Privacy policy

Last updated: 26 September 2026. This policy explains what the Meri app (“Meri”, “the app”) and this website (meri.samuel.et) collect and why. Meri is a study app for the Ethiopian driving-licence theory test.

The short version

• We don't ask for your name, email address or phone number in the app.
• Your study progress (answers, scores, saved items, settings) is stored on your phone.
• The app uses an anonymous ID so a school voucher can be linked to your phone, plus standard analytics, crash reports and ads.
• We don't sell your data.

What we collect

• Anonymous account ID. On first use the app signs in anonymously with Firebase Authentication. This produces a random ID that is not linked to your identity.
• Invite or voucher code. When you enter one, our servers record that the code was used, when, and link it to a cryptographic key generated on your phone (a public key and its hash, never a private key), so the code works on that one phone. A voucher also records its school, duration and status.
• App integrity signals. The app may ask Google Play Integrity to confirm the app is genuine and the device is not tampered with. We receive a pass/fail verdict.
• Usage analytics. Firebase Analytics records events such as screens viewed, exams finished, and voucher activation success or failure, with technical data like app version, phone model, Android version, approximate region and language. We use this to fix problems and improve lessons.
• Crash reports. Firebase Crashlytics records crash details (device model, OS version, the error) to help us fix bugs.
• Advertising data (free version only). Google AdMob shows ads. Google and its partners may use your device's advertising ID and other signals to serve and measure ads, as described in Google's policies. Users with a school voucher see no ads. In regions where required, the app asks for your consent before personalised ads. You can reset or delete your advertising ID in Android Settings → Google → Ads.
• Student details held by your school. A driving school that creates vouchers may type a student's name and phone number into the school dashboard to keep track of who received which voucher. That information is held for the school in our database; it is not shown in the app and we do not use it to contact students.
• This website. The download page is served by Amazon Web Services (S3/CloudFront), which keeps standard access logs (IP address, time, requested file). Fonts are loaded from Google Fonts. We do not run advertising or tracking scripts on this website.

What stays on your phone

Your answers, exam history, review schedule, streaks, language and text-size settings, and any study-reminder time are stored on your device only. Uninstalling the app deletes them. Study reminders are local notifications created by your phone; nothing is sent to a server to schedule them.

How we use data

• To run the app: activate vouchers, keep each voucher on one phone, and deliver full lessons to licensed phones.
• To protect the content and prevent misuse, such as copies of the app being shared.
• To understand what works and fix problems.
• To show ads in the free version.

Who processes data for us

• Google (Firebase Authentication, Firestore, Analytics, Crashlytics, Hosting, AdMob, Play Integrity). Our Firebase database is located in Africa (Johannesburg).
• Amazon Web Services (voucher and content services, and this website), located in Europe (Frankfurt).
• Cloudflare (DNS for this domain).

Data is therefore processed outside Ethiopia. We use these providers under their standard data-protection terms.

Retention

Voucher and activation records are kept while a voucher is valid and for a reasonable period afterwards for support and fraud prevention. Analytics and crash data are kept for the periods set in Firebase (analytics events are typically retained for up to 14 months). School student details are kept while the school uses Meri and can be deleted on request.

Your choices and rights

• Use the app without a voucher: no personal details are required.
• Reset your advertising ID or opt out of ad personalisation in your Android settings.
• Ask us to delete the data linked to your anonymous ID or voucher, or (if you are a student) the details a school entered about you. Contact us with the voucher code or the details you want removed.
• Uninstall the app to delete everything stored on your phone.

Children

Meri is intended for people aged 18 and over. It is not directed at children.

Security

Voucher and licence checks are signed by our servers; the app keeps its keys in Android's secure key store, and paid lesson text is stored encrypted on the phone. No system is perfectly secure, but we take reasonable measures to protect data.

Changes

If we change this policy we will update the date above and, for significant changes, tell you in the app or on our social pages.

Contact

Message us on Telegram: @meridrivinget.