Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of information:

• Account information: name, email address, phone number, password, and date of birth.
• Profile information: photos, gender, height, preferences, lifestyle answers, and anything else you choose to add to your profile.
• Verification selfie and biometric information: a selfie you take during identity verification, and facial-geometry data derived from it. Your selfie is stored only until your profile is verified and is then deleted. See Section 3 for how this is processed and retained.
• Usage data: matches, likes, messages, and how you interact with the Service.
• Device and technical data: device type, operating system, app version, IP address, and push notification tokens.
• Location data: approximate location (if you grant permission) to show you nearby matches.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Create and manage your account and profile.
• Show you potential matches and power our recommendation features.
• Enable messaging and other interactions between users.
• Verify your identity using a verification selfie (see Section 3).
• Send you push notifications and service-related communications.
• Keep the Service safe, detect fraud, and enforce our Terms.
• Improve and develop new features.
• Comply with legal obligations.

3. Photo and Identity Verification (Biometric Information)

To confirm you are a real person and that your profile photos are genuinely you, we ask you to take a verification selfie. We process it in two ways:

• Automated facial comparison: facial-comparison technology (DeepFace) compares your selfie against your profile photos. This may generate facial-geometry data, which may be considered biometric information.
• Manual review: where the automated check flags a possible mismatch, a member of our trained verification team reviews the selfie to confirm a real person.

We use your verification selfie and the data derived from it only for identity verification and anti-fraud purposes, and to detect fake, impersonated, or AI-generated profiles. Your verification selfie is never shown to other members, never used for advertising, and never sold.

We do not keep your selfie after verification.Your selfie is stored only while your profile is being verified. As soon as verification is complete, we delete the selfie from our systems. Up until that point it exists in our records solely so our automated check and, if needed, our verification team can confirm it's really you.

If you later change your photos: because we no longer hold your original selfie, when you replace your photos or upload a new set we confirm it's still you by comparing your new photos against your existing verified profile photos (not against a stored selfie). This keeps profiles trustworthy without us retaining your biometric selfie longer than needed.

By completing verification, you consent to this processing of your biometric information. Verification is part of keeping the community safe; if you choose not to complete it, some features may be unavailable.

4. How We Share Information

We do not sell your personal information. We may share it with:

• Other users: your profile and content are visible to other users as part of normal use of the Service. Your verification selfie is never shared with other users.
• Service providers: vendors who help us operate the Service (for example, hosting, analytics, and push-notification providers such as Firebase Cloud Messaging).
• Legal and safety: when required by law or to protect the rights, property, or safety of our users or the public.
• Business transfers: in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.

5. Data Retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active. Our specific retention practices are:

• Verification selfie and biometric data: we keep your selfie and any facial-geometry data (such as a facial signature) only during verification. Both are created solely for that check and deleted once your profile is verified. We do not store your selfie or biometric data for the life of your account, and we do not retain it after verification.
• Banned or removed accounts: if your account is banned or removed for violating our Terms, we generate and retain a single non-reversible facial signature from your profile photos at that time. We keep this solely to prevent a banned user from creating a new account, use it only for that safety and fraud-prevention purpose, and do not use it to identify you for anything else.
• When you delete your account: we delete or anonymize your personal information within a reasonable period.
• Inactive accounts: if your account remains inactive for about one year, we reduce the data we hold to basic account details only and remove the rest.

We may also retain information where required for legal, security, or fraud-prevention purposes.

6. Your Rights and Choices

Subject to applicable law, including India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you.
• Correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Delete your account and associated data.
• Withdraw your consent to biometric processing, by contacting us (this will end verification-based features).
• Withdraw permissions such as location or push notifications at any time in your device settings.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at support@coffeeafterwork.com.

7. Security

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your information, including encrypted storage of credentials. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, however, so we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Children’s Privacy

The Service is intended only for people aged 21 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 21. If we learn that we have, we will delete it.

9. International Users

Your information may be processed and stored in countries other than your own, where data protection laws may differ. By using the Service, you consent to such transfers.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you through the app or by email. The "Last updated" date above reflects the most recent revision.

11. Contact Us

For privacy questions or requests, email us at support@coffeeafterwork.com.