Who is responsible
Halalio is the public name used for this UK-based app service and is responsible for the personal information described in this policy. For privacy or support enquiries, contact halalio@outlook.com. The legal operator identity will be added to this notice before Halalio is commercially released.
Information Halalio processes
When you choose to scan, check an online product or use Ask Halalio, the service processes the cropped package-label area, selected screenshot, barcode number, ingredient text or question you provide. It may also process product names, dietary declarations, selected school perspective, certification details, source references, answer provenance and the resulting answer or assessment.
A technical anonymous account identifier secures backend requests. To operate fair-usage and spending safeguards, Halalio records the AI feature category, account tier, request status, token totals, web-search count and estimated service cost. The cost record does not contain the submitted image or question. Scan history and app preferences are stored on your device.
In the free version, Google Mobile Ads may process device and app information, IP address, approximate location, advertising identifiers where permitted, consent signals and ad views, clicks or reward-completion data.
Why information is used
Information you deliberately submit is used to provide the requested scan, product lookup, source check, educational answer, correction report or deletion request. This is necessary to provide the service you request.
Halalio checks a protected reviewed knowledge base before requesting live research. When a new Ask answer is researched, only normalised question wording and the answer are retained without a user-account link so the answer can be reviewed and reused without another paid search; the original wording is not retained in that research record. Security logs and rate-limit records are used for legitimate interests in protecting the service and controlling abuse.
Ask questions and a selected school perspective may reveal religious beliefs, so Halalio asks for explicit consent before first sending them. You can withdraw that consent from Settings, after which the feature will ask again before reuse.
Services involved
Halalio uses Supabase for anonymous authentication, its protected knowledge base, temporary research candidates, backend functions, usage limits and correction reports; OpenAI to read selected label images, carry out optional product research and research submitted questions not already covered; Open Food Facts for barcode product data; and Google Mobile Ads and Google User Messaging Platform for advertising, consent collection, fraud prevention, frequency controls and advertising measurement in the free version.
These providers may process data outside the United Kingdom using their contractual transfer safeguards. OpenAI requests disable response storage, and Halalio sends only the information needed for the chosen feature.
Camera and photos
Camera access is used only after you choose to scan. Barcode mode uses the detected number and does not upload a camera photograph. In ingredient mode, the capture is cropped locally to the visible guide and only that label area is sent for text extraction.
Photo-library access is used only when you select an online ingredient screenshot. The image is resized before upload. Raw and cropped images are not added to scan history. Separate first-use notices are shown for camera-label uploads and screenshots.
Advertising and your choices
The free version is supported by Google Mobile Ads. It may show limited interstitial ads after completed results and may offer an optional rewarded ad in exchange for an additional photo scan.
Halalio asks Google for updated privacy information before the advertising SDK is initialised and requests ads only when Google reports that ads may be requested. Where required, Google presents consent choices and Halalio provides an Ad privacy choices entry in Settings so you can review or change them. Refusing personalised advertising does not remove access to the standard free service. Google may instead provide limited or non-personalised advertising where legally available.
Halalio does not request Apple App Tracking Transparency permission or access to the IDFA in the initial release. Development builds use Google test ads. The planned paid version will not request ads.
Retention, reports and deletion
Up to 50 recent assessments are retained locally until you clear history or delete app data. Ask questions and answers are not saved to local history. For a knowledge-base miss, normalised question wording and the researched answer may remain in the protected candidate store for up to 30 days while awaiting review and may be replaced by an approved knowledge entry. The original question wording is not retained in that candidate record. Candidate and approved knowledge entries are not linked to the anonymous user account.
Correction reports remain linked to the anonymous account in the protected review queue until resolved or account deletion. Usage events remain linked to the anonymous account so daily allowances and service spending can be calculated.
Delete all app data first requests deletion of the anonymous cloud account, its reports, assessments, entitlement and usage records. Local history, preferences and the anonymous session are removed only after that cloud request succeeds, so a failed request can be retried. It cannot delete de-identified shared knowledge that is no longer linked to the account. Provider security logs may be retained for the limited periods described in each provider’s privacy documentation.
Your rights and complaints
Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, erase, restrict, object to or obtain a copy of personal information. Use Delete all app data for account deletion and contact halalio@outlook.com for other requests.
UK users may also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk. You will not be treated unfairly for exercising a privacy right.
Children and policy changes
Halalio is not directed to children under 13. A young person who cannot legally consent to online data processing in their country should use the app only with a parent or guardian.
Material policy changes will be dated and presented before affected information is processed under the new terms.