Privacy Policy
Last updated: October 2026
1. Who we are and what this covers
Roost is a software-as-a-service product operated by Roost (operated by Sudarshan Uprety, Kathmandu, Nepal) ("Roost", "we", "us"). This policy explains what data Roost collects, why, how long we keep it, who we share it with, and the choices you have.
Roost serves two kinds of people, and this policy covers both:
- Operators — home watch / property care businesses that sign up for a Roost subscription (the account holders).
- End recipients — the operators' clients (homeowners, family members) and vendors, who receive reports, approval requests, and invoices through Roost.
Important: your operator (the home watch company you hired) decides what data about you is put into Roost. Roost is the processor acting on their instructions. If you want data about you changed or removed, you can contact us and we will direct your request to the operator, or act as required by law.
2. What data Roost holds, and why
a. Account and business data (operators)
- Name, email address, password (stored only as a bcrypt hash — we can never see it)
- Company name, logo, branding preferences
- Subscription and billing status (card data is handled by our payment processor — we never store card numbers)
- Session records used to keep you logged in securely
b. Client data entered by operators
- Client (homeowner) names, emails, phone numbers
- Property addresses and notes (including occupancy dates — when a home is empty)
- Access credentials — alarm codes, lockbox codes, gate codes. These are stored encrypted, visible only to authorized operator staff, and every view is logged. They are never displayed on any report or link sent to clients.
c. Visit and inspection data
- Checklist results and notes
- Photos taken during visits (attached to checklist items)
- GPS check-in/check-out coordinates and timestamps (proof-of-visit)
- System readings (thermostat, humidity, appliance temperatures)
- Issues found, actions taken, and resolution history
d. Approvals, invoices, and messages
- Owner approval decisions (approve/decline), with timestamps and method
- Invoice line items and payment status (amounts, not card data)
- Owner reply notes that operators log into the system
e. Vendor data
- Vendor business names, contact info, trade, insurance (COI) status and documents, assigned job records
f. Website and demo data
- The interactive demo on our website runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type into the demo is stored or sent to us.
- If you contact us by email, we keep the correspondence.
3. Why we process it (legal bases)
Where the GDPR or similar laws apply, our bases are:
- Performance of a contract — operating the service you (operators) subscribe to
- Legitimate interests — securing the service (audit logs, session security), preventing fraud and abuse
- Legal obligation — tax/accounting records for invoices
- Consent / your instructions — operator directs what client data is entered
4. AI-assisted features
Some Roost features (report text suggestions, owner-reply classification) use third-party AI services. When these are used:
- Only the minimum necessary content (checklist text, notes) is sent to the AI provider
- Access codes and credentials are never sent to AI services
- AI output never reaches a report or client without operator review and approval
- AI providers are bound by their own data-processing agreements and do not use Roost content to train their models
5. Who we share data with (sub-processors)
| Sub-processor | Used for |
|---|
| Cloud hosting provider (US/EU region) | Databases, file storage, application hosting |
| Stripe | Subscription billing and invoice payments (card data never touches our servers) |
| Email delivery provider | Verification emails, report links, password resets |
| AI provider(s) (e.g., OpenAI) | Report text suggestions and reply classification (see section 4) |
| Google Fonts | Website fonts (being replaced with self-hosted fonts to remove this dependency) |
We do not sell or rent your data. We do not share it for advertising. We share data only with the providers above, under contract, to run the service.
6. International data transfers
Roost is developed and operated from Nepal, with application hosting in the US or EU. Data may therefore be transferred outside your country. Where required (for example, for users in the European Economic Area), transfers rely on standard contractual clauses or equivalent safeguards with our sub-processors.
7. How long we keep data
- Active accounts: as long as the subscription is active
- After deletion: account and business data are removed within 30 days of a deletion request (soft-delete window for recovery)
- Client property data (photos, visits, reports): kept until the operator deletes the property or account — these are the operator's business records
- Invoices and payments: kept for 7 years where required for tax and accounting
- Security and audit logs: 12 months
- Session records: until expiry (7 days) or logout
8. Your rights
Depending on your location (GDPR, CCPA/CPRA, PIPEDA, and similar laws), you may have the right to:
- Know what data is held about you (access)
- Get a copy of it (portability / export)
- Correct it
- Delete it (subject to the operator's record-keeping obligations)
- Object to or restrict certain processing
- Opt out of marketing email at any time (every email has a one-line opt-out)
- Not be discriminated against for exercising these rights
To exercise any right, email hello@theroost.watch. We respond within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity and, for client data, coordinate with the operator who controls it.
9. Security
- TLS encryption for all data in transit
- Encryption at rest for access credentials (alarm/lockbox/gate codes)
- Role-based access control — staff accounts see only what their role permits
- Audit logging of security-sensitive actions (code views, approvals, exports)
- Single-use, expiring magic links for client access — no shared passwords
No system is perfectly secure. If a data breach affects you, we will notify affected operators and applicable regulators as required by law and work to contain it immediately. Our incident procedure is documented internally.
10. Children
Roost is not directed at anyone under 18 and we do not knowingly collect their data.
11. Nepal Privacy Act
As an operator based in Nepal, we also align with the Individual Privacy Act, 2075 (2018) of Nepal, including its requirements for consent, purpose limitation, and protection of personal information.
12. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as the service changes. Material changes will be announced to active operators by email at least 14 days before they take effect.
13. Contact
Privacy questions or requests: hello@theroost.watch