Privacy Policy

1.Who we are

Maternly ("we," "us," "our") is a free Canadian maternal health companion. This policy covers everything we run: the website at maternly.ca, the email reminder service, Maternly accounts, and the Maternly mobile app. We are based in Canada and handle personal information in accordance with Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and applicable provincial privacy laws.

2.What we collect

We aim to collect the minimum information needed to provide the Service:

• Email address — so we can send the reminders and content you sign up for.
• Due date or expected dates (if you provide them) — so reminders can be timed to your stage of pregnancy or postpartum.
• Your name (if you provide it) — your first name so we can personalize what we send you, and your last name if you choose to add it to your profile.
• Your province or territory — so reminders and resources match where you live.
• Your role — whether you're the birthing parent, a partner, or an adoptive parent.
• Information about your children, provided by you — a child's name and date of birth, if you add them to your profile. See Children's information below for how we treat this.
• Your pregnancy status — if you use the "Something has changed" option, we record that your circumstances changed (for example, a loss, a decision to stop reminders, or a NICU stay). We explain why in "Why we collect it" below.
• Account information — your email address is your login. We sign you in with a secure link sent to your inbox, so there is no password for us to store.
• Wellness check-ins — if you use mood check-ins, we store the entries you create so you can look back on them. They're yours; see Section 8 to get a copy or have them deleted.
• Your employer and phone number (both optional) — you can add these under "Additional info" on your profile. We use them to build a fuller picture of who Maternly is for, so we can shape the service around the people actually using it. Leave them blank if you'd rather, or clear them at any time. We don't use your phone number to call or text you.
• Consent records — the date and time you signed up or turned on a feature, so we can show that we only email you because you asked us to.
• Basic technical and usage data — such as the fact and time you submitted a form, and limited delivery information (for example, whether an email was opened or a link clicked) provided by our email service.
• How Maternly gets used — our hosting provider measures overall site traffic, such as page views and referrers, from server logs. This happens on the server: we run no analytics or tracking scripts in your browser, set no cookies for this, record nothing about how you move around a page, and never use it to identify individual visitors.

Some of what you share with us is sensitive — a due date, a child's birth date, a pregnancy loss, a NICU stay, how you're feeling. We treat all of it with the care that sensitivity deserves: we collect it only when you actively give it to us, we use it only for the purposes described in this policy, and we never sell it or use it for advertising. Maternly is still not a medical record system, and it is not a substitute for your healthcare provider.

3.Why we collect it (purpose)

We use your information only to: deliver the reminder emails and tools you request; time and personalize that content; respond to your questions; and operate, secure, and improve the Service. Two of those deserve to be spelled out:

• Timing what we send you. A due date or a child's birth date lets us send the right information at the right stage, rather than everything at once.
• Knowing when to stop. If you tell us your circumstances have changed, we record that so our systems stop sending reminders that no longer fit — immediately and reliably. We keep that record for exactly that reason, and so we can put things back if you come back to us later.

We rely on your consent, which you give when you sign up, and which you can withdraw at any time (see Section 8).

4.How we share it

We do not sell your personal information or share it for advertising. We share it only with service providers that help us run the Service, and only as needed for them to do so:

• Database and accounts — where your account, your profile, your children's details (if you've added them), and your check-ins are stored.
• Email delivery — sending the reminders you signed up for, and holding the subscriber details needed to send them.
• Hosting — serving the website, processing anything you submit through it, and measuring overall traffic from server logs.

Each of these providers is bound by contract to protect your information, to use it only to provide their service to us, and never for their own purposes. We don't list them by name here, because the list changes as our tools do and we'd rather this policy stay accurate than go stale — but it isn't a secret. Email us at hello@maternly.ca and we'll tell you exactly who they are.

We may also disclose information if required by law or to protect our legal rights.

5.Where your data is stored (cross-border)

Our service providers are based in the United States and may store and process your information there or in other countries. That includes our database, which is hosted in the eastern United States, along with our email delivery and hosting providers. As a result, your personal information may be subject to the laws of those countries, including lawful access by their courts, law enforcement, and government authorities. By using the Service, you consent to this cross-border handling of your information.

6.How long we keep it

We keep your information for as long as you remain subscribed and for a reasonable period afterward to maintain records and meet legal obligations. When you unsubscribe or ask us to delete your data, we remove it from our active systems within a reasonable time, except where we must retain it by law.

If you tell us your circumstances have changed, we ask what you'd like us to do with what you've saved. You can leave everything as it is, clear your dashboard, or clear your dashboard and your saved checklists. Whichever you choose, two things stay: your account, so you can sign back in if you want to, and the record that your circumstances changed — that record is what keeps the reminder emails switched off, so removing it would undo the thing you asked for. Your email address also stays on our mailing list marked as unsubscribed, which is what stops anything further from being sent to it. If you'd like all of it gone instead, email us and we'll delete it (see Section 8).

7.How we protect it

We use reasonable administrative and technical safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the information, and we rely on reputable providers that maintain their own security measures. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8.Your choices and rights

Under PIPEDA you have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you.
• Correct information that is inaccurate or out of date.
• Withdraw consent and unsubscribe at any time — use the link in any email, or contact us.
• Request deletion of your information, subject to legal limits.

To make a request, email us at hello@maternly.ca. We will respond within a reasonable time. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

9.Children's information

Maternly is a service for parents and expecting parents, not for children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children, and no part of Maternly is directed at them. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we will delete it.

We do collect some information about children — but only when you, as a parent or guardian, choose to share it: a child's name and date of birth added to your profile. We use it solely to time and personalize what we send you, such as stage-appropriate resources and reminders. We never use children's information for advertising, never sell it, and delete it when you remove a child from your profile or delete your account.

10.Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date above reflects the current version. Significant changes affecting how we use your information will be communicated where appropriate.

11.Contact us

For any privacy question or request, contact us at hello@maternly.ca.