Privacy Policy
The short version: Aether VPN does not log, monitor, or store your VPN traffic or browsing activity. We collect only what's needed to keep the app running. We don't sell your data to anyone, ever.
01 Who We Are
Aether VPN is a Virtual Private Network application built and maintained by Emmanuel Nsubuga. This policy explains what data we handle when you use the app, how we handle it, and why.
Questions? Reach us at nsubugaemmanuel1@gmail.com — we respond to every message.
02 What We Collect
We keep this list short on purpose. The app collects:
- Anonymous session identifier — a randomly generated ID created fresh on each install. It is not linked to your name, email address, or any external account.
- Crash reports — basic error details when the app crashes unexpectedly. These contain no VPN traffic and exist solely to help us fix bugs.
- Subscription status — whether you're on the free or premium tier. This is read from Google Play Billing; we never see or touch your payment details.
That's the full list.
03 What We Don't Collect
We have no logs of where you go online. This isn't a policy we might change next quarter — it's an architectural decision. The server is not set up to record it.
Specifically, we never collect:
- The contents of your VPN traffic
- Websites, apps, or services you access while connected
- Your real IP address stored against your identity
- DNS queries made through the tunnel
- Connection timestamps or session durations tied to you
- Your location beyond what your device's network connection inherently involves
04 VPN Traffic
When you connect, your traffic is encrypted and routed through our server in New York. We don't inspect what passes through. Like any network host, our infrastructure generates low-level system logs (think: bytes in/out per connection), but these contain no browsing data and are not stored in a way that ties back to an individual user.
The tunnel uses VLESS over TLS — the same transport layer that secures most of the web. Your ISP sees an encrypted stream going to our server. That's it.
05 Advertising
Free-tier users see a single rewarded ad before connecting, served by Google AdMob. AdMob collects your device's advertising ID and may use coarse location data (country level) to serve relevant ads. This happens on Google's infrastructure under their own privacy policy — we don't receive that data.
You can opt out of personalised ads in your Android settings: Settings → Google → Ads → Delete advertising ID.
Premium users see no ads at all.
06 DNS Ad Blocking
Premium users can route DNS through our AdGuard Home instance for network-level ad and tracker blocking. We don't log or store DNS queries made through this service. Query log retention is set to 24 hours for operational health monitoring, after which logs are purged automatically.
07 Payments & Subscriptions
Subscriptions are processed entirely by Google Play Billing. We never receive your card number, billing address, or any payment instrument details. Google's own privacy policy governs how that data is handled. We receive only a confirmation that a purchase was made and which product was purchased.
08 Third-Party Services
The app integrates two external services:
We are not responsible for data practices of these third parties. Their policies govern their use of data.
09 Data Retention
Crash and diagnostic data is kept for a maximum of 30 days before being purged. Subscription status is retained while your account is active. No VPN usage data is retained because none is collected.
10 Children's Privacy
Aether VPN is not intended for children under 13. If you believe a child has submitted personal data through the app, contact us and we will delete it promptly.
11 Your Rights
You can request access to, correction of, or deletion of any personal data we hold. Send a request to nsubugaemmanuel1@gmail.com and we will respond within 30 days. In practice, there is very little to hand over — which is the point.
12 Security
Traffic through the VPN is encrypted in transit. Our server infrastructure runs on DigitalOcean with security patches applied promptly. We follow the principle of least privilege — the server processes only what it needs to in order to forward your encrypted traffic.
13 Changes to This Policy
If we make material changes to this policy, we'll notify users through an in-app notice before the changes take effect. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page always reflects the latest revision. Continued use of the app after a change is posted means you accept the updated terms.
14 Contact
For any privacy questions, data requests, or concerns:
We're a small team and we read every message.