Privacy Policy & Terms of Service

Who this app is for

Troop Trails is a troop-management tool for Girl Scout troop leaders and parents/guardians. Every account is created and controlled by an adult. Scouts (children) do not create accounts, do not sign in, and do not directly provide any information to Troop Trails. Their name, Girl Scout level and any photos are entered for them by their troop leader or a linked parent/guardian.

Troop Trails is an iPhone and iPad app. Parents can also use it on the web at trooptrails.app/app. This policy covers both.

Information we collect

From the adult who creates an account (a troop leader or parent):

• Name and email address
• Account role (troop leader or parent)
• An optional profile photo
• For a troop leader, an optional phone number
• Notification preferences

Entered by a troop leader or parent about a troop or scout:

• Troop name, troop number, council and service unit, and a public calendar link the leader chooses to share
• A scout's name, Girl Scout level (e.g. Daisy, Brownie), and an optional profile photo
• Badge and award progress recorded for that scout, including any photos a leader attaches to a badge update or a meeting log
• Fun patches a parent or leader adds for that scout: a name, date, where it came from, a write-up of what she did, and photos. Only that scout's own parents and the troop's leaders can see them
• Photos of real badges: a leader may add a photo of a badge that everyone in the troop sees, and a scout's parent may add a photo of her own badge, which only her parents and the troop's leaders see.

If you sign in with Google or Apple, we receive your name and email address from them, per the permissions you grant during sign-in. With Apple you can choose to hide your email address; we then receive a private relay address that forwards to you. If you sign in with email and password, your password is handled entirely by our authentication provider (Firebase Authentication, operated by Google). Troop Trails never sees or stores your password.

Collected automatically:

• Crash reports: if the app crashes, Firebase Crashlytics (operated by Google) sends us a report with the technical details of the crash and the device model and iOS version, so we can fix it. Crash reports aren't tied to your name, email or account.
• A push notification token for your device, if you turn on notifications.
• On the web, Google reCAPTCHA checks that requests come from a real browser rather than an automated script. To do this it collects information about your browser and device, under Google's Privacy Policy and Terms of Service. We don't receive that information, only Google's yes-or-no answer.

If you subscribe:

• Purchases are made through Apple. Apple sends us a record of your Troop Trails subscription (its dates and status) so we can apply it to your troops. We never see your payment details.

We do not use advertising SDKs, analytics SDKs, or any third-party tracking. We do not automatically collect browsing behavior, location, or device identifiers beyond what's needed to deliver a notification you've opted into. On the web, the troop calendar is fetched by our server and passed to you, so the calendar's host doesn't see your address.

How we use this information

Solely to operate the app: showing your troop's roster, badge library, calendar, and announcements to the people in your own troop; letting a parent track their own scout's badge progress; and sending the notifications you've chosen to receive, including meeting recap emails that may include photos a leader has shared. We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not sell or rent it to anyone.

Who can see your information

Only members of your own troop can see troop, scout and progress data: the troop's leaders and the parents linked to its scouts. Nobody outside your troop, and no other troop using Troop Trails, can read your data. This is enforced by security rules on our database as well as by the app itself.

A troop leader's name, email address and phone number (if they add one) are shown to the families and other leaders in the troops they lead, so parents know how to reach them. Parents' contact details are never shown to other families.

The one exception is a photo included in a recap email: a meeting photo, or a leader's photo of a badge for the whole troop (never a photo of one scout's own badge). Since an email can't check who's signed in, that photo is reachable through a private link for 15 days instead of requiring sign-in. That link isn't shared anywhere else, and it stops working automatically once the 15 days pass.

Where your information is stored

Troop Trails is built on Google Firebase. We use its Authentication, Firestore database and Cloud Storage services, and any photos you add are kept there. We don't operate our own servers; your data is stored and secured by Google's infrastructure under Firebase's own security practices.

Children's privacy

Troop Trails is not directed at children, and children do not use it directly. Only an adult (a troop leader or a parent/guardian) creates an account, and only that adult enters any information about a scout. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from a child. If you believe a child has provided us information directly, contact us at the address below and we will remove it.

Your choices

You can update your name, photo, and notification preferences at any time from Settings within the app. You can also delete your account at any time from Settings. This removes your name, email and photo, and unlinks a parent from their scout. A troop leader's troop, scouts and badges stay in place for the people who still rely on them. To request a copy of your data or a correction, contact us at the email below.

Data retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active, so the app can do its job. If you delete your account (from Settings, or by contacting us), we delete your name, email address, photo and sign-in, and unlink you from any scouts. A troop you led, and the scout records in it, stay in place for the families who rely on them. A troop leader can remove a scout at any time, which deletes that scout’s badge progress, notes and photos. To have a whole troop deleted, contact us at the email below. We may keep information we’re required to keep for legal or safety reasons.

Security

We rely on Firebase's security infrastructure and access rules that restrict every piece of troop and scout data to that troop's own members. No method of storage or transmission over the internet is completely secure, and we can't guarantee absolute security.

Changes to this policy

If this policy changes, we'll update the effective date at the top of this page. Continuing to use Troop Trails after a change means you accept the updated policy.

Acceptance

By creating an account or using Troop Trails, you agree to these terms. If you don't agree, please don't use the app.

What Troop Trails is

Troop Trails is an independent troop-management tool for tracking badge progress, rosters, calendars, and announcements. It is not officially affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by Girl Scouts of the USA or any Girl Scout council. Badge names and program terminology are used for reference and organizational purposes only.

Accounts

You must provide accurate information when creating an account and are responsible for keeping your login credentials secure. You're responsible for activity that happens under your account.

Acceptable use

Use Troop Trails only for its intended purpose: managing your own troop's information. Don't upload content you don't have the right to share, don't use the app to harass or harm others, and don't attempt to access another troop's data or another user's account.

Your content

You keep ownership of any photos, names, and other content you add to Troop Trails. By adding it, you give us permission to store it and show it in the app to the people your troop's data is already visible to (see Privacy Policy, section 4). For a meeting photo or a troop's badge photo, that includes the recap emails sent to the troop's parents. We use it only so the app can work.

Subscriptions

A troop is covered by a yearly subscription bought by the troop's owner (the leader who created it) through Apple's App Store. One subscription covers every troop that leader owns, including their co-leaders and every family. Parents never pay.

A new subscriber may get a free trial first. Unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the trial or the current year ends, the subscription renews automatically and Apple charges the yearly price then shown in the app. You manage or cancel it in your Apple Account settings (Settings › your name › Subscriptions); deleting your Troop Trails account or handing over your troop doesn't cancel it. Refunds are handled by Apple under its own policies.

If a troop's subscription ends, the troop becomes read-only for everyone in it: its badges, photos and meeting logs stay visible, but nothing new can be added or changed until it's renewed. You can still delete your account at any time. We may offer some troops free access, for example during testing or by an offer code.

No warranty

Troop Trails is provided "as is," without warranties of any kind. We don't guarantee the app will be error-free, uninterrupted, or perfectly accurate. For example, badge requirements shown in the app are a reference, not an official substitute for your council's own program materials.

Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Troop Trails and its developer aren't liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from your use of the app.

Termination

You may stop using Troop Trails and delete your account at any time. We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these terms.

Governing law

These terms are governed by the laws of Florida, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles.

Changes to these terms

We may update these terms from time to time. Continuing to use Troop Trails after a change means you accept the updated terms.