DOT / SERVICE POLICY
Terms of Service
Effective: September 22, 2026 · Last updated: September 22, 2026
These Terms set out the conditions for using the dot app and related services provided by pause (the “Operator”), and the rights and obligations of the Operator and users. Please also read our Privacy Policy for information about personal data processing.
1. Operator and scope
The service is called dot and is operated under the brand pause. Contact: support@pauselabs.app. Other pause apps may have separate terms. Consumer rights guaranteed by law take precedence over these Terms. Purchases through an app store are also subject to that store’s purchase conditions.
2. Definitions
- “Records” include situations, thoughts, answers to CBT questions, emotions and their intensity, and keywords entered by users.
- “Stars” are visual representations of records in a personal universe. They are not financial or virtual assets and cannot be exchanged for cash.
- “Writing credits” allow users to save additional records after using their basic free allowance.
- “Premium” means access to paid features during a valid subscription period.
- “Service day” is a date determined using the user’s time zone for the free writing allowance and daily records.
3. Eligibility and accounts
The service is intended for users aged 14 and older. A minor’s paid purchases may require a legal guardian’s consent under applicable law. We do not restrict statutory rights, including cancellation of a minor’s contract made without required consent.
Use your own account through a supported social login provider. Using someone else’s account or accessing an account without permission is not allowed. Losing access to your social login may prevent access to dot. If you notice suspicious access, check your login provider’s security settings and contact the Operator.
4. Features and nature of the service
- Choosing an emotion and intensity and reflecting through CBT-based questions
- Writing about situations and answering questions, comparing emotional intensity after reflection, and optionally adding a representative keyword
- Viewing stars and records in a personal universe
- Revisiting records through a calendar, keywords, bookmarks, and text search
- Summaries of emotion distribution, keyword shares, days of the week, time periods, and intensity changes
- Editing and deleting records, bookmarks, and optional end-of-day reminders
- Free writing, rewarded-ad writing credits, and Premium subscriptions
dot helps with self-reflection and journaling. It does not provide medical or psychological diagnosis, treatment, or emergency counseling. It does not guarantee emotional improvement or therapeutic effects, and changes in charts do not represent treatment outcomes. In an emergency or when professional assistance is needed, contact local emergency services or an appropriate professional.
5. Rights to records and permitted use
You retain the rights to the records you create. The Operator processes records only as needed to provide requested services such as storage, synchronization, viewing, search, and statistics. We do not obtain broad rights to publish records or use them in advertising.
Do not enter content that infringes others’ rights or privacy. Expressing your own personal feelings is not, by itself, misuse. Rights to the service’s questions, designs, software, and other elements supplied by the Operator or legitimate rights holders remain with those rights holders.
6. Drafts, saving, and synchronization
Drafts are stored on your device and are separate from records successfully saved to the server. Unsaved drafts may not be recoverable after deleting app data, replacing your device, or certain errors. Saving requires a network connection and server processing; check the app’s result to confirm that a record was saved.
Statistics, search results, and stars are based on saved data and the selected period. Network conditions and data refresh timing may delay updates. If you edit from multiple devices on the same account at once, the last saved version may apply. Check the result after important changes.
7. Free writing and service days
The basic free allowance is one saved record per service day. A new service day begins at 9:00 a.m. in your time zone. Travel or changes to your device’s time zone may affect the date boundary, and usage is applied according to server verification.
Successfully saved records count toward usage. Deleting or editing a record on the same day does not restore the free allowance already used. Failed saves do not consume additional writing credits. Duplicate requests may be restricted during verification.
8. Rewarded ads and additional writing credits
You may choose to watch a rewarded ad to receive an additional writing credit. One credit is granted after ad completion and server-side reward verification are confirmed. Merely opening an ad does not grant a credit. Interrupted ads, verification failures, or connection errors may prevent or delay rewards.
Ads may be unavailable depending on inventory, region, operating system, privacy choices, or network conditions. After the basic free allowance is used, a credit is consumed when an additional record is successfully saved. Unused credits carry over to the next day. Credits cannot be exchanged for cash, sold, or transferred between accounts. Improper rewards, including forged or duplicate rewards, may be corrected; contact us if you disagree.
9. Premium, pricing, and automatic renewal
An active Premium subscription allows unlimited records without watching ads for additional writing credits. Before purchasing, check the app and store payment screen for available features, price, currency, taxes, billing period, and any discount or trial conditions.
Subscriptions may renew automatically under the relevant store’s conditions. To stop renewal, cancel through Google Play or Apple’s subscription management screen before the next charge. Cancellation deadlines and access during the remaining period follow the purchase conditions. Uninstalling the app or signing out does not cancel a subscription. In the latest app’s account deletion flow, the server confirms cancellation of Google Play subscription renewal before deleting the account. App Store subscriptions are not canceled automatically and must be canceled in the store’s subscription management screen.
Restoring purchases checks purchase status for the same store account and service account. Transfer between operating systems, stores, or accounts is not always guaranteed. If purchase verification is delayed or fails, try restoring purchases or contact us with minimal necessary information, such as a transaction identifier.
10. Withdrawal, cancellation, and refunds
Payment cancellations and refunds are handled under applicable law, the service actually provided, and the purchasing store’s policies. We do not reject all refunds solely because paid features were used. If a statutory limitation on withdrawal applies, required notices, consent, and other conditions must be met.
Statutory rights relating to services that differ from advertising or the contract, minors’ contracts, duplicate charges, and similar issues remain protected. You may request a refund through the store or contact the Operator about payment issues. A refund, subscription expiration, or payment cancellation ending Premium access does not, by itself, delete existing personal records.
11. Editing, deleting records, and deleting your account
You can edit supported fields or delete a record from its detail screen. Changes may be reflected in search and keyword analysis. Deletion requires confirmation, and deleted records and linked CBT entries and stars cannot be restored in the app. Removing a bookmark does not delete a record.
You can request account deletion in Settings, or by email if you cannot access the app. The Privacy Policy explains deletion and exceptions to retention and erasure. Review the notices because unused writing credits and account-linked information are also affected. Google Play renewal cancellation is confirmed during deletion. App Store subscriptions must be canceled separately; you may also proceed with immediate account deletion after acknowledging the notice. Refunds of amounts already paid are handled separately.
12. Reminders and device permissions
End-of-day reminders are optional and scheduled on your device. After allowing notification permission, you can select a time and turn reminders off at any time. The time picker follows the device’s 12- or 24-hour setting. Power status, battery-saving mode, permissions, operating system behavior, and time-zone changes may delay or prevent delivery. Do not use these reminders for emergencies.
13. Prohibited conduct and restrictions
Conduct that harms the service or users is prohibited, including account theft, bypassing access controls, sending abnormally excessive server requests, distributing malicious code, forging payments or ad rewards, and collecting others’ personal data without authorization.
The Operator may limit requests, correct rewards, restrict features, or restrict account use in proportion to the nature and severity of a violation. Unless urgent security action is required, we explain the reason and how to object. Users may request an explanation or correction through our contact address.
14. Maintenance, changes, and interruptions
Access may be temporarily limited for incident response, security improvements, maintenance, or external service problems. We provide advance notice of planned maintenance and important changes where possible, and information about urgent incidents as they are identified. Older app versions may require updates for security or data compatibility.
For changes to prices, basic allowances, or paid benefits, or discontinuation of the service, we assess user impact and provide advance notice. We provide arrangements for paid users’ remaining rights, refunds, and records under applicable law and purchase conditions. This provision does not allow the Operator to arbitrarily extinguish existing paid rights.
15. Liability and external services
The Operator takes reasonable measures to maintain service stability and protect data. We do not exclude liability for our intentional acts or negligence, or liability imposed by law. Issues involving user fault, external service outages, or force majeure are handled according to their causes, the scope of responsibility, and applicable law.
Products in advertisements or external links may be subject to their providers’ terms. Using external services does not remove the Operator’s own obligations or legal liability.
16. Changes to these Terms and notices
We announce changes, reasons, and effective dates in the app or on the website. In principle, we give seven days’ notice, or 30 days for important or unfavorable changes. Stricter procedures required by law take precedence. Urgent security or legal responses are announced separately as necessary.
Users who disagree may stop using the service, delete their account, or contact us about necessary contractual measures. Rights already paid for are handled under applicable law and purchase conditions. Silence or merely visiting the website is not treated as separate consent required by law.
17. Contact and disputes
Contact: support@pauselabs.app. When reporting a problem, provide only necessary details such as your usage environment, time of occurrence, and error message. We do not request unnecessary sensitive information such as journal text or passwords.
We first seek to resolve disputes through discussion. If unresolved, statutory mediation procedures or courts with jurisdiction may be used. The laws of the Republic of Korea form the basis of these Terms, without excluding mandatory consumer protections in your place of residence. If any provision is invalid, the remaining provisions remain effective to the extent permitted by law.
Effective date
These Terms take effect on September 22, 2026.