Earther HR

1. Introduction

Earther ("we," "our," or "us") operates the Earther HR mobile application (the "App"). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our App.

Earther HR is a business application designed for organizations to manage human resources operations. The App allows authorized employees to manage their profiles, apply for leave, mark attendance using facial recognition and GPS geofencing, view payroll information, and access other HR-related services provided by their employer.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Personal Information

• Account Information: Name, email address, employee ID, and user credentials
• Company Information: Company name, department, designation, and role
• Contact Details: Phone number (if provided)
• Employment Details: Joining date, employment status, site assignment, and salary structure

2.2 Biometric and Face Data

When you use the Face Attendance feature, the App collects:

• Face Images: Photos captured during face registration (one-time setup) used solely to generate a face encoding
• Face Encoding/Descriptor: A mathematical representation (numerical vector) of your facial features, stored on our secure servers and used only for attendance verification
• Match Confidence Score: A numerical score generated during each attendance verification attempt

Note: Raw face images used during registration are not permanently stored. Only the encoded mathematical descriptor is retained. Face data is used exclusively for attendance verification within your organization and is never sold or shared with third parties for any other purpose.

2.3 Location Data

When you use the Face Attendance feature, the App collects:

• Your GPS coordinates (latitude, longitude, and accuracy) at the time of attendance marking
• Geofence verification data to confirm you are within an authorized company site

Note: Location is only collected in the foreground when you actively open the Mark Attendance screen. The App does not collect background location at any time.

2.4 Attendance and Time Records

• Check-in and check-out timestamps
• Daily attendance status (Present, Absent, Leave, Week Off, etc.)
• Working hours and overtime records
• Attendance punch logs from biometric devices and face recognition

2.5 Leave and Payroll Data

• Leave applications, types, balances, and transaction history
• Salary structure, monthly payslips, and receivings/issuings records

2.6 Device Information

When marking attendance, the App collects device information to maintain attendance integrity:

• Device brand and model name
• Operating system name and version
• App version

This information is logged alongside each attendance record and is accessible to your organization's HR administrators.

2.7 Usage Data

• Login times and session activity
• Actions performed within the App
• App performance and crash data

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information for the following purposes:

• Face Attendance Verification: To verify your identity using facial recognition and confirm your presence at an authorized site before marking attendance
• Geofence Verification: To confirm you are physically within company premises at the time of attendance marking
• Attendance Management: To record, track, and report employee attendance, check-in/check-out times, and working hours
• Leave Management: To process leave applications, manage leave balances, and maintain leave transaction history
• Payroll and HR: To provide access to salary information, payslips, and HR records
• Authentication: To verify your identity and maintain secure access to the App
• Notifications: To send push notifications about attendance alerts, leave approvals, and HR updates
• Reporting: To generate attendance summaries, leave reports, and HR operational insights for your organization
• Security and Fraud Prevention: To detect and prevent unauthorized attendance marking or misuse of the App
• Customer Support: To respond to your inquiries and provide technical assistance

4. Data Sharing and Disclosure

We do not sell your personal information, including biometric data. We may share your information only in the following circumstances:

4.1 Within Your Organization

Attendance records, leave data, payroll information, and HR details are shared with authorized HR administrators and managers within your organization as part of normal HR operations.

4.2 Service Providers

We may share data with third-party service providers who assist us in:

• Cloud hosting and secure data storage
• Push notification services (e.g., Firebase Cloud Messaging)
• Analytics and performance monitoring

All service providers are contractually obligated to protect your data and may not use it for any purpose other than providing services to us.

4.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required by law or in response to valid legal requests by public authorities.

5. Biometric Data — Special Provisions

Because face encoding data constitutes biometric information, we apply the following additional protections:

• Face encodings are stored in encrypted form on our secure servers
• Face data is used exclusively for attendance verification and no other purpose
• Face data is never sold, leased, or traded to any third party
• Face data is never used for advertising, profiling, or purposes unrelated to HR attendance
• Upon termination of employment or deletion request, face encoding data will be permanently deleted from our systems
• Access to face data is restricted to authorized system processes only; no human operator can retrieve raw face encodings

5.1 Face Data Retention Period and Justification

Face encoding data is retained only for the duration of your active employment with your organization. Specifically:

• Retention period: Face encodings are stored from the date of face registration until the earlier of: (a) termination or resignation of employment, or (b) a verified deletion request submitted by you or your organization's HR administrator.
• Maximum retention after employment ends: Face encoding data is permanently and irreversibly deleted from our servers within 30 days of your employment termination date or verified deletion request, whichever comes first.
• Why this specific period: Face encodings must be retained throughout active employment because the App performs identity verification each time attendance is marked. Storing face data beyond active employment would serve no legitimate operational purpose; therefore, we do not retain it after employment ends.
• Raw face images: Photos captured during face registration and individual attendance selfies are not stored at all — they are processed in memory to generate or compare encodings and are discarded immediately. Only the resulting mathematical encoding vector is retained on our servers.
• Match confidence scores: Numerical scores generated during attendance verification are retained only as part of the attendance log record and follow the same retention schedule as general attendance records (see Section 7).

6. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational security measures to protect your personal information, including:

• Encryption of data in transit (HTTPS/TLS) and at rest
• Secure authentication mechanisms with session management
• Role-based access controls limiting data access to authorized personnel
• Regular security assessments and vulnerability monitoring
• Secure storage of biometric face encodings with restricted access

However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to:

• Provide the App's services during active employment
• Maintain attendance, payroll, and HR records as required by your organization and applicable labor laws
• Comply with legal obligations
• Resolve disputes and enforce agreements

Upon termination of your employment or upon verified deletion request, we will delete or anonymize your personal information, including biometric face encodings, except where retention is required by applicable law or your organization's record-keeping policies.

7.1 Face Data — Specific Retention Schedule

Face encoding data is never stored indefinitely. The 30-day post-termination window exists solely to allow for administrative processing and to handle any final payroll or dispute resolution that may reference recent attendance records. After this window, the encoding is permanently and irreversibly deleted.

8. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
• Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Deletion: Request deletion of your personal information, including face encoding data
• Objection: Object to processing of your personal information
• Data Portability: Request transfer of your data to another service
• Biometric Data Deletion: Request permanent deletion of your face encoding data at any time

To exercise these rights, please contact us or your organization's HR administrator using the information provided below.

9. Camera Access

The App requests camera access to enable facial recognition for attendance. Specifically:

• Face Registration: The camera captures 3 photos during a one-time setup to create your face encoding. These images are processed immediately and the encoding is stored; raw images are not retained.
• Attendance Marking: A single selfie is captured each time you mark attendance. The image is sent to our server for face matching and is not stored after processing.

You can control camera permissions through your device settings:

• iOS: Settings → Privacy → Camera → Earther HR
• Android: Settings → Apps → Earther HR → Permissions → Camera

Disabling camera access will prevent the Face Attendance feature from functioning. Other features of the App remain accessible without camera permission.

10. Location Services

The App uses foreground location (while the App is open) to verify you are within an authorized company geofence before marking attendance. The App does not use background location at any time.

• iOS: Settings → Privacy → Location Services → Earther HR → While Using the App
• Android: Settings → Apps → Earther HR → Permissions → Location

Disabling location services will prevent the Face Attendance feature from functioning. Other features of the App remain accessible without location permission.

11. Third-Party Services

The App may use the following third-party services:

• Firebase Cloud Messaging: For push notifications
• Expo (by Expo Inc.): Mobile application framework and over-the-air update delivery

We encourage you to review their privacy policies: Google Privacy Policy · Expo Privacy Policy

12. Children's Privacy

The App is intended for business use by employees of registered organizations and is not directed to children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13.

13. International Data Transfers

Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your country of residence. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

14. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by:

• Posting the new Privacy Policy on this page
• Updating the "Last Updated" date
• Sending an in-app notification (for material changes)

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes.

15. Contact Us

16. Consent

By using Earther HR, you consent to this Privacy Policy and agree to its terms. For biometric features (Face Attendance), your explicit action of initiating the face registration process constitutes informed consent to the collection and processing of your biometric data as described in this Policy.