Privacy Policy

Echo Protocol is a messaging service operated by Luna Lazuli LLC ("we", "us"). This policy explains what information Echo Protocol collects when you use the website at echop.app or the Echo Protocol apps for iOS, Android and Windows, what we do with it, how long we keep it, and how you can delete it. "You" means the person using Echo Protocol.

Your Account

To create an account you give us an email address and a password. We store the password only as an Argon2id hash, so we cannot read it. We use your email address to sign you in, to send you a link to verify the address, and to send a password reset link when you ask for one. These emails are delivered by our email provider, Resend.

You can also add a username, a profile picture and a phone number. Your email address, username and profile picture are shown to other signed-in Echo Protocol users on your profile and in their chats and contact lists. If you add a phone number, other users see it only if the number is verified and you turn on Show on My Profile; otherwise only you can see it. To verify a number we send a six-digit code by text message through our SMS provider, Twilio. Once a number is verified we also store a SHA-256 hash of it, which lets people who already have your number find your account, but only if you turn on Let People Who Have My Number Find Me. You can sign in with a verified number instead of your email address.

We also store the settings you choose in Echo Protocol, such as your status, quick reactions, default media and group settings, and app preferences, so they follow you to new devices.

Messages and Media

Echo Protocol has two kinds of chats. In a standard chat, messages, captions, photos, videos and reactions are stored on our servers so they can be delivered to the other members and shown on all of your devices. They are encrypted in transit between your device and our servers, but they are not end-to-end encrypted, so they are readable on our servers. We do not look at message content except to review a report (see Contacts, Blocking and Reports below) or when the law requires it.

In an encrypted chat, message text is encrypted on your device with keys that stay on your devices. Our servers hold the encrypted copy only until each recipient device has downloaded it, and for no more than 30 days. We cannot read encrypted messages. We do see who is in an encrypted chat, who sent each message and when, reactions, and read status. Encrypted chats carry text only; photos and videos are not available in them. Your devices register public keys with us so that others can encrypt messages to you; the matching private keys never leave your devices.

When you upload a photo, we remove all of its metadata, including any location, before storing it. For MP4 videos we remove the metadata in the file. When you send a link to a supported video site in a standard chat, our server downloads that video so the chat can play it without your device contacting the site; the site sees a request from our server, not from you. You can choose to send such a link as a plain link instead.

For groups we store the group name and picture, the member list, roles, nicknames and notices of changes such as members joining or leaving.

Contacts, Blocking and Reports

We store your contacts, contact requests, the people you block and the reports you send. If you use contact discovery in an app, your device sends us SHA-256 hashes of the phone numbers in your address book. We compare them with the verified numbers of people who turned on discovery and then discard them. We never store your address book.

When you report a message from a standard chat, we keep a copy of that message with the report so a moderator can review it even if the sender later unsends it. When you report a message from an encrypted chat, we cannot see its content. You can choose to include the decrypted text with the report, and only then do we receive it. Reports are reviewed by our administrators.

Information Collected Automatically

When you sign in, we record the IP address and the device description your browser or app sends (its user agent) with that session. You can see and end your active sessions on your account page. We also record IP addresses and device descriptions with security events such as sign-ins, failed sign-ins and password changes, and we use IP addresses to limit repeated attempts. A web sign-in ends after 3 days without use and after 40 days at most; an app sign-in lasts up to 90 days.

If you turn on notifications, we store the push token or web push subscription for that device. Notifications for standard chats include the sender's name and a preview of the message, and they pass through Apple Push Notification service or your browser's push service. Notifications for encrypted chats only say that a new encrypted message arrived.

The website uses two cookies: one keeps you signed in and the other protects your requests against cross-site forgery. The web app also keeps your encryption keys in your browser's storage. We do not use analytics, advertising or tracking tools, and we do not sell your information or share it for advertising.

How We Use Information

We use the information above to run Echo Protocol: to create and secure your account, deliver your messages and notifications, keep your settings in sync, let people find you when you allow it, protect the service against abuse, review reports and enforce our Terms of Use, and meet our legal obligations.

Who We Share It With

We share information only with the providers that run parts of the service for us, and only what each one needs: Render hosts our servers and database in the United States, Resend sends our emails, Twilio sends verification codes by text message, Apple delivers notifications to iOS devices, and your browser's push service delivers web notifications. When a video site blocks direct downloads, our server may reach it through a proxy service; the request carries only the link, not your identity. We disclose information to authorities only when a valid legal request requires it, and we report child sexual abuse material to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children as the law requires.

How Long We Keep It

We keep your account information until you delete your account. Messages and media stay until they are removed: when the sender unsends a message, when the members of a chat clear it, when a group is deleted, when media reaches the expiry its sender set, or when the sender deletes their account. Undelivered encrypted messages are removed after 30 days. A session record, with its IP address and device description, is removed 30 days after you sign out or the session reaches its maximum length (40 days on the web, 90 days in the apps). Records used to limit repeated attempts are removed after a day. Email links expire after 30 minutes (password reset) or 24 hours (email verification), and text message codes after 10 minutes. Security log entries about your account are kept while your account exists. Reports are kept as long as we need them to handle the report and protect the service, including after the accounts involved are deleted.

Deleting Your Account

You can delete your account at any time. On the website, open your account page and choose Delete Account. In the apps, open Settings and choose Delete Account. You confirm with your password, and the deletion happens immediately.

Deleting your account removes your email address, username, phone number, profile picture and settings; every message you sent, in direct chats and in groups, with its photos and videos; your reactions; your contacts, contact requests and blocks; your sessions, push registrations and encryption keys; and the security log entries about you. Media files that nobody else's message uses are erased from storage within two days. You leave every group; if you were a group's only admin, its longest-standing member becomes admin. What remains is an empty record with no personal information, which other people see as "Deleted Account" in their chats. Messages other people sent to you stay in their chats, because they belong to them. Reports that involve you are kept as described above. If you cannot sign in, email us at contact@lunalazuli.net from the address on your account and we will delete it for you.

Your Choices and Rights

You can see and change your profile, phone number, visibility and discovery settings, notifications and sessions on your account page. Depending on where you live, you may have the right to ask for a copy of your information, to correct it, to delete it, or to object to how we use it. To make a request, email us at contact@lunalazuli.net. We will answer within 30 days.

Children

Echo Protocol is not for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 13. If we learn that an account belongs to someone under 13, we delete it.

Security

We encrypt connections to our servers, store passwords only as hashes, limit repeated sign-in attempts and offer end-to-end encrypted chats. No system is perfectly secure. If we learn of a breach that affects your information, we will tell you as the law requires.

Changes to This Policy

When we change this policy we update the date at the top of this page. If a change materially affects how we handle your information, we will tell you in Echo Protocol or by email before it takes effect.

Contact

Luna Lazuli LLC operates Echo Protocol. For questions about this policy or your information, email us at contact@lunalazuli.net.

Terms of Use

These Terms of Use are an agreement between you and Luna Lazuli LLC for your use of Echo Protocol. By creating an account or using Echo Protocol, you agree to these terms and to the Privacy Policy above. If you do not agree, do not use Echo Protocol.

Who Can Use Echo Protocol

You must be at least 13 years old to use Echo Protocol. If you are under the age of majority where you live, you need the permission of a parent or guardian. You may not use Echo Protocol if we have previously disabled or deleted your account for breaking these terms.

Your Account

Give us an email address you control and keep your password secret. You are responsible for what happens under your account. Tell us at contact@lunalazuli.net if you think someone else has access to it.

Your Content

You keep ownership of the messages, photos, videos and other content you send. You give us permission to store, process and deliver that content to the people you send it to, only so that we can operate Echo Protocol. You are responsible for your content and must have the right to share it.

Zero Tolerance for Objectionable Content and Abusive Users

We do not tolerate objectionable content or abusive behavior on Echo Protocol. You may not use Echo Protocol to send, share or store, or to try to send, share or store, any of the following:

• harassment, bullying, threats or intimidation of any person;
• hate speech, or content that attacks people for their race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability or illness;
• any sexual content involving minors, which we report to the authorities;
• intimate images of another person shared without their consent, or sexually explicit material sent to someone who did not ask for it;
• content that promotes or threatens violence, terrorism or self-harm;
• spam, scams, fraud or unsolicited advertising;
• impersonation of another person or organization;
• content that is illegal or infringes someone else's rights;
• malware or links meant to steal information.

You also may not try to get into other people's accounts, interfere with or overload the service, get around a block or a suspension, or collect information about other users without their permission.

Reporting, Blocking and Enforcement

You can report a message or a user from inside Echo Protocol, and you can block any user so they can no longer contact you. Our administrators review reports within 24 hours. When content or behavior breaks these terms, we remove the content and disable or delete the account responsible, without notice and without exception. We cannot see the content of encrypted chats, so for those we act on what the reporter chooses to share and on our other records.

Ending Your Use

You can stop using Echo Protocol and delete your account at any time, as described in the Privacy Policy. We may suspend or end your access if you break these terms, if the law requires it, or if we stop offering Echo Protocol.

The Service

We work to keep Echo Protocol available and secure, but we provide it as is and as available, without warranties of any kind, to the extent the law allows. We may change or stop features. To the extent the law allows, Luna Lazuli LLC is not liable for indirect, incidental or consequential damages, or for lost data, arising from your use of Echo Protocol. Nothing in these terms limits rights you have under laws that cannot be waived.

Apps From the Apple App Store

If you use the Echo Protocol app for iOS, these terms are between you and Luna Lazuli LLC, not Apple. Apple is not responsible for the app or its content, has no obligation to provide maintenance or support for it, and is not responsible for any claims about it. Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these terms and may enforce them against you.

Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Texas and applicable United States law, without regard to conflict of law rules. Any dispute about these terms or Echo Protocol will be heard in the state or federal courts located in Texas, and you and Luna Lazuli LLC agree to their jurisdiction. If the consumer laws where you live give you the right to bring a claim in your home courts, these terms do not take that away.

Changes to These Terms

When we change these terms we update the date at the top of this page. If a change is material, we will tell you in Echo Protocol or by email before it takes effect. If you keep using Echo Protocol after that, the new terms apply.

Contact

Questions about these terms go to contact@lunalazuli.net.

Support

For help with Echo Protocol, email us at contact@lunalazuli.net. Include the email address of your account, but never your password. We usually reply within two business days.

Delete Your Account

On the website, sign in, open your account page and choose Delete Account. In the iOS, Android and Windows apps, open Settings and choose Delete Account. Enter your password to confirm. The deletion is immediate and cannot be undone; the Privacy Policy above explains what it removes. If you cannot sign in, email us from the address on your account and we will delete it for you.

Report Abuse

To report a message, choose Report on the message on the website, or Report Message in the message's menu in the apps. To report a person, open their profile and choose Report User. You can block them at the same time, and you can block anyone from their profile with Block User. Reports go straight to our administrators, who review them within 24 hours. You can also email contact@lunalazuli.net with details. If someone is in immediate danger, contact your local emergency services first.

Sign-In Problems

If you forgot your password, use Forgot Password on the sign-in page to get a reset link by email. After too many failed attempts, sign-in pauses for a short time; wait and try again.