Privacy policy

Last updated: 19 September 2026. Ballonpost is deliberately frugal with data: no advertising trackers, no analytics cookies, no selling of data. This policy covers the website balloonpost.app, the web app, the Android app and the merchant portal. The German version is the legally binding one.

1. Controller

Venture Youngs GmbH
Veltener Str. 13, 16761 Hennigsdorf, Germany
Telefon: 030 25559117 · E-Mail: info@akkubooster.de

A data protection officer is not required by law and has not been appointed. For any privacy question, write to the email address above.

2. Visiting the website and the app

With every request our server processes technically necessary data: IP address, time, requested address, amount of data, browser and operating system. This is needed to deliver the pages and to fend off attacks (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR). Logs are not combined with your account and are deleted after 30 days at the latest.

Our servers are located in Germany and run by us. All requests pass through the network of Cloudflare, Inc., 101 Townsend St., San Francisco, CA 94107, USA (EU: Cloudflare Germany GmbH, Rosental 7, 80331 Munich). Cloudflare processes IP address and request data to fend off attacks and deliver content securely (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR). Data may also be processed in the USA; Cloudflare is certified under the EU-US Data Privacy Framework, and standard contractual clauses apply in addition. A data processing agreement is in place. More information: cloudflare.com/privacypolicy.

3. Cookies and browser storage

The website sets no cookies and loads nothing from third parties; fonts, images and scripts come from our server. That is why there is no cookie banner. Only once you sign in does the app store in your device’s local storage what it needs to work: your sign-in, language, appearance, the sound setting and a random device identifier against abuse when catching balloons. This is technically necessary (§ 25(2) no. 2 TDDDG). Signing out removes the sign-in.

4. Account

For an account we process email address, password (as a hash only), display name, year of birth, language and your home port. The home port is stored rounded to about one kilometre, not as an address. We need the year of birth for the age limits: Ballonpost from 16, the open sky and raffles from 18. The legal basis is the user agreement (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR). We keep this data until you have your account deleted.

5. Balloons, messages and contacts

We store what you put into a balloon (text, photo, voice message, video), its design, launch, destination, flight track, stamps and status. Only sender and recipient see the content, the recipient only after landing. Our team sees content in two cases only: when someone reports the balloon, and for balloons to everyone (open sky), which we review before they can be opened. Contacts are created by exchanging friend codes or by invitations. The legal basis is the user agreement (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR); for reviews, our legitimate interest and our duty to keep illegal content out (Art. 6(1)(f) and (c) GDPR).

For balloons to everyone, the recipient only learns your first name and a launch point rounded to about 10 km; the flight track starts 10 km away from the launch.

6. Location, camera, microphone, phone contacts

The app asks for these permissions only when you use the feature, and you can revoke them at any time in your device settings (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR):

• Location: for “Find it in the sky”, the map around you and catching balloons. When catching, the app sends your position to our server once so it can check the distance; it is not stored. Only for “Bring it to me” and “Follow me” do we store your target, rounded to about 100 metres, while the approach is running.
• Camera and microphone: for photos, voice messages, videos, the sky in the camera and the QR scanner. The camera image of the sky stays on your device.
• Phone contacts: only to pick someone for an invitation. Your address book is not uploaded.

7. Invitations to people without an account

If you invite someone, we store the name you enter, the destination and, if you have the invitation sent by email, that person’s email address in order to deliver it (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR). Anyone using “Tell me when it lands” on the invitation page gives us an email address or phone number for that purpose (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR). We delete it 30 days after entry. We currently do not send text messages.

8. Emails

We write to you about your account (confirmation, password, security) and, unless you unsubscribed, about your balloons: launch, approach, landing, flight updates and new stamps. Every notification contains an unsubscribe link; flight updates and stamps can also be switched off in your profile. The legal basis is the user agreement (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR). We do not send advertising.

Delivery is handled by our processor Resend (Plus Five Five, Inc., 2261 Market Street #5039, San Francisco, CA 94114, USA) using servers in the EU (Ireland). Resend receives the recipient address, subject and content of the email. A transfer to the USA cannot be ruled out; it is safeguarded by standard contractual clauses. More information: resend.com/legal/privacy-policy.

9. App notifications (push)

If you switch notifications on (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR), we store an identifier of your device. Delivery runs through the Expo service (650 Industries, Inc., USA) and the services of Google (Firebase Cloud Messaging) or Apple (APNs), in the web app through your browser’s push service. Device identifier, title and text of the notification are transmitted. You can switch them off at any time in your profile or in your device settings.

10. Maps, place search and weather

Maps: when you open a map, your device loads the map tiles directly from OpenFreeMap (openfreemap.org). Your IP address and the map section are transmitted to that service; no cookies are set (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR, displaying flights).

Place search: when you search for an address, our server queries the Photon search service of komoot GmbH, Friedrich-Wilhelm-Boelcke-Straße 2, 14473 Potsdam, Germany. Only the search text is transmitted, not your IP address or account.

Weather: our server fetches wind data from Open-Meteo for the position of balloons. No personal data is transmitted.

City photos on stamps are hosted on our server; no data is transmitted to Wikimedia.

11. Merchant portal

For businesses we process business details (name, address, category, phone, website, opening hours), the uploaded proof of trade, registration number and imprint link, the team with email addresses, campaigns, redeemed vouchers and a change log. Only owners and our review team see the proof of trade. The legal basis is the contract with the business (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR) and our interest in admitting genuine businesses only (f). Our team enters a business account for support purposes only; after the test phase exclusively with a code the owner receives by email and tells us on the phone. Every access is recorded in the business log. Businesses never learn who users are; they only see numbers.

12. Statistics without personal reference

We count how far invited people get (invitation page opened, tell-me used, account created, first balloon). Only events are counted, without account, IP address or device identifier.

13. Recipients and third countries

Apart from the service providers named (Cloudflare, Resend, push services, OpenFreeMap, komoot, Open-Meteo), we pass data on only where the law requires us to. Transfers to the USA are based on the EU-US Data Privacy Framework or standard contractual clauses.

14. Storage period and deletion

We keep account data and balloons until you delete your account. You can do that at any time in the app under Profile → “Delete account”; account, balloons and media are then deleted immediately, including balloons you sent to others. Without access to the app, write to us from your account’s email address and we delete within 30 days (how it works). Reported content and blocks are kept as long as necessary to prevent abuse; statutory retention periods remain unaffected.

15. Your rights

You have the right of access (Art. 15 GDPR), rectification (Art. 16), erasure (Art. 17), restriction of processing (Art. 18), data portability (Art. 20) and the right to withdraw consent at any time with effect for the future (Art. 7(3)). An email to info@akkubooster.de is enough.

You may also lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority, for example the Landesbeauftragte für den Datenschutz und für das Recht auf Akteneinsicht Brandenburg, Stahnsdorfer Damm 77, 14532 Kleinmachnow, Germany, or the authority where you live.

16. Obligation to provide data, automated decisions

Without email address, year of birth and home port we cannot create an account. All other details are voluntary. There is no automated decision-making with legal effect and no profiling.

17. Changes

We update this policy when Ballonpost or the law changes. The current version is always on this page.