Privacy Policy

Last updated: September 25, 2026

Overview

Provenance ("we", "our", "the app") is a food product scanning application. This policy explains how we handle your data.

Information We Collect

Product Scans

You can browse the product catalog and news without an account. When a signed-in user scans a barcode or searches for a product, we store the product information (barcode, name, brand, research results) in our database to serve future lookups and associate the scan with that user's private scan history.

Photos

If you scan a product by taking or selecting a photo, the image and text recognized on the device are sent to our servers for product identification and analysis. The image may be processed by an AI provider and by Google Cloud Vision for content moderation. Product images may be stored to display on product pages.

Account Information

If you create an account, we store your email address and authentication identifier solely for account management and your personal scan history.

Device and Diagnostic Information

Firebase services may process device identifiers, app information, and diagnostic data needed to provide authentication, cloud messaging, database access, security, and service reliability. Provenance does not currently use an advertising or behavioral analytics SDK.

AI Processing

Product identification and research are performed through our backend using configured AI providers, which may include OpenAI and Anthropic. Product data such as names, barcodes, ingredients, label text, and product photos may be sent to these providers for analysis. We do not intentionally send account credentials or private scan-history records to AI providers.

Data Storage

Data is stored in Google Cloud (Firebase/Firestore) infrastructure located in the United States. Product research data is cached to avoid redundant processing.

Third-Party Services

  • Firebase (Google) — Authentication, database, cloud messaging, storage, and cloud functions
  • OpenAI and Anthropic — AI-powered product identification and research
  • Open Food Facts — Product data lookup
  • Google Cloud Vision — Image moderation
  • Apple — App Store distribution

Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal data. We do not share personal data with third parties except as described above for core app functionality.

Data Retention

Product research data is retained to serve the community. Account data is retained while your account is active. You can permanently delete your account and personal scan history at any time in the app from Profile > Account Management > Delete Account. Identifiers connecting shared product research to your account are removed during deletion.

Children's Privacy

Provenance is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from children.

Contact

For privacy questions or data deletion requests, contact us at metamemeapp+provenance@gmail.com.