Terms of Use

Last updated: 28 October 2026

These terms are an agreement between you and Ahmet Faruk Akgün, trading as Afakgun Studio, Ankara, Türkiye ("we", "us"), for using the Stillwell app and service. By using Stillwell you accept them. We've tried to keep them short and fair; please read at least the first three sections.

1. What Stillwell is, and isn't

Stillwell is a safety net for people who live alone. It notices everyday signs of life on the phone of the person being looked after (phone use, movement, charging, check-ins). If there are no signs for longer than the rules that person set, our server first wakes the phone, then asks them "Are you okay?", and then alerts the people they chose: by notification in the app, by WhatsApp message if they connected WhatsApp, and on the paid plan by text message and automated phone call.

Stillwell is not:

• an emergency, alarm-monitoring or rescue service: nobody at Stillwell watches alerts or sends help;
• a medical device: it does not diagnose, monitor or treat any condition, and does not detect falls, illness or vital signs;
• a location tracker: it does not know where anyone is;
• a replacement for regular contact, care or professional support.

2. No guarantee of detection or delivery

We work hard to make Stillwell reliable and we keep a timeline of every alert so you can see what happened. But Stillwell depends on things we don't control, and it can fail or be late. For example:

• the phone is switched off, out of battery, broken, lost or has no internet connection;
• the operating system or the phone maker's battery saving stops Stillwell from running in the background, or Stillwell was force-closed;
• permissions (usage access, physical activity, notifications) were turned off;
• on iPhone, Stillwell cannot see when the phone is unlocked and relies on steps, charging, app opens and check-ins;
• notifications are silenced, "Do Not Disturb" is on, or the recipient doesn't see them;
• phone numbers are wrong or out of date, or a mobile network, Apple, Google, Meta (WhatsApp) or Twilio has an outage or blocks a message;
• our servers or hosting provider are unavailable.

Stillwell can also raise false alarms, for example if someone leaves their phone at home or sleeps in. A Stillwell alert means "please check on this person", not that something has happened.

3. Your responsibilities

• Get agreement. Install Stillwell only on your own phone, or on someone else's phone only with their clear and informed agreement. Add someone's phone number only after they have agreed to receive alerts about you.
• Keep it working. Allow the permissions the app asks for, follow its battery-saving advice for your phone, keep the app updated, and act on warnings that protection is reduced.
• Keep details up to date. Check that phone numbers and the alert order are correct.
• Pause when appropriate. Pause Stillwell when you travel without your phone, go into hospital or similar, so your people are not alarmed for nothing.
• Before you uninstall, pause Stillwell or delete your account and tell your circle. Otherwise uninstalling looks like silence and may alert your people.
• Send WhatsApp links to the right person. Each WhatsApp link is personal to one person in your circle. Send it only to that person.
• Protect your invite code. Anyone with it can join your circle and see your status. Share it only with people you trust.
• Have other arrangements too. If someone has a medical condition or needs regular care, Stillwell should be one layer of support, not the only one.

4. Who can use Stillwell

You must be at least 18 years old, or the age of majority where you live, to use Stillwell. If you use it on behalf of someone else (for example an adult child setting it up for a parent), you confirm that the person agrees and understands how it works.

5. Your account

Stillwell signs you in anonymously. If you don't link an email address and you lose or replace your phone, we may not be able to restore your account, circle or settings. Keep your email up to date and your sign-in codes private. You can delete your account at any time as described in our Privacy Policy.

6. Plans and subscriptions

• Free plan: alerts by notification in the Stillwell app, and by WhatsApp message to people in the circle who connected WhatsApp.
• Paid plan (when available): adds text messages and automated phone calls to the people in a circle. People who connected WhatsApp get WhatsApp messages instead of text messages. One subscription applies to one circle and can be bought by the person being looked after or by a watcher. Prices are shown in the app and in the store before you buy.
• Payment and renewal: subscriptions are sold and billed by Apple (App Store) or Google (Google Play) and renew automatically at the end of each period unless you cancel at least 24 hours before the period ends. You can manage or cancel your subscription in your App Store or Google Play account settings. Deleting the app does not cancel a subscription.
• Refunds are handled by Apple or Google under their policies. This does not limit any rights you have under mandatory consumer law.
• Price changes: if we change a subscription price, Apple or Google will tell you in advance and, where required, ask for your consent.
• Fair use: WhatsApp messages, text messages and calls are for genuine alerts. We may limit or stop messages that are clearly abusive (for example a circle set up to send messages to strangers).

7. Acceptable use

Don't use Stillwell to:

• monitor or track someone without their knowledge and agreement;
• send messages or calls to people who haven't agreed to receive them, or harass anyone;
• interfere with, overload, reverse engineer or attack the service, or try to read other people's data;
• break any law.

We may suspend or close accounts that break these rules, after warning you when that is reasonable.

8. The app and its content

We give you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use Stillwell for its intended purpose. The app, its design, text and code belong to us or our licensors. Information you enter remains yours; you allow us to use it only to run the service as described in our Privacy Policy.

9. Changes, availability and ending

We may improve, change or remove features. If we plan to shut Stillwell down or remove a paid feature, we will tell you in the app at least 30 days in advance where possible, and you can cancel your subscription through the store. You can stop using Stillwell and delete your account at any time.

10. Liability

Stillwell is provided "as is" and "as available". Because of what section 2 explains, and to the extent the applicable law allows:

• we are not liable for harm that results from a silence not being detected, an alert being late or not delivered, or a false alarm, where this is caused by the limitations described in these terms or by events outside our reasonable control;
• we are not liable for indirect or consequential losses;
• our total liability to you for any claim related to Stillwell is limited to the amount you paid for Stillwell in the 12 months before the claim, or, if you paid nothing, to a reasonable nominal amount.

Nothing in these terms limits or excludes liability for intent or gross negligence, for death or personal injury where the law does not allow this to be limited, or any rights you have as a consumer that cannot be waived under the law that applies to you, including the Turkish Consumer Protection Law No. 6502 and the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098 (article 115).

11. App Store terms

If you downloaded Stillwell from the Apple App Store, these terms are between you and us, not Apple. Apple is not responsible for Stillwell or its content, has no obligation to provide maintenance or support, and is not responsible for any product, legal or intellectual property claims relating to it. If Stillwell fails to conform to any applicable warranty, you may notify Apple for a refund of the purchase price, if any, and Apple has no other warranty obligation. You must comply with the App Store's usage rules and any third-party terms (such as your mobile carrier's). Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries of these terms and may enforce them. Apple's Standard Licensed Application End User License Agreement also applies to your use of the app.

12. Governing law and disputes

These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of Türkiye. Ankara courts and enforcement offices have jurisdiction. If you are a consumer, you may also apply to the consumer arbitration committee (tüketici hakem heyeti) or consumer court where you live, within the limits set by law. If you live in the EU or elsewhere, you keep the protection of the mandatory consumer laws of your country and may bring a claim there. Before going to court, please contact us: most problems can be solved by email.

13. Changes to these terms

We may update these terms, for example when we add features or the law changes. We will update the date at the top and, for significant changes, tell you in the app before they take effect. If you don't agree, you can stop using Stillwell and delete your account.

14. Contact

[email protected]
Afakgun Studio, Ahmet Faruk Akgün, Yeniçağ Mah., İkili Sk. No: 3 Daire: 1, 06170 Yenimahalle/Ankara, Türkiye