Alongside Privacy Policy

Effective date: 12 October 2026

Last updated: 12 October 2026

Who we are

Alongside is operated by Restart Financial Inc. This policy covers the Alongside mobile app and the services supporting your clinic programme. Contact us at support@restartbank.com or visit restartfintech.com.

We are responsible for processing used to operate your account and the app. Your participating clinic or healthcare professional may separately be responsible for processing used to provide healthcare. Their privacy notice also applies to that processing. A clinic's logo or colours in Alongside do not change the app's operator or this policy.

Information we collect and where it comes from

• Account information: name, email, phone number, password hash, login sessions, password-reset information and account dates. You or your clinic provide account and invitation details; our service generates authentication records.
• Programme and health information: age, height, weight and weight history, goals, programme dates, nutrition targets, and information you provide about your health. This includes information entered by you or supplied through your clinic.
• Meals: photos, descriptions, dates, ingredients, estimated nutrients and saved analysis results. We receive these when you submit or save a meal.
• AI conversations: your messages, responses, recent conversation context and safety classifications. Messages may contain sensitive health information.
• Care relationships: clinic, assigned professional, invitations and enrolment status, including when the care relationship ends.
• Optional Apple Health information: authorised weight and nutrition data as described below.
• Technical information: notification identifiers or subscriptions, request and security logs, IP addresses, errors and available app/device information needed to operate and troubleshoot the service.

Health information can be sensitive personal data. Avoid including information about other people or unnecessary identifying details in photos and chat messages.

How we use information

We use information to register and authenticate you, enrol you in a clinic programme, display your progress, store meals and weight history, provide optional AI features, deliver reminders and password resets, enable authorised care-team access, respond to support requests, prevent abuse and meet legal obligations.

Where applicable, account services rely on performance of our agreement with you; optional processing relies on consent; security and service maintenance may rely on legitimate interests; and legal compliance relies on legal obligations. Processing sensitive health data requires an additional lawful condition, such as explicit consent or a condition applicable to healthcare provided by your clinic. The appropriate conditions depend on the service and jurisdiction.

AI processing and your choice

Alongside uses Google Cloud Vertex AI, provided by Google, for meal nutrition estimates, health-question responses and safety/scope checks. The app asks for your explicit permission before sending personal information for these features.

When you allow AI processing, the information sent can include the photo or meal description you submit, your question, recent messages, and relevant programme context such as age, height, goals, nutrition targets and recent meal summaries. Account passwords, email and phone fields are not deliberately included in AI prompts; however, information you type in a message or include in an image may be sent as part of that content. Do not include unnecessary personal information.

Data obtained from Apple Health is excluded from Vertex AI processing, including imported health measurements and summaries derived from those readings.

You may decline AI processing and use available non-AI features. You can withdraw permission in Profile → AI data sharing. Withdrawal stops future authorised AI submissions; it does not undo processing already performed. You may also request deletion of stored information.

We do not use your content to train our own general-purpose AI models. Google's applicable Vertex AI data-use terms and the configured model govern Google's processing, including any temporary caching or abuse-monitoring retention.

AI results may be inaccurate. They are general information and nutrition estimates, not a diagnosis, prescription or substitute for professional medical advice. Alongside is not an emergency service.

Device permissions and Apple Health

Camera access supports meal photos and registration QR scanning. Meal images are uploaded when you submit them for analysis; registration QR decoding is performed on the device. You can deny or revoke camera permission in device settings. Notification permissions and reminder preferences are optional.

On supported iPhones, you can choose to connect Apple Health and grant individual read/write permissions. While syncing is enabled, Alongside may automatically import a newer authorised weight reading into your profile when the app syncs; you do not have to confirm each reading separately. Authorised nutrition data may be read, and weight or saved meal nutrition may be written to Apple Health. AI nutrition estimates are estimates, even when you choose to save them.

Disable syncing in the app and revoke permissions in Apple Health or device settings to stop future access. Disconnecting does not remove data already stored in your Alongside account or Apple Health. Health data is not used for advertising, marketing or sale to data brokers.

Registration links contain an invitation identifier. Where supported, an Android install referrer can carry it through installation. On iOS, you can choose to paste an invitation link to continue registration. Do not share your invitation publicly.

Who receives information

• Your authorised healthcare professional receives programme information needed to follow your progress. Clinic access is role-based; it is not unrestricted access to all users' data. Clinics also manage enrolment and their staff.
• Google Cloud provides hosting, image storage and Vertex AI processing.
• Firebase services support app infrastructure and push notifications.
• Database hosting, transactional email and operational monitoring providers process the information needed for their respective services. Resend is used for transactional email where enabled.
• Advisers, authorities or a business successor may receive information when necessary and legally permitted, with applicable safeguards.

We require processors to be bound to permitted purposes and confidentiality/security terms providing the same or equivalent protection for the information entrusted to them. We do not sell personal data or share it for behavioural advertising.

Providers may process data outside your country. Where required, international we use recognised transfer safeguards, such as an adequacy decision or approved contractual clauses. Contact us for information about the safeguards applying to your data.

Retention and deletion

A 90-day programme is not an automatic 90-day deletion timer. Account, meal, chat and progress information is retained while needed to provide your active account and programme. Ending a programme does not itself delete your account. Care-team access follows the active programme relationship.

You can request account deletion in the app's Profile screen or contact support@restartbank.com with the subject Alongside account deletion. Use the email associated with your account; never send your password. We may verify your identity before acting on a request.

Deletion removes the account and associated active service records and meal-photo objects, subject to legally required retention. Backup copies remain until replaced in the backup cycle. Security records are retained as necessary to investigate abuse or meet legal obligations. Contact us for information about retention applicable to your records. A clinic may retain its own clinical records under its separate legal obligations and privacy notice.

Security, rights and children

We use authenticated access, role restrictions, encrypted network connections and restricted media storage. No service can guarantee absolute security.

Depending on applicable law, you may request access, correction, deletion, portability, restriction or objection, withdraw consent, and complain to your local data-protection regulator. Withdrawal does not affect prior lawful processing. Contact support@restartbank.com to exercise these rights.

Alongside is not intended for children under 13. Additional local age, guardian consent and healthcare requirements may apply; being 13 or older does not by itself establish eligibility for treatment or consent to all processing.

Updates and contact

Material policy changes will be notified as required. We will update the effective date and last-updated date when this policy changes.

Restart Financial Inc. — restartfintech.com

Privacy and support: support@restartbank.com.