Privacy and safety

Kindred is private by invitation: only the people invited to a family tree can see it. This guide explains who sees what, how to report content or block someone, how children are protected, and how to manage or delete your data. For the full legal details, read the Privacy Policy.

Private by invitation

• A family tree is visible only to its members: the people who created it, were invited to it, or were added by a parent (for children).
• Trees aren’t public. They can’t be found by searching, and there are no public profiles.
• Kindred has no ads. It doesn’t sell your information, track you across other apps and websites, or use third-party analytics.

What an invitation reveals

Before someone joins, the invitation shows them the tree’s name, the name of the person who invited them, and the name of the person in the tree they’ll be linked to. Anyone who has the invitation link or code can see this, so send each invitation only to the person it’s for.

Each invitation works once. The person who sent an invitation, or a tree admin, can revoke it any time before it’s used. See Invite your family.

Who can see what

More details:

• Members see each other. In a tree, members can see each other’s names and photos, and the contact details needed for messaging (email, phone, WhatsApp).
• Contact details on cards. Email and phone on a person’s card are “Used for invitations and family messages. Only your family can see it.”
• Messages sent to everyone in the tree are seen by every member. Messages sent to chosen people are seen only by the sender and those people.
• Several trees. What you add to one tree is seen by that tree’s members only. The exception is linked people: when the same person is linked in two trees, changes to their details show in both. See Several family trees.
• Roles decide who can change things, not who can see them. Viewers can see everything in the tree. See Members and roles.

Report something

If a post, comment or message is harmful or breaks the rules, report it. Kindred’s team reviews every report.

Report a post

1. Tap ⋯ (More options) on the post.
2. Tap Report.

Report a comment

• On iPhone and iPad: swipe left on the comment and tap Report.
• On Android: touch and hold the comment, then tap Report.
• On the web: choose More options next to the comment, then Report.

Report a message

Tap ⋯ (More options) on the message, then Report.

Send the report

1. Choose a Reason: Spam, Harassment or abuse, Inappropriate content or Something else.
2. Optionally, add details under “Anything else we should know? (optional)”.
3. Tap Send.

You’ll see “Thanks, we’ll review it.” You can’t report your own posts, comments or messages, so the option doesn’t appear on them.

Note: Reporting doesn’t hide the content from you. If you don’t want to see someone’s posts and messages, block them too.

Block someone

Blocking stops someone from reaching you inside Kindred.

1. On one of their posts or messages, tap ⋯ (More options).
2. Tap Block name.

The block takes effect right away, without a confirmation step. Once you block someone:

• You no longer see their posts, comments or messages.
• You don’t get notifications, push notifications, emails, WhatsApp messages or text messages from them through Kindred.
• They stay a member of the family tree. Blocking only changes what you see and receive.

Unblock someone

1. Open the Me tab.
2. Go to Blocked people (under Settings on iPhone, iPad and Android; a section on the Me page on the web).
3. Tap Unblock next to their name.

If someone in your family is causing trouble, a tree admin can also remove them from the tree. See Members and roles.

Protection for children

Children under 13 can use Kindred only with a parent’s approval. Their accounts have extra protections:

• No Google or Apple sign-in, no phone or WhatsApp number, and no marketing.
• They can join only family trees a parent is in, or that a parent invited them to.
• Their email isn’t used to match people across trees.
• Their parents get a copy of every email Kindred sends them, and can remove their account at any time.

See Kids and parents and the Children section of the Privacy Policy.

Your data and your choices

• Edit your information any time: your profile in the Me tab, and your card in the tree. See Your profile.
• Choose your channels. Decide which channels (Kindred app, Email, WhatsApp, Text message) family messages can reach you on. Announcements about Kindred (Kindred news & offers) are off unless you turn them on. See Notifications.
• Leave a family tree with Leave this family, if you only want to step away from one family. See Members and roles.
• Delete your account in the Me tab with Delete account. It takes effect right away and can’t be undone. People you added stay in the tree for your family. See Delete your account and the account deletion page.
• Information a relative entered about you. If someone added details about you that you’d like changed, ask a tree admin. You can also ask Kindred’s team to remove it through Support.

Common questions

Can people outside my family find our tree?

No. There’s no public search or public page for a tree. Only members can see it.

Can someone in another tree see my details?

Only if they’re also a member of a tree you’re in. Your details in one tree are visible to that tree’s members.

Does the person I block know I blocked them?

Kindred doesn’t send them a notification. They stay in the tree, and blocking changes only what you see and receive.

Who reviews reports?

Reports go to Kindred’s team, who review them and may remove content or limit accounts that break the Terms.

Does Kindred show ads or sell my data?

No. Kindred uses your information only to run the app. Read the Privacy Policy for details.

Can I get a copy of my data?

Depending on where you live, you may have that right. Contact Kindred through Support, as described in the Privacy Policy.

Related

• Members and roles
• Invite your family
• Kids and parents
• Notifications
• Delete your account