Privacy Policy

Welcome to My Special Needs ('App,' 'we,' 'our,' or 'us'). This Privacy Policy explains how My Special Needs collects, uses, stores, shares, and protects your personal information when you use our mobile applications, web portals, and related services (collectively, the 'Services').

Protecting your privacy and the security of your data is a top priority. This is especially true given the sensitive nature of the information shared on our platform. We are committed to being transparent about our practices and complying with applicable privacy laws, including the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

By creating an account or using our Services, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. This Privacy Policy should be read in conjunction with our Terms and Conditions.

We collect information to provide and improve our Services. The type of information we collect depends on your account type (INDIVIDUAL or COMMUNITY) and how you use the App.

a. Information You Provide Directly:

Account Information: When you register, we collect personal details such as your name, email address, password, and account type.

Profile Information: You may choose to add more information to your profile, such as a profile picture, location (city/country), and other biographical details.

Sensitive Information (with Your Explicit Consent): The core function of our App requires the collection of sensitive data. This is only ever collected with your explicit consent, which you provide by choosing to use these features. This may include:

Information about a disability, health conditions, or diagnoses.

Therapy notes, progress tracking, and behavioural data.

Goals, routines, and other personal plans for an INDIVIDUAL user.

User Content: We collect any information, text, photos, videos, or other content you upload or post to the Services, including any information shared on public profiles.

Communications: If you contact us directly for support or feedback, we will collect the contents of your message, including your name, email address, and any other information you choose to provide.

AI Chatbot Conversations: We collect the text of your conversations with our AI chatbot to provide the service and to improve its functionality. We advise you not to share personally identifiable sensitive information in these chats if you are not comfortable doing so.

Information About Others: If you provide us with personal information about someone else (such as an emergency contact), you must have their permission to do so. You are responsible for ensuring you have obtained the necessary consent from these individuals before sharing their personal information with us.

b. Information Collected Automatically:

Usage Data: We automatically collect information about your interactions with our Services. This includes the features you use, the pages you view, the time and date of your visits, and the time spent on those pages.

Device Information: We collect information about the device you use to access our Services, including the hardware model, operating system and version, unique device identifiers, and IP address.

Location Information: With your permission, we may collect your device's precise location data to enable features such as emergency alerts and to provide location-based services, like finding nearby disability-friendly facilities. You can disable this at any time through your device settings.

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

To Provide and Maintain the Services: To create and manage your account, deliver the App's core features (like therapy tracking and insights), and personalize your experience.

To Improve and Develop Services: To understand how our users interact with the App, to analyze usage patterns, and to develop new features and functionality.

To Communicate With You: To send you service-related announcements, security alerts, updates to our policies, and to respond to your support requests and inquiries.

To Ensure Safety and Security: To verify accounts, monitor for fraudulent or malicious activity, and enforce our Terms and Conditions.

To Enable Key Features:

To operate the AI chatbot and provide you with informational responses.

To trigger emergency alerts based on your location data (with your permission).

To display public profiles as directed by COMMUNITY account holders (with appropriate consents).

For Legal Compliance: To comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements.

We do not sell your personal information. We only share it in the following limited circumstances:

Publicly Shared Information: Any information you post on a public profile will be visible to the public, as directed by you. You are responsible for ensuring you have the necessary consent to share this information.

Third-Party Service Providers: We engage third-party companies and individuals to perform services on our behalf (e.g., cloud hosting with Amazon Web Services, payment processing with Stripe, analytics with Google Analytics). These providers only have access to the information necessary to perform their functions and are contractually obligated to protect it.

With Your Consent: We may share your information with third parties (such as a therapy provider you connect with through the App) when we have your explicit consent to do so.

For Legal Reasons: We may disclose your information if we believe it's reasonably necessary to comply with a law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request; to enforce our Terms and Conditions; to detect or prevent fraud or security issues; or to protect the rights, property, or safety of our users, the public, or Your Special Needs.

Business Transfers: In connection with any merger, sale of company assets, financing, or acquisition of all or a portion of our business by another company, your information may be transferred as a business asset.

We are committed to protecting your data. We implement robust technical and organizational security measures designed to protect your information from unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These measures include:

Encryption: Data is encrypted both in transit (using TLS/SSL) and at rest.

Access Controls: We limit access to personal information to employees and third-party providers who have a legitimate business need to know it.

Security Standards: We align our security practices with recognized international standards, such as ISO 27001, where applicable. However, no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with the Services. We may also retain your information as necessary to comply with our legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. You can request the deletion of your account and associated data by contacting us.

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

The right to access: You can request copies of your personal information.

The right to rectification: You can request that we correct any information you believe is inaccurate or complete information you believe is incomplete.

The right to erasure (Right to be Forgotten): You can request that we erase your personal data, under certain conditions.

The right to restrict processing: You can request that we restrict the processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.

The right to object to processing: You can object to our processing of your personal data, under certain conditions.

The right to data portability: You can request that we transfer the data that we have collected to another organization, or directly to you, under certain conditions.

The right to withdraw consent: You can withdraw your consent at any time where we relied on your consent to process your information. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at support@myspecialneeds.com.

Your information, including personal data, may be transferred to — and maintained on — computers located outside of your state, province, country, or other governmental jurisdiction where the data protection laws may differ. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this Privacy Policy.

Our Services are designed for individuals with special needs and their carers. This includes individuals of all ages.

If a user is under the age of 18 ('Minor') or is otherwise unable to provide legal consent or manage their own account, a parent, legal guardian, or designated carer ('Carer') must create and manage the account on their behalf.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from Minors without such verifiable parental or carer consent. If you become aware that an account has been created for a Minor without the necessary consent, please contact us immediately.

Our Services may feature recommendations and information related to third-party organizations, services, events, news, or facilities (e.g., gyms, schools, community groups). This information is provided for your convenience and for informational purposes only.

We do not endorse, guarantee, or assume responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, or reliability of any information provided by or about third parties within the App. We are not liable for any errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in such content, nor for any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of your use of or reliance on any third-party information made available through our Services.

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the 'Effective Date' at the top.