Terms of Service

Article 1 (Purpose and Definitions)

1. These Terms govern the conditions and procedures for using the StepGuardian service (the "Service") provided by Guardian Labs Co., Ltd. (the "Operator"), and the rights, obligations, and responsibilities of the Operator and users.
2. The "Service" collectively means the following, which help family members check on each other's whereabouts and well-being:
   • the parent app (Android)
   • the child-device app (Android)
   • the website (guardianlabs.app)
3. A "Parent User" is an adult guardian who creates an account in the parent app and uses the Service.
4. A "Child User" is a child under the parental authority or legal guardianship of a Parent User who is connected to the Service through the child-device app.
5. Operator: Guardian Labs Co., Ltd. (가디언랩스 주식회사) · CEO Taehee Ko · Business registration no. 130-88-03529 · 413-C34, 13 Cheongnahannae-ro 72beon-gil, Seo-gu, Incheon, Republic of Korea · help@guardianlabs.app

Article 2 (Eligibility)

1. A parent account may only be created by an adult: 19 or older under the Civil Act in the Republic of Korea, or the age of majority under the laws of the user's country elsewhere.
2. Installing the app on a child's device and linking that device to a family may only be done by a person who holds parental authority or legal guardianship over that child.
3. For the Service to start on a child's device, the child must personally complete the consent flow in the app. Until the child agrees, no information — including location — is collected or shared.
4. For children under 14, both the legal guardian's consent and the child's own consent are required. See the Privacy Policy for details. The child is given a plain-language explanation on the child app's linking consent screen.

Article 3 (Accounts and Family Linking)

1. A parent account is created with a Google account or with email (sign-in link) verification.
2. There is no account on the child's device. A 6-digit invite code issued in the parent app (valid for 5 minutes after issuance) is entered in the child-device app, and the family link is established once the child personally agrees.
3. Parent Users are responsible for keeping their sign-in credentials (Google account, email) secure and may not transfer or lend their account to a third party.
4. Accounts and data can be deleted from the in-app settings or via the Account and Data Deletion page.

Article 4 (The Service)

1. The Operator provides the following features:
   • Location check-in and safe zones: location sharing between family members, plus arrival and departure notices for places the family sets in advance
   • Screen time and app agreements: managing app-use time the family has agreed on together
   • Family chat: exchanging messages, images, and voice messages between family members
   • Heads-down walking alerts ("smombie" detection): a heads-up on the child's device when the screen is used while walking (processed on the device)
   • AI weekly report: a summary of the week's activity (subject to the notice in Article 7)
   • Protection status: alerts to guardians when someone tries to remove the app or turn off its permissions on the child's device
   • Listening to surroundings: only if the child separately agrees, a guardian can briefly listen live to the sound around the child's device (audio is not stored)
2. Location sharing is mutual. Just as the child's location is visible to the parent, the parent's location is visible to the child.
3. The child's device always displays an indicator that the Service is running. The Service is not designed to operate without the child's knowledge.
4. Specific features may vary by app version and device environment.

Article 5 (Fees and Payment)

1. The Service consists of a free plan that provides the basic features and a paid subscription (the "Premium plan") that provides additional features. Premium billing is not yet available; this Article applies from the time it officially launches.

2. In the Republic of Korea, the Premium plan is priced as follows, including VAT:

   • Monthly plan: KRW 6,900 per month
   • Annual plan: KRW 57,960 per year

   In the United States, the Premium plan is USD 4.99 per month or USD 41.99 per year, before any applicable tax. In other countries, the local-currency price shown by Google Play at checkout applies.

3. Premium payments are made through Google Play in-app subscriptions, and payment, billing, and receipts are handled under Google Play's policies and procedures. The Operator does not directly collect or store payment-method information such as card details.

4. A Premium subscription renews automatically each billing period (monthly or annual) unless the user cancels. The Operator gives advance notice of renewals and price changes in accordance with applicable law, and users may cancel the next renewal at any time from subscription management in Google Play.

5. A free trial can be started without registering a payment method. When the trial period (7 days) ends, no payment is charged automatically and the account moves to the free plan. The Operator does not use any method that automatically converts a free trial into a paid charge.

6. When an account moves from Premium to the free plan (through cancellation, trial expiry, and the like), history and data exceeding the free plan's retention limits may no longer be kept afterward. The Operator gives notice of this before the change.

7. Premium payments may only be made by a Parent User who is an adult under the Civil Act of the Republic of Korea. A payment made by a minor without the consent of their legal guardian may be canceled in accordance with applicable law.

Article 6 (Withdrawal of Subscription and Refunds)

1. Users may withdraw their subscription to the Premium plan within 7 days of the payment date or the date the content becomes available, in accordance with the Act on Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce of the Republic of Korea.
2. However, under Article 17(2) of that Act, withdrawal may be restricted for portions of digital content whose provision has already begun with the user's consent, among other cases. The Operator discloses such grounds for restricting withdrawal in advance on the payment screen.
3. Refunds are processed according to the standards set by applicable law. The Operator does not offer any separate unconditional refund guarantee (such as a full refund within a set period) beyond the statutory standards.
4. Refunds for payments made through Google Play also follow Google Play's refund policy and procedures.
5. If an annual plan is canceled mid-term, the standards for remaining use and refund handling follow applicable law and Google Play policy, and specifics are disclosed on the payment screen and in these Terms.

Article 7 (AI Feature Notice)

1. The weekly report is written by generative artificial intelligence (AI). The Operator discloses this in advance on the report screen and in these Terms.
2. Output produced by generative AI is accompanied by a label indicating that it was AI-generated.
3. AI-written reports may contain errors or inaccuracies. Reports are for reference, and we recommend that you do not make significant decisions about your child based on the report alone.
4. Users can check the report's underlying data (such as app-use records) directly in the app.

Article 8 (Prohibited Conduct)

1. This Service must be used only between a guardian who holds legal parental authority and their child. Users must not do any of the following:
   • install the app on the device of anyone who is not a child under their care — including a spouse, partner, coworker, acquaintance, or any other third party outside the family — without that person's explicit consent
   • check such a third party's location or device-use information without that person's consent
   • install the app on, or link to a family, the device of a child over whom they hold no legal guardianship
   • circumvent or disable the child consent flow
   • use listening to surroundings to hear or record the conversations of anyone other than the child without that person's consent
   • impersonate another person's account or misuse invite codes
   • reverse engineer the Service or exploit its vulnerabilities
   • otherwise use the Service to violate the law or infringe the rights of others
2. Collecting, using, or providing another person's personal location information without their consent may be subject to criminal penalties under the Act on the Protection and Use of Location Information of the Republic of Korea.

Article 9 (Suspension and Termination)

1. If a user violates Article 8, the Operator may restrict the user's access or terminate the use agreement after prior notice. However, in urgent cases — such as when an infringement of another person's rights appears to be in progress — the Operator may act first and notify afterward.
2. If use against a third party outside the family under Article 8, Paragraph 1 is confirmed, the Operator will terminate the account and may cooperate with law-enforcement requests in accordance with applicable law.
3. Users may terminate the use agreement (delete their account) at any time via the in-app settings or the Account and Data Deletion page.

Article 10 (Limitation of Liability)

1. Location information may be inaccurate due to the nature of GPS, network positioning, and similar technologies. It may differ from the actual location, particularly indoors, underground, or in areas dense with tall buildings.
2. If the child's device is powered off, required permissions have been revoked, or the device is not connected to a network, location and device status may not update.
3. The Service is a tool that helps families stay safer; it does not guarantee anyone's safety or the prevention of accidents or danger. In an emergency, do not rely on the Service — contact your local emergency services immediately.
4. To the extent permitted by applicable law, the Operator limits its liability in connection with the Service, which is provided free of charge. This does not apply to damages caused by the Operator's intent or gross negligence.

Article 11 (Changes to and Discontinuation of the Service)

1. The Operator may change or discontinue all or part of the Service where there are reasonable operational or technical grounds.
2. For significant changes to, or termination of, the Service, the Operator will give notice at least 30 days in advance via the website and the app.
3. Upon termination of the Service, the Operator will also explain how users can review and delete their data.

Article 12 (Posting and Amendment of These Terms)

1. The Operator keeps these Terms posted on the website at all times.
2. The Operator may amend these Terms to the extent they do not violate applicable law. Amendments are announced with their effective date and reasons at least 7 days before taking effect, and at least 30 days in advance for changes unfavorable to users.
3. Users who do not agree to the amended Terms may terminate the use agreement. Continued use of the Service after the announced effective date constitutes agreement to the amended Terms.
4. The version of these Terms is kept in sync with the terms version recorded with in-app consent.

Article 13 (Governing Law and Jurisdiction)

1. These Terms and the use of the Service are governed by the laws of the Republic of Korea.
2. In the event of a dispute between the Operator and a user in connection with the Service, a suit may be filed with the competent court under the Civil Procedure Act of the Republic of Korea.
3. If you are a consumer living outside the Republic of Korea, this Article does not limit the rights or venue that mandatory consumer-protection laws of your country give you.

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