1. INTRODUCTION
We understand that privacy and trust are essential, especially when working with minors and with sensitive topics. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, how we share it, and the choices available to teens, parents and schools who participate in the TeenBack program.
By using TeenBack, you agree to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.
2. WHO USES TEENBACK
TeenBack is used in three main ways:
- Teens – Teens may use TeenBack directly, with or without a parent account, depending on age and local law.
- Parents and guardians – Parents or guardians may create accounts, enroll their teen into TeenBack and manage household-level settings, including optional features like mirrored alerts and geo-fencing.
- Schools, districts and organizations – Schools, districts or youth organizations may license TeenBack for use with their students. In these cases, the school or district is typically the primary institutional customer and may act as a data controller or authorized agent for consent under applicable education and child privacy laws.
This Policy applies to all three groups unless we specify otherwise.
3. INFORMATION WE COLLECT
We collect only the information needed to deliver meaningful, safe and compliant support.
3.1 Personal information
Depending on how you interact with TeenBack, we may collect:
- Teen first name or chosen display name
- Parent or guardian name (for family accounts)
- Email address (teen and/or parent)
- Mobile phone number (if SMS or voice features are enabled)
- Date of birth or age band (to confirm eligibility and tailor messaging)
- School or organization name (for school or district programs)
3.2 Account and preference information
To personalize and manage delivery, we may collect:
- Time zone and notification preferences
- Communication channel preferences (app, push, SMS, email, voice)
- Selected focus areas (for example: gambling, vaping, drinking, screen use)
- Opt-in to optional features such as mirrored alerts and geo-fencing
3.3 Usage and engagement data
To understand how the service is used and to improve it, we may collect:
- Message delivery and engagement data (for example: sent, delivered, viewed, basic interaction events)
- In-app activity, such as opening specific screens, updating settings or responding to simple prompts
- Non-identifiable technical information, such as device type, operating system, browser type and app version
3.4 Content and interaction data
When teens interact with TeenBack, we may process:
- Their responses to prompts or check-ins within the app
- Their selections or feedback about which messages are helpful
- Support requests sent to our team
We treat these interactions as sensitive, mental-health-related data and handle them accordingly.
3.5 Location and geo-fencing data (optional)
Geo-fencing is an optional feature and is never required to use TeenBack.
If geo-fencing is enabled by a parent or school:
- We may use location information from a teen’s device to detect when they enter or exit a defined high-risk zone, such as a vape shop, liquor store, known gambling location or other flagged area.
- Zones are defined by parents or schools using street addresses, map locations, latitude/longitude coordinates or other location data.
- We do not continuously track or store a full history of everywhere a teen goes. Instead, we process limited events that indicate a device has entered or left a configured zone.
Geo-fencing settings can be turned off at any time by the parent, school or, where appropriate, by the teen.
3.6 Payment information
TeenBack does not store complete payment card information. Payments for parent, school or enterprise accounts are processed by third-party payment processors that are compliant with applicable security standards such as PCI DSS. We may receive limited information about transactions, such as date, amount and status, for account management and support.
4. HOW WE USE INFORMATION
We use the information we collect for the following purposes:
- Service delivery – To provide the core TeenBack service, including sending in-app messages, push notifications, texts, emails and optional voice messages related to risk reduction, mental health support and SEL skills.
- Personalization and timing – To tailor content, timing and frequency of messages based on age, risk focus areas, time zone, engagement and preferences.
- Safety and escalation (including TALK and SOS) – To support safety features embedded in our messaging, including:
- Keyword responses such as “TALK”, which can initiate or prompt a phone call to a parent or guardian number defined in account settings; and
- Keyword responses such as “SOS”, which can connect a teen directly to the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (in the United States) or an equivalent crisis resource where available.
- School and program reporting – For school or district programs, to provide aggregate, de-identified insights to authorized school representatives about overall engagement and common themes. We do not share individual message content with schools or administrators.
- Family Bridge and mirrored alerts – For families who enable mirrored alerts or Family Bridge, to send high-level summaries or mirrored versions of certain system-generated messages to parents or guardians, without providing access to private teen-initiated content.
- Geo-fencing support (optional) – When geo-fencing is enabled, to trigger support messages to the teen and, if configured, alerts to a parent when a device enters a designated high-risk zone.
- Customer support and operations – To respond to questions, fix issues and communicate about changes to the service or this Policy.
- Research, analytics and improvement – To analyze aggregated and de-identified data to improve message effectiveness, understand trends and refine interventions. We may publish or share anonymized, aggregated findings that do not identify any individual.
We do not use personal information for targeted advertising and we do not sell personal data.
5. HOW WE SHARE INFORMATION
TeenBack does not sell or rent user information to advertisers or unrelated third parties.
We may share information in limited ways:
- With service providers – We use trusted service providers to host our platform, deliver communications, provide analytics, process payments and support operations. These providers may access personal data only as needed to perform services on our behalf and are bound by contractual confidentiality and security obligations.
- With schools and districts (program use) – When a school or district licenses TeenBack, we may share aggregated, de-identified metrics and insights with authorized staff, such as engagement levels, common risk themes and program-level trends. We do not share individual message content with schools unless required by law and appropriate safeguards are in place.
- With parents and guardians (family accounts) – When a parent account is linked to a teen account, we may share information with that parent as described in program settings, such as mirrored alerts, high-level summaries or account status. We do not provide parents with raw, private message content created by the teen, unless both the teen and parent have explicitly agreed to that arrangement and it is permitted by law.
- For legal and safety reasons – We may disclose information if we believe it is necessary to comply with applicable laws, regulations or legal processes, to respond to lawful requests by public authorities, or to protect the rights, safety or property of TeenBack, our users or others.
- In the event of a business change – If TeenBack is involved in a merger, acquisition, restructuring or asset sale, personal data may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will continue to protect the information and will notify users of any material change in data handling practices.
6. CHILDREN’S PRIVACY, AGE AND CONSENT
TeenBack is designed for teens and is used in ways that comply with child privacy laws such as COPPA (United States), FERPA (for education records in the United States) and GDPR-Child standards where applicable.
6.1 Age thresholds
- TeenBack is generally intended for users 13 and older when they sign up on their own.
- For users under local age thresholds for consent (for example, under 13 in the United States, under 16 in the European Union), verifiable parental, guardian or school consent is required before an account can be activated.
We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without appropriate consent. If we learn that we have collected information from a child under 13 without proper consent, we will delete that information and close the account as soon as possible.
6.2 Consent flows
We may rely on several consent paths:
- Teen-initiated signup (13+) – Teens provide their age, contact information and preferences. Where required, we may request parent or guardian contact information to confirm consent or provide notice.
- Parent-initiated signup – A parent or guardian creates and manages the family account, enrolls teens and controls settings such as mirrored alerts and optional geo-fencing.
- School or district-initiated enrollment – Schools and districts may enroll students as part of a licensed program and may act as consent agents under education privacy laws. In these cases, the school or district is typically considered the data controller for student education records, and TeenBack acts as a service provider or processor.
Parental, guardian or school consent may be obtained by digital approval, reply to an authorization message, signed document or other verifiable methods permitted by law. Records of consent are retained for compliance purposes.
6.3 Parent and school rights for minors
Parents, guardians and authorized school representatives may, consistent with applicable law:
- Review the information we hold about a teen
- Request correction of inaccurate information
- Request deletion of a teen’s account and associated data, subject to retention obligations described in this Policy
Requests can be made by contacting privacy@TeenBack.com.
7. COMMUNICATION, KEYWORDS AND OPT-OUT OPTIONS
Users can manage how they receive messages and how certain keywords behave.
- Most TeenBack communications are delivered via app and push notifications. Optional SMS, email or voice-based channels may also be used when enabled.
- Many TeenBack messages include short keyword prompts at the bottom, such as “TALK” or “SOS”, with the following behavior:
- TALK – Sending or selecting “TALK” can initiate or prompt a phone call to the parent or guardian phone number stored in the account or otherwise designated in program settings.
- SOS – Sending or selecting “SOS” can connect the teen, by phone, to a live counselor at the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline in the United States, or to an equivalent crisis resource where 988 access is not available.
- Standard call or carrier rates may apply when connecting to parents, guardians or crisis lines, depending on the user’s phone plan.
Users can opt out of messages at any time:
- In app or push: by changing notification settings within the app or device.
- SMS (if used): by replying STOP to immediately unsubscribe or PAUSE to temporarily suspend communications.
- Email: by using the unsubscribe link in the email or by contacting privacy@TeenBack.com.
Users can also request deletion of their account or data by emailing privacy@TeenBack.com.
For school-managed programs, some settings may be managed by the school or district; students and families will be informed of any such limits during enrollment.
8. GEO-FENCING AND LOCATION PRIVACY
Geo-fencing is an optional feature intended to support timely interventions around high-risk locations.
- Geo-fencing is off by default and is only activated when a parent, guardian or school explicitly enables it.
- When active, TeenBack uses device location or related signals to detect when a teen’s device enters or exits a pre-defined high-risk zone.
- High-risk zones are configured by parents or schools using street addresses, map locations, coordinates or similar inputs.
When a device enters a high-risk zone:
- The teen may receive an in-app message, push notification or text with supportive content, reminders or safer options.
- If configured, a parent or guardian may receive a mirrored alert indicating that the device has entered a high-risk zone, without providing continuous tracking or detailed movement history.
TeenBack does not use geo-fencing to build a full, continuous location profile of a teen’s movements and does not sell or rent any location data. Parents, teens and schools can change or disable geo-fencing at any time in their settings or program configuration.
9. SECURITY AND DATA PROTECTION
We take security seriously and use technical and organizational measures to protect personal information.
- Data is encrypted in transit and at rest using industry-standard protocols.
- Access to personal information is limited to authorized employees and service providers who need it to operate the service and are bound by confidentiality obligations.
- Systems are hosted in reputable, security-audited data centers.
- We maintain safeguards designed to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration or destruction of personal data.
No security measures are perfect, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. If we become aware of a data incident that affects your information, we will notify affected users and relevant authorities as required by law.
10. DATA RETENTION
We keep personal information only as long as reasonably necessary to provide the service, meet legal obligations and support legitimate business purposes.
In general:
- Active accounts: Personal data is retained while the account is active.
- Inactive accounts: Accounts that are inactive or unsubscribed may be deleted or anonymized after approximately 12 months of inactivity, unless law or program obligations require a different period.
- Aggregated data: We may retain aggregated and de-identified data for analytics, research or reporting. This data cannot reasonably be linked back to an individual.
Users, parents and schools can request deletion of their account data as described in Section 11.
11. YOUR RIGHTS AND CHOICES
Depending on your location and role (teen, parent, school), you may have the right to:
- Access personal information we hold about you or your enrolled teen
- Request correction of incomplete or inaccurate information
- Request deletion of personal data, subject to legal or contractual obligations
- Withdraw consent for certain processing, such as receiving messages or using geo-fencing
You can also:
- Unsubscribe from messages using in-message instructions or settings
- Adjust notification frequency or focus areas in app settings
- Contact your school or district regarding data processing in school-initiated programs
To exercise your rights, contact us at privacy@TeenBack.com. We may need to verify your identity or your relationship to the teen before fulfilling certain requests. We will respond within the timeframes required by applicable law.
12. THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS
TeenBack uses third-party providers to help deliver and operate the service. Examples include:
- Messaging delivery providers for push notifications, SMS and email
- Cloud hosting and infrastructure services
- Analytics providers to help us understand service usage in aggregate
- Payment processors for subscription and licensing fees
These providers are contractually required to protect personal information and may not use it for their own marketing purposes.
13. INTERNATIONAL USERS
TeenBack operates primarily in the United States. If you access TeenBack from outside the United States, your information may be transferred to, stored in and processed in the United States or other countries where our service providers operate.
We take steps to protect personal data in accordance with this Policy and applicable law, including, where required, using appropriate contractual safeguards for cross-border data transfers.
14. CHANGES TO THIS POLICY
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, technologies or legal requirements. The “Effective date” at the top shows the most recent version.
If we make material changes, we will provide notice through the TeenBack app, website or by email, and, where required, obtain additional consent.
15. CONTACT US
If you have questions, concerns or requests related to this Privacy Policy or your data, please contact:
TeenBack Privacy Office
Email: privacy@TeenBack.com