These Terms govern your use of the ChildStep app and its backend service (the "Service"). By creating a family, signing in, or otherwise using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service. Your use is also subject to our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle personal data — including children's data.
App terms: Goal = something a child works toward; Step = a task within a goal on the child's daily list; Schedule = the family's weekly timetable; Cheer = a small encouragement on a completed step; Organizer/Parent/Guardian/Child = family roles.
1. Who may use ChildStep
You must be at least 18 years old (or the age of majority where you live) and able to enter a binding agreement to create a family or an adult account. ChildStep is operated by a parent or guardian. A child does not create their own account — a child joins only through a parent's or guardian's invitation, and the adult remains responsible for that child's use of the Service.
2. Family accounts & roles
- The adult who creates a family is the Organizer. The Organizer may add other adults (Parent/Guardian) and children, and manage the family's data.
- If you add another person (adult or child), you confirm you are authorised to do so and to provide their information, and — for a child — that you are their parent or legal guardian, or act with that person's authority.
- You are responsible for keeping your sign-in secure and for activity under your account.
3. Parental responsibility & consent
Because ChildStep involves children's personal data (names, ages/birth years, photos, routines), the parent/guardian who adds a child:
- affirms they have the authority and have provided verifiable parental consent (we obtain this via an email confirmation step before any child data is collected — see the Privacy Policy);
- is responsible for what they enter about the child and for supervising the child's use;
- may review, edit, export, or delete the child's data at any time (Section 8 + Privacy Policy §6).
4. Acceptable use
You agree not to:
- use the Service for anything unlawful, or to enter content you have no right to share;
- upload content that is illegal, harmful, or infringing, or another family's data you don't control;
- attempt to access accounts, data, or systems that are not yours; probe, scrape, overload, or reverse-engineer the Service; or bypass the parental-consent or security controls;
- resell, sublicense, or use the Service to build a competing product.
We may suspend or terminate access that violates these Terms or that risks harm to other users, children, or the Service.
5. Your content
You keep ownership of the content you create in the Service (goals, steps, schedule, comments, photos, etc.). You grant us a limited, worldwide, non-exclusive licence to host, store, process, and display that content only to operate and provide the Service to your family (including syncing it across your family's devices and sending the notifications you enable). We do not sell your content or use it for advertising. You are responsible for the content you provide and for having the rights and consents needed to provide it.
6. Children
ChildStep is intended to be set up and controlled by a parent or guardian. We obtain verifiable parental consent and provide the parent notice before a child's personal data is collected, and we do not knowingly collect a child's data without that consent. How we handle children's data is described in the Privacy Policy (COPPA §312 / GDPR Article 8).
7. Fees
ChildStep is currently provided free of charge. If we introduce paid features in the future, we will make the terms clear before you incur any charge; nothing here obliges you to pay for the current features.
8. Deleting your data & account
You can delete your data at any time in Settings → Manage data → Delete account, and export your data from the same screen. If nobody else can manage a family after you go — an adult who was added but never signed in cannot — that family is permanently deleted with everything in it: children's profiles, goals, steps, schedule, comments and reactions. Where somebody else can, the family stays and only your account is removed from it. Before you confirm, the app shows you each of your families, what happens to it, and why. You may also request deletion via our data-deletion page or by emailing support@childstep.app.
9. Changes to the Service and these Terms
We may update the Service and these Terms. For material changes we will update the "Effective date" and give reasonable notice in the app or by email. Continuing to use the Service after a change takes effect means you accept the updated Terms.
10. Disclaimers
The Service is provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind to the extent permitted by law. ChildStep helps families plan and track routines; it is not medical, psychological, educational, or other professional advice. We do not guarantee the Service will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that reminders will always be delivered on time.
11. Limitation of liability
To the maximum extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for lost data or profits, arising from your use of the Service. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law (including, where applicable, liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or for fraud). Some jurisdictions do not allow certain limitations, so parts of this section may not apply to you.
12. Termination
You may stop using the Service and delete your account at any time (Section 8). We may suspend or end your access if you materially breach these Terms or to protect users or the Service. Sections that by their nature should survive (e.g. 5 licence limits, 10–11 disclaimers/liability, 13 governing law) survive termination.
13. Governing law
These Terms are governed by the laws of your provider's jurisdiction, without regard to conflict-of-laws rules, and you agree to the courts of that place for disputes, unless mandatory local consumer law gives you other rights.
14. Contact
Truong Pham Xuan — support@childstep.app