apps or websites.
- No selling or sharing of personal information, as those terms are used in US state privacy laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act.
- No processing of payments between you and your clients. Money goes directly from your client to you.
This website
svalbard.work has no cookies, analytics or advertising, and loads nothing from other companies. Like any website, our hosting provider briefly records technical information such as IP addresses in server logs to keep the site running and secure. We don't use these logs to identify anyone.
Children
Svalbard is a business tool for adults. It's not directed at children under 13 (or under 16 in the UK and EU), and we don't knowingly collect their information.
Your rights
Depending on where you live, including the UK, the EU and US states such as California, you may have the right to access, correct, delete or get a copy of personal information we hold about you, and to object to how we use it. Because your invoicing data stays on your device and in your iCloud, you can do most of this yourself in the app. For anything we hold, such as support emails, write to support@svalbard.work and we'll reply within 30 days. We won't treat you differently for using these rights.
If you're unhappy with how we've handled your information, please tell us first so we can put it right. You may also be able to complain to the data protection authority where you live.
International transfers
Apple operates the App Store and iCloud worldwide, including in the United States. Apple's own safeguards apply to that data. The little we receive directly, such as support emails, is handled with providers that offer appropriate safeguards for international transfers.
Changes
If we add features that change what we receive (for example online card payments in a future version), we'll update this page before they launch and change the date at the top. If a change is significant, we'll also say so in the app.