Blackout Solo - Privacy Policy (Android)

Last updated: 22 September 2026

Blackout Technologies Limited ("Blackout", "we" or "us") provides the Blackout Solo mobile application for Android ("Solo" or the "App"). Blackout is a company registered at 6th Floor Capital Tower, 91 Waterloo Road, London, United Kingdom, SE1 8RT with company number 10437246.

Solo lets you set your own rules for when apps on your Android phone or tablet are blocked. Unlike the Blackout Platform used by schools, fleets and employers, Solo has no organisation behind it and no Blackout server. You are the only person who decides what is blocked and when.

For the purposes of data protection law, Blackout is the data controller for the small amount of information described in this policy. This policy applies to Solo for Android only. For how we handle personal data in the Blackout Platform, on our website, or in other contexts, please see our other privacy policies or contact us at info@blackout-technologies.com.

Please read this policy carefully. By using Solo, you accept the practices described here.

• Solo has no account, no sign-up and no Blackout server. We do not know who you are.
• Your blocking rules, schedules and chosen apps are stored on your device and never sent to Blackout.
• The App checks which app is on screen only to decide whether to block it. It keeps no record of which apps you use or for how long.
• The App's VPN runs entirely on your device. It blocks traffic during your blocks and sends nothing to Blackout or anyone else.
• Nothing leaves your device unless you switch on diagnostics: crash reports and anonymous usage statistics, sent to Google Firebase under a random installation identifier. One switch covers both, and if you leave it off the App sends nothing at all.
• We do not sell personal data, use it for advertising, or share it for third-party marketing.

Solo does not ask you to create an account and does not ask for your name, email address or phone number. Everything you set up in the App is stored on your device and is not sent to Blackout.

• Your blocking rules. The apps and websites you choose to block, and the schedules or conditions that switch blocking on and off. To let you choose, the App reads the list of apps installed on your device. That list and your choices stay on your device.
• Your settings and preferences, such as whether diagnostics are enabled.
• Block counts. The App may keep a count of how often the blocking screen has been shown so it can show you your own progress. This count stays on your device.

Solo requests the following permissions. Each one works entirely on your device. Revoking a permission may stop part of the App from working.

• App usage access. Lets the App see which app has just been opened, so it can be checked against your rules and blocked if it is not allowed right now. The check happens on your device and the result is discarded immediately. We do not build any record of which apps you use or how long you use them, and nothing about your app use is sent to Blackout.
• VPN. During a block, the App starts a VPN that runs only on your device. It stops network traffic for the apps you have blocked, similar to airplane mode for those apps, and acts as a backstop if other blocking fails. No traffic is routed to Blackout or any other server, nothing is inspected, and no browsing or app data is stored. Android shows a key icon while it is active.
• Display over other apps. Lets the App show its blocking screen on top of an app you have blocked. No app data is stored.
• Notifications. Used for reminders you schedule, such as a warning before a block starts, and for the persistent notification Android requires while a block is running. No notification data is collected.
• Do Not Disturb access. If you choose, the App silences notifications during a block. This changes a device setting only and collects no data.
• Location (only if you create a location-based rule). If you choose to block apps when you are in a particular place, the App uses your device's location and the name of the Wi-Fi network you are connected to, on your device, to decide whether you are inside that zone. Background location is needed so the rule keeps working while the App is not open. The App does not keep a history of where you have been, does not track your location in real time, and never sends location data to Blackout or anyone else.
• Battery optimisation exception and run at start-up. Stop Android from closing the App in the background and restore your blocks after a restart, so a block you set keeps working. These collect no data.

If you back up your device to your Google account, the App's data may be included in that backup. Backups are controlled by Google and are covered by Google's privacy policy, not this one.

Solo uses two services from Google's Firebase platform. These are the only services the App sends information to. Google processes this information on our behalf under the Firebase Data Processing and Security Terms.

Firebase Crashlytics (crash reporting). If you have switched diagnostics on and the App crashes or hits an error, Crashlytics sends us a report so we can fix it. A report contains:

• a random Crashlytics installation identifier and Firebase installation ID, generated for your copy of the App;
• the crash trace and the state of the App at the time, including short diagnostic log lines written by the App;
• your device model, Android version, CPU architecture, free memory and disk space, orientation, and whether the device was rooted;
• the App version and the time of the crash.

We do not attach your name, an email address or any account identifier to crash reports, because Solo has none. Crash reports do not include your blocking rules or the apps you have selected.

Google Analytics for Firebase (usage statistics). If you switch usage statistics on, Analytics tells us how the App is used in aggregate, for example how many people set up a schedule or which screens are visited most. For this, Google collects:

• a random app instance identifier;
• events describing actions in the App, such as "rule created" or "block started", and the screens you open. Events do not include the names of the apps or websites you block;
• your device model, Android version, App version, language, and time zone;
• a coarse location (country and city), which Google derives from your IP address and then discards. For users in the UK, EU and Switzerland, Google does not log or store the IP address.

We have switched off collection of the Android advertising ID in the App, so Google does not receive it, and we do not use Analytics data for advertising.

Crash reporting and usage statistics are off unless you turn them on. The App asks you once, when you first open it, and a single diagnostics switch in the App's settings covers both, so you can change your answer at any time.

For more detail on how Google handles this information, see Privacy and Security in Firebase.

We only use the information described above when data protection law allows us to. We use it to:

• find and fix crashes and errors in the App;
• understand how the App is used in aggregate, so we can decide what to improve;
• respond to you if you contact us for support;
• enforce our terms of service; and
• comply with legal obligations.

Our legal basis for crash reporting and usage statistics is your consent, given when you switch diagnostics on. Nothing is collected until you do, and you can withdraw your consent at any time in the App's settings, which stops collection from that point. The information is held under random identifiers, is not combined with anything that identifies you, and is not used for advertising or profiling.

If you email us, we use your email address and message to reply to you, on the basis of our legitimate interest in providing support.

We do not make decisions about you by automated means, and we do not use your information to build a profile of you.

Blackout does not operate any server for Solo. The crash reports and usage statistics described above are stored by Google on Firebase infrastructure, which may be located outside the United Kingdom and the European Economic Area, including in the United States. Google is our processor and may only use this information to provide the Firebase services to us.

Where information is transferred outside the UK or EEA, we rely on Google's certification under the EU-U.S. and UK Extension to the Data Privacy Framework and on the standard contractual clauses and UK International Data Transfer Addendum included in Google's data processing terms. Contact us at info@blackout-technologies.com if you would like more information about these safeguards.

We may also share information:

• with any member of our group, meaning our subsidiaries, our ultimate holding company and its subsidiaries, for the purposes set out in this policy;
• with law enforcement agencies, public authorities or other organisations if legally required to do so, or if we have a good faith belief that it is reasonably necessary to comply with a legal obligation, enforce our terms of service, detect or address security, fraud or technical issues, or protect the rights, property or safety of us, our users, a third party or the public; and
• with a prospective buyer or seller if we sell or buy any business or assets, or if we sell, merge or partner with another business. In such transactions, user information may be among the transferred assets.

We do not sell personal data, and we do not share it with advertising networks or for third-party marketing.

• On your device. Your rules, settings and block counts stay on your device until you change them, uninstall the App, or reset the device. Uninstalling the App removes them.
• Crash reports. Google keeps crash traces and the identifiers attached to them for 90 days, then begins removing them from live and backup systems.
• Usage statistics. Google keeps event-level and user-level Analytics data for no longer than 14 months. After that, only aggregated reports that do not identify any individual device remain.
• Support emails. If you contact us, we keep your message for as long as needed to deal with your request and for a reasonable period afterwards in case you follow up.

• Turn diagnostics on or off. Crash reporting and usage statistics are off unless you switch them on. One switch in the App's settings covers both, and collection stops as soon as you switch it off.
• Delete your data on the device. Uninstalling the App removes all rules, settings and counts stored on your device.
• Data rights. In certain circumstances, you have the right to access a copy of the personal data we hold about you, to have inaccurate data corrected, to receive it in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format, to object to our processing, and to request its deletion. You can exercise these rights by contacting us at info@blackout-technologies.com.

Because crash reports and usage statistics are held under random identifiers that are not linked to your name, email address or any account, we usually cannot find the data belonging to a particular person. If you contact us, we will explain what is and is not possible and help where we can.

• Consent. Where we rely on your consent, you can withdraw it at any time in the App's settings. This does not affect the lawfulness of any processing carried out before you withdrew it.
• Complaints. If you wish to complain about how we process your personal data, please contact us first at info@blackout-technologies.com and we will deal with your request as soon as possible. You also have the right to complain to your data protection authority. In the United Kingdom, this is the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at https://ico.org.uk.

Solo is designed for people who want to manage their own screen time. It is not intended for children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe a child under 13 is using the App, please contact us and we will help remove any related information. Parents looking to manage a child's device should use Google's Family Link and the built-in Digital Wellbeing features of Android.

Information stored on your device is protected by Android's app sandboxing and device encryption, and by the screen lock you set on your device. Information sent to Google Firebase is encrypted in transit. Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we and Google have put in place appropriate measures to prevent information from being accidentally lost, used or accessed in an unauthorised way, we cannot guarantee the security of information transmitted from the App; any transmission is at your own risk.

Any changes we make to this policy will be posted on this page, and the date at the top will be updated. If we make a material change, such as sending new categories of information off the device, we will tell you in the App before the change takes effect. Please check back from time to time.

Questions, comments and requests regarding this policy are welcome and should be addressed to info@blackout-technologies.com, or by post to Blackout Technologies Limited, 6th Floor Capital Tower, 91 Waterloo Road, London, SE1 8RT, United Kingdom.