1. Google authenticates the account
Silent Key uses Firebase Authentication with Google Sign-In. New and returning users select a Google account in a popup. Silent Key does not ask you to invent another password, and it does not display your Google password at any point.
After authentication, the app checks the user profile stored in Firestore. A blocked account is shown a moderation screen. A temporarily suspended account is shown its suspension status. An account without a completed profile is sent to setup, while an existing account with an SK-ID is sent to chats.
2. Profile setup creates two connected records
A new user chooses a nickname. The nickname is normalized, checked for length and saved with the Firebase user ID. Silent Key generates an identifier in the format SK-ABC123. The app checks whether that SK-ID already exists before an atomic batch writes both the user profile and the SK-ID lookup record.
The SK-ID is designed for discovery, not authentication. Anyone who knows it may search for the profile. It should therefore be shared with the same care as a phone number or username. Knowing an SK-ID does not provide access to the associated Google account.
3. Starting a chat creates a persistent connection
When one user searches for another SK-ID and starts a conversation, Silent Key creates or reopens a conversation document containing its participants. That connection is intentionally kept even when messages are later cleared by maintenance or moderation. This prevents the confusing situation where a contact disappears merely because the conversation currently has no messages.
A user may hide or remove a conversation from their own device view, but that does not necessarily delete the underlying connection for every participant. Interface labels should be read carefully before confirming destructive actions.
4. Messages use temporary retention
Each new message receives an expiry timestamp seven days after creation. The conversation interface excludes expired messages, and the admin maintenance tool can delete expired Firestore records in bounded batches. Conversation previews and unread counts are recalculated after administrative or maintenance deletion so that stale text does not remain on the chat list.
The cleanup process is not a promise of deletion at the exact second shown by the expiry timestamp. Cleanup must run, network operations must complete and recipients may already have copied the content. For sensitive information, the safest message is still the one you never send.
5. Blocking and reporting serve different jobs
Blocking is a participant control intended to stop unwanted one-to-one communication. Reporting sends information to administrators for review. Administrators may dismiss a report, mark it reviewed, suspend an account, block an account or delete reported content according to the available moderation tools and Firestore permissions.
Reports should include enough context to investigate the problem without adding unrelated private information. False or abusive reports may themselves violate the community rules.
6. Browser notifications are optional
Silent Key can request notification permission so new messages are easier to notice. Notification behavior depends on browser support, operating-system settings and whether the app is open or allowed to run in the background. Denying notification permission does not prevent normal chat use.
7. Signing out ends the session, not the account
Logging out removes the active Firebase Authentication session from that browser. It does not delete the user profile, SK-ID, conversations, reports or messages that remain within their retention period. Account deletion requires a separate request through the published deletion process.
