TONNICK
Legal & Privacy
TONNICK's operator details, privacy, and community rules - every section below is real, written content, not a placeholder.
TONNICK's operator disclosure. · 2026-08-13
This is TONNICK's operator disclosure - who is legally responsible for this app, in one place, as required for a business operating in Australia.
TONNICK is currently operated as a sole trader by Jannick Guenther (ABN 67 987 558 040), registered at 22 Arthur Str., 4717 Blackwater, Australia.
"TONNICK" is the name the app and its founders use publicly. The formal ASIC business-name registration for "TONNICK" itself is still outstanding - this notice will be updated the moment that registration is filed.
This notice currently covers only Jannick's sole-trader operation. TONNICK has a second co-founder, Tony, whose formal involvement in the business structure hasn't been finalized yet and will be added here once it is - he isn't a named operator of record today.
Email: team@tonnick-guide.com
TONNICK is legally an Australian sole-trader business, but it deliberately targets German-speaking users. Under German law's "market-location principle" ("Marktortprinzip"), the German operator-disclosure requirement therefore still applies - this notice satisfies § 5 of the Digitale-Dienste-Gesetz (DDG), which replaced the earlier Telemediengesetz (TMG) rule on 14 May 2024.
This summary is a careful, source-backed orientation - not legal advice. A genuine legal review, especially for cross-border details, would be needed for a legally binding assessment.
How TONNICK handles your data. · 2026-08-13
How TONNICK actually handles your data today - written to match what the app really does, not a generic template.
The operator named in the Legal Notice above (currently Jannick Guenther, sole trader) is responsible for the data described here. Questions go to team@tonnick-guide.com.
Everything you enter - your profile, saved places, checklist progress, Community questions, Guide conversations - is stored only on your own device, using React Native's standard local storage. TONNICK runs no database of its own that this content would be uploaded to. Three things do leave your device even so: your question text when you ask the TONNICK Guide something; a request to the map service OpenFreeMap as soon as you open the interactive map; and your credentials if you choose to sign in. Details on all three below and under Third-Party Services.
The only network request TONNICK's app code makes is to the TONNICK Guide, when you actually ask it a question. That request contains the question text you typed, the Handbook chapter/step context if relevant, your app language, and a short slice of your recent conversation so follow-up questions make sense. It does not contain your name, profile, saved places, location preference, or any other locally stored data - the Guide never receives those.
It goes to the TONNICK Guide worker (hosted on Cloudflare), which forwards your question to OpenAI's API to generate an answer, then returns it to the app. See Third-Party Services for the full list of who's involved and AI Transparency for what the Guide is and isn't. The worker briefly stores your IP address (not your question) purely to enforce a rate limit, auto-expiring after a short window - it does not keep a log of what you asked.
Cloudflare and OpenAI operate global infrastructure, so your question text may be processed on servers outside Australia when you use the Guide. No other feature in TONNICK sends data anywhere.
Locally stored data stays on your device until you remove it yourself or uninstall the app. Settings → Privacy has a "delete all data" action that clears everything TONNICK has stored locally, including your Guide conversations, in one step - see Account & Data Deletion.
Because there's no TONNICK account or server-side profile, most of what data-protection law frames as "rights against a company holding your data" are, in practice, already fully in your own hands: you can see everything TONNICK stores by looking at the app itself, and delete all of it at any time in Settings - no request to anyone required. For anything about your one-off Guide questions handled by OpenAI/Cloudflare, or anything else data-related, you can reach the operator at the contact above.
TONNICK is built for adult travelers heading to Australia, typically on a working-holiday-style visa - those visas themselves generally require applicants to be at least 18. TONNICK is intended for users 18 and over and isn't designed for children.
Local data is stored using your device's standard platform storage, protected by whatever device-level security (passcode, biometrics, disk encryption) you already have set up. The one network call the app makes (to the TONNICK Guide) uses an encrypted HTTPS connection.
Every preference described here - location sharing, language, haptics - can be changed or reset at any time in Settings, with immediate effect.
Rules for using TONNICK. · 2026-08-13
The rules for using TONNICK - written to match what the app actually lets you do.
These terms cover your use of the TONNICK app, operated by Jannick Guenther (see Legal Notice). By using TONNICK, you agree to them.
TONNICK is intended for users who are at least 18 years old, in line with the typical minimum age for the working-holiday-style visas its target audience travels on.
An account is optional - TONNICK works fully without one, and without signing in nothing is tied to your identity server-side. If you do sign in, Firebase Authentication by Google handles it (see Third-Party Services). You are then responsible for keeping your credentials to yourself; don't share them. Your content - profile, notes, checklists, Community questions - still lives on your device, not in your account.
You may use TONNICK for its intended purpose: preparing for and navigating a trip to Australia - reading the Handbook, using the map, tracking your own checklist and notes, asking the TONNICK Guide questions, and posting your own questions in Community.
Questions you post in Community are stored only on your own device today - see Privacy Policy and Community Guidelines. You're responsible for what you write there.
The TONNICK app, its design, the Australia Handbook content, and the TONNICK name and character belong to the operator. Your own Community questions, notes, and checklist entries remain yours.
Since Community posts are published nowhere and stay on the device that wrote them, there's currently nothing to suspend server-side - see Account Suspension & Termination for what "enforcement" honestly means today.
TONNICK is an actively developed app. Features may be added, changed, or removed as it evolves - this is a young product, not a finished, fixed one.
TONNICK is a travel-information and community app, not a substitute for official sources - see Safety & Travel Information Disclaimer, and AI Transparency for the TONNICK Guide specifically. To the extent permitted by law, TONNICK isn't liable for decisions made based on information in the app; you're responsible for verifying anything important against official, current sources.
TONNICK relies on third-party infrastructure to operate (see Third-Party Services) and isn't responsible for their availability or content.
You can stop using TONNICK and delete all locally stored data at any time - see Account & Data Deletion. There is no subscription that would need cancelling. If you created an account, it is deleted on an informal email request.
The operator is an Australian sole trader, so these terms are intended to be governed by Australian law. This hasn't had a formal legal review yet (see the "Draft" status on this page) and should be confirmed before TONNICK is treated as a finished, publicly launched product.
What is and isn't allowed in the community. · 2026-08-13
Concrete rules for TONNICK Community - what belongs there and what doesn't.
TONNICK Community currently lets you post your own questions (stored on your device only) alongside a small set of example questions clearly marked as examples. There are no comments, no replies, no direct messages, and no image uploads yet - these rules are written for what exists now, and will expand if those features are added.
Be respectful of other travelers, even in a one-way question. Harassment, discrimination based on origin, gender, religion, sexuality, or anything similar, and hate speech have no place here.
If you share travel information, remember other travelers may rely on it - see the Safety & Travel Information Disclaimer. Outdated or second-hand information should be flagged as such, not presented as current fact.
If you see something that breaks these guidelines, use the report action on that question - see Moderation & Reporting Policy for what happens next.
Community posts aren't published anywhere yet, so today "consequences" mean the founders reviewing reported content and, where needed, removing it manually. See Account Suspension & Termination and Moderation & Reporting Policy for how this will grow once posts are genuinely published.
How reported content gets reviewed. · 2026-08-13
How reported Community content is actually reviewed today, honestly - not an idealized version.
Every Community question has a report action. Reporting lets you pick a reason (wrong information, dangerous tip, harassment, hate, fraud, spam, someone's private data, or other) and add a short note.
TONNICK doesn't have a moderation backend yet. A report you submit is saved locally on your own device as a draft - it currently isn't transmitted to anyone, and the app doesn't pretend otherwise. This policy describes the honest current state and the model for when real moderation exists.
Content flagged by automated checks or user reports will be queued for review rather than silently deleted. Clear-cut technical violations (e.g. content matching a banned-word/spam pattern) may be actioned automatically; anything that depends on context goes to a human.
Repeated violations are treated more seriously than a first, isolated one - the response escalates rather than resetting each time.
Content indicating someone is in immediate danger is a safety matter first, not just a moderation one - see the Safety & Travel Information Disclaimer. TONNICK is not a substitute for contacting local emergency services directly.
Once real moderation actions exist, anyone actioned will be able to reply to the operator (team@tonnick-guide.com) to contest the decision. No permanent ban will be based on an unreviewed automated decision alone.
TONNICK doesn't have a moderation team or support infrastructure that can promise a specific response time, and won't claim one it can't back up.
How the TONNICK Guide is disclosed as an AI assistant. · 2026-08-13
What the TONNICK Guide is, honestly, and what it isn't.
The TONNICK Guide is an AI-powered travel assistant, not a human, and not a certified expert. This is shown permanently under its name inside the Guide, plus a short disclosure the first time you open it.
Like any AI system, the TONNICK Guide's answers can be incomplete, outdated, or simply incorrect - including for the topics it's most confident-sounding about. Demo answers (used when no live connection is available) are explicitly labeled as demo, not verified advice.
The TONNICK Guide does not replace professional legal, medical, visa, safety, or financial advice. For medical, visa/legal, or financial questions the Guide flags as needing that, it says so explicitly and points you toward a real professional or official source instead of inventing specifics.
Always verify anything that actually matters to your trip - visa rules, legal requirements, safety information - against an official, current source before relying on it.
When you ask a question, TONNICK sends the question text, the relevant Handbook chapter/step context, your app language, and a short slice of recent conversation to the TONNICK Guide backend (see Third-Party Services). It does not send your name, profile, saved places, or location preference.
Avoid entering anything highly sensitive - passport numbers, financial account details, medical records, or similar - into the Guide chat. It's a travel-preparation assistant, not a secure vault.
Every Guide answer has "Helpful" / "Not helpful" feedback buttons, plus a retry option if a message fails to send. This feedback is stored locally and helps identify weak answers.
The assistant is always called "TONNICK Guide" - never "Tony" or "Toni." Tony is one of TONNICK's human founders and is a separate person from this AI character; the two should never be confused.
How TONNICK handles location data. · 2026-08-13
What TONNICK actually does - and doesn't do - with location.
TONNICK's code contains no device location permission request and no GPS access of any kind, on any platform. There is currently no feature in the app that reads your precise, real-time position.
In Settings, you can set a location-sharing preference: "Not shared" (default for every profile - nobody sees your location) or "Approximate area." This is a self-reported preference, not a live location feed, and it isn't tied to any exact point.
Right now, this setting is stored but has no visible effect - the aggregated "who's nearby" feature it's designed for hasn't been built yet. TONNICK never shows any single person's exact location to another user, and a future version of that feature would only ever show a coarse, anonymized, aggregated region, never an individual point.
You can change this preference back to "Not shared," or delete it entirely along with all other local data, at any time in Settings.
The Australia Explorer map is a self-contained, illustrated map of Australia with places, regions, and wildlife information built into the app - it doesn't use an external map-tiles provider and doesn't need your location to work.
TONNICK doesn't currently support publishing your own routes or location markers to Community - that feature doesn't exist yet. If it's built, it will follow strict privacy defaults (private by default, no automatic live updates, deletable at any time) documented internally before it ships.
Map, route, and safety information in TONNICK - including road conditions, weather, connectivity, and access - can be outdated or wrong. Always check current official sources before relying on it, especially for remote travel.
Rules for shared images and files. · 2026-08-13
Rules for shared images and files - including the honest fact that this feature doesn't exist in TONNICK yet.
TONNICK does not currently support uploading images, videos, or any other media, anywhere in the app - not to Community, not to your profile, not to the Handbook. There is no image picker or media library code in the app today.
Media sharing is a planned Community feature. These rules are written in advance so they're ready the moment uploads ship, instead of being an afterthought.
You'll be able to share media relevant to travel in Australia - photos of places, routes, wildlife sightings, and similar - that you actually have the right to share.
You'll need to hold the necessary rights to any media you upload, and the consent of any recognizable person in it. Don't upload someone else's photo as your own, or a photo of a person who hasn't agreed to it being shared.
Uploaded media will be subject to the same Moderation & Reporting Policy as text content, plus technical safeguards (metadata/location stripped before anything is shown publicly, MIME-type verification, size limits).
Uploading media will give TONNICK the license needed to display it inside the app - it will not transfer ownership of your content to TONNICK. You keep your rights.
You'll be able to delete your own uploaded media, and it will be removed if your account is deleted, once accounts exist.
If someone uploads your copyrighted content without permission once this feature exists, contact team@tonnick-guide.com with details - see also Copyright & Intellectual Property.
What TONNICK tracks - and what it doesn't. · 2026-08-13
The short, honest version: TONNICK currently uses none of these.
TONNICK doesn't set or read any cookies. On web, the app doesn't use cookie-based tracking of any kind - there's nothing to consent to here because nothing is being set.
TONNICK contains no analytics SDK, no crash-reporting SDK, no advertising SDK, and no usage-tracking library of any kind - this is verifiable directly in the app's dependency list. Nobody, including the operator, currently receives usage statistics, crash reports, or behavioral data from the app.
TONNICK does use your device's local app storage to remember your own data (profile, preferences, saved content, conversations) between sessions - see Privacy Policy for exactly what's stored. This is standard app storage, not a tracking mechanism, and nothing in it is shared with anyone.
If TONNICK ever adds analytics or tracking, this page will be updated first, honestly describing what was added and why - not silently.
Every external service TONNICK actually uses. · 2026-08-13
Every external service TONNICK actually talks to - the complete list, not an abbreviated one.
TONNICK's app code makes three kinds of external network request: to the TONNICK Guide backend when you ask the Guide something; to OpenFreeMap as soon as you open the interactive map; and to Firebase Authentication by Google, but only if you sign in. Everything else - the Handbook, Community, your profile, saved places, checklists, the drawn Australia overview - stays on your device and contacts no external service.
The TONNICK Guide worker runs on Cloudflare Workers. It receives your question and forwards it to OpenAI's API to generate a response, then returns that response to the app. It also enforces a rate limit using your IP address, stored briefly and auto-expiring - see Privacy Policy.
OpenAI's API generates the actual text of TONNICK Guide answers, server-side, using the question and context described in AI Transparency and Privacy Policy. TONNICK's app never talks to OpenAI directly and never holds an OpenAI API key on-device.
The interactive map loads its map tiles, labels, and symbols from OpenFreeMap, a non-profit map service built on OpenStreetMap. This only happens if you actually open the interactive map. In doing so, OpenFreeMap learns - as any server your device contacts does - your IP address and which part of the map you are looking at. TONNICK sends no name, no identifier, and no location along with it. The drawn Australia overview in the main menu is unaffected: it is part of the app and loads nothing.
Signing in is optional - TONNICK works fully without an account. If you create one, Firebase Authentication by Google handles checking your credentials. It stores your email address, your password in encrypted form, and a user ID, plus technical details such as last sign-in time and IP address. That data sits on Google's servers, including outside the EU. As long as you don't sign in, the app never talks to Firebase.
The map's mobile coverage areas are built from the ACCC Mobile Infrastructure Report (data release), published by Australia's telecommunications regulator on data.gov.au and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.5 Australia (CC BY 2.5 AU), © Commonwealth of Australia (ACCC). This isn't a live external service call - the boundary data was downloaded once, simplified, and bundled into the app itself, the same as the illustrated map below. It's each carrier's own predicted coverage as submitted to the regulator, not an independent measurement.
How TONNICK is funded. · 2026-08-13
How TONNICK is funded, honestly: it currently isn't, through the app.
TONNICK contains no advertising, no ad SDK, and no sponsored content of any kind today.
No purchase is possible today and you are never charged - there are no working in-app purchases and no subscriptions. All content is open to everyone: the complete Australia Handbook, every map layer and route, all Australia to-dos, and the TONNICK Guide with real answers. A one-off "TONNICK Australia Pass" is planned, which would later make part of this paid. As long as it cannot genuinely be bought, nothing is locked - putting content behind a barrier nobody can open would not be honest.
Handbook and Guide content isn't influenced by any paid partnership - there are no partners today. If that changes, sponsored or partner content will be clearly labeled as such, not blended in as if it were neutral information.
Any future monetization (ads, partnerships, paid features) will be reflected here honestly before or as it launches, along with an update to Refunds if paid features are ever introduced.
How to fully delete your data. · 2026-08-13
How to fully delete your TONNICK data - this already works today.
Your content lives on your device - you can remove all of it yourself, as described below. If you additionally created an account, Firebase Authentication by Google holds your email address, your encrypted password, and a user ID. To delete that account, an informal email to the operator named in the Imprint is enough; it is carried out without asking for reasons. Deletion directly inside the app is not built yet and will follow.
Open Settings → Privacy and use "Delete all data." This removes everything TONNICK has stored locally in one step: profile, preferences, saved places and species, Handbook progress and notes, Community questions and marks, and TONNICK Guide conversation history.
Uninstalling the app also removes all of this data, since none of it exists anywhere except on your device.
There's no grace period or recovery once you delete your data - it's gone as soon as you confirm.
What enforcement means today. · 2026-08-13
What "suspension" and "termination" actually mean for TONNICK today.
You can create an account, but nothing hangs off it that other users would see: Community posts stay on the device that wrote them and are published nowhere. There is therefore practically nothing a ban would protect against. The operator can still disable an account in cases of abuse. Once posts are genuinely published, this section will be extended with a real procedure including notice and appeal - see Moderation & Reporting Policy.
Once TONNICK has real accounts, this section will describe the actual suspension/termination process: grounds for action, the warning-before-ban model described in Moderation & Reporting Policy, and how an appeal works.
You can stop using TONNICK and delete all your data at any time - see Account & Data Deletion. This isn't contingent on anything and requires no approval.
How to get a copy of your data. · 2026-08-13
How to get a copy of your TONNICK data.
TONNICK doesn't have a built-in "export my data" button yet. Since everything is stored locally on your device rather than on a TONNICK server, there's no hidden server-side copy to request in the first place - what's on your device is the complete, only copy.
You can see everything TONNICK has stored by looking through the app itself (Profile, Settings, saved places/species, Handbook notes and checklist, Community, Guide conversations) - there's no hidden data beyond what's visible in the app's own screens.
A structured export (e.g. as a file you can save or send yourself) is a reasonable future addition and will be added here once it exists - not before.
Your rights as a user. · 2026-08-13
Your rights as a user of a free app operated by an Australian sole trader.
You are currently charged nothing for TONNICK: there is no working purchase, no subscription, and all content is open. Many consumer-protection rights attach to a paid transaction; as long as none can happen, they don't apply here. Once the planned Australia Pass can genuinely be bought, this section will be extended with the rights that then apply, before any sale starts.
As the operator is an Australian sole trader, Australian Consumer Law is expected to be the relevant framework once TONNICK does offer anything paid - this section will be filled in with the specific guarantees that apply once a real legal review has happened and, if applicable, paid features exist.
For any complaint about TONNICK as a product or service, contact team@tonnick-guide.com - see Contact, Complaints & Legal Requests.
Refund rules, where relevant. · 2026-08-13
The short version: there's currently nothing to refund.
TONNICK has no working purchase and no subscription today - you are never charged, so there is nothing to refund. All content is open; the planned Australia Pass cannot be bought yet.
If TONNICK ever introduces a paid feature, this section will be replaced with a real refund policy before that feature launches - not after.
Who owns what inside TONNICK. · 2026-08-13
Who owns what inside TONNICK, and how to report a copyright issue.
The TONNICK app, its design and visual identity, the TONNICK name, the TONNICK Guide character, and the Australia Handbook's written content belong to the operator (see Legal Notice) unless stated otherwise.
Questions, notes, and checklist entries you create in TONNICK remain yours. Using TONNICK to create them doesn't transfer any ownership to the operator.
Where the app shows a real photograph (for example, on the Australia Explorer map), it carries a visible source/attribution line crediting where it came from, in line with that image's license.
TONNICK doesn't support media uploads yet - see Media & Upload Rules for the rules that will apply once it does, including that uploading only grants TONNICK a display license, not ownership.
If you believe TONNICK is using your copyrighted material without permission, contact team@tonnick-guide.com with a description of the material and where it appears in the app.
What TONNICK can and can't guarantee. · 2026-08-13
TONNICK is a travel-information and community app - read this before you rely on anything in it for real-world decisions.
TONNICK is a travel-preparation and community information app for people heading to or living in Australia - the Handbook, map, Community, and TONNICK Guide are all designed to help you plan and navigate, not to serve as an authority.
Travel information changes - regulations, prices, opening hours, road and track conditions, and more. Handbook content, Community posts, and TONNICK Guide answers can all be outdated, incomplete, or simply incorrect, even when they sound confident.
Before making a decision that matters - a visa application, a remote-area trip, anything safety-related - verify it against an official source or local authority, not just TONNICK.
In an emergency, contact local emergency services directly (000 in Australia) - TONNICK is not a substitute for emergency services, official warnings, or professional guidance of any kind.
How to reach TONNICK. · 2026-08-13
How to reach TONNICK for questions, feedback, complaints, or a formal legal request.
For any question, feedback, complaint, or legal request, email team@tonnick-guide.com.
For faster handling, mention what the message is about (general feedback, a complaint, a legal/copyright request, or a data question) and, if relevant, which part of the app it concerns.
TONNICK is currently run by its founders directly rather than a support team, so there's no guaranteed response time to promise - every message is read.
Change history of these texts. · 2026-08-13
What has changed in these legal documents, and when.
Several sections described an older state of the app and were therefore simply wrong. Corrected: the third-party list claimed "exactly one kind" of external network request and explicitly listed "no map-tiles provider" and "no login/authentication provider" - in fact the interactive map loads its tiles from OpenFreeMap, and the optional sign-in runs through Firebase Authentication by Google. Both now have their own section. Also corrected: the statements that TONNICK has no user accounts (Privacy, Terms, Account Deletion, Account Suspension, Community Guidelines). On payment: the paywall was switched off the same day, because buying is impossible without a store integration. All content is therefore open - the complete Handbook, every map layer and route, all to-dos, and the Guide with real answers. The planned Australia Pass stays prepared; nothing is sold.
Replaced the previous placeholder-only Legal & Trust Center (5 of 15 categories with real content, 10 marked "in preparation") with real, substantive draft text for all 20 categories, a proper three-state status system (Available / Draft / Reviewed), and five new categories: Cookies/Analytics & Local Storage, Third-Party Services, Account Suspension & Termination, Safety & Travel Information Disclaimer, and Copyright & Intellectual Property.
Legal Notice updated with the founder-confirmed legal name, ABN, entity type, business address, and email.