Walk Up & Talk ("we," "us," "our") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices you have regarding your information. By using our Service, you agree to this Privacy Policy.
1. Information We Collect
Information you provide directly
- Account data: email address, password (stored as a bcrypt hash — never in plain text), date of birth, phone number (optional)
- Profile data: display name, profile photos (up to 6), bio, age, location (city and state — not precise GPS), gender, occupation, education, height, relationship preferences
- User content: messages you send to matches through the App
Information collected automatically
- Usage data: swipe history (anonymized after 90 days), match history, feature interactions
- Device data: browser type, operating system, IP address, device identifiers
- Location data: approximate geographic location used for proximity matching. We do not store or transmit your precise GPS coordinates to other users.
Information from third parties
- If you connect third-party services (if applicable), we may receive basic profile information from those services in accordance with their own privacy policies.
2. How We Use Your Information
- To create and manage your account and provide the matching service
- To show your profile to potential matches in your geographic area
- To facilitate real-time messaging and video/audio calls between matched users
- To verify your identity, detect fake profiles, and prevent fraud and abuse
- To enforce our Terms of Service and maintain platform safety
- To send transactional notifications (match alerts, messages) — you may opt out of non-essential communications
- To analyze usage patterns to improve the Service (using aggregated, anonymized data)
- To comply with legal obligations and respond to lawful requests from authorities
3. How We Share Your Information
We do not sell your personal information to third parties. Ever.
We may share information only in these limited circumstances:
- Other users: Your profile information (name, photos, bio, age, approximate location) is visible to other users in your area as part of normal app functionality. Your email address and precise location are never shared with other users.
- Service providers: We share data with trusted vendors who help us operate the Service, including cloud hosting (DigitalOcean), email delivery (SendGrid), and photo storage (Cloudinary). These providers are contractually bound to protect your data and may not use it for their own purposes.
- Legal requirements: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law, court order, subpoena, or other legal process, or when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, prevent fraud, or protect the safety of users or the public.
- Business transfers: If Walk Up & Talk is acquired, merged, or sold, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you before your personal data is transferred and becomes subject to a different Privacy Policy.
4. Data Retention
- Active account data is retained for as long as your account exists
- After account deletion, all personal data is permanently deleted within 30 days
- Message content may be retained for up to 90 days after deletion for trust & safety review purposes, then permanently deleted
- Anonymized, aggregated usage data may be retained indefinitely
- We may retain certain information as required by applicable law or for legitimate business interests such as fraud prevention
5. Your Rights and Choices
You have the following rights regarding your personal information:
- Access: You may request a copy of all personal data we hold about you by emailing privacy@walkupandtalk.com
- Correction: You may update your profile information at any time through the App
- Deletion: You may permanently delete your account and all associated data through Settings → Delete Account in the App, or by contacting privacy@walkupandtalk.com
- Portability: You may request your data in a machine-readable format
- Opt-out: You may opt out of non-essential communications through your profile settings or by contacting us
- Restriction: You may request that we restrict processing of your data in certain circumstances
We will respond to all verified rights requests within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling a request.
6. Children's Privacy (COPPA)
Walk Up & Talk is not intended for children under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If we become aware that a user is under 18, we will immediately terminate the account and permanently delete all associated data. If you believe a minor is using our platform, please contact us immediately at safety@walkupandtalk.com.
7. California Residents — CCPA Rights
If you are a California resident, you have the following additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):
- Right to Know: The right to know what personal information we collect, use, disclose, and sell
- Right to Delete: The right to request deletion of your personal information
- Right to Opt-Out: Walk Up & Talk does not sell personal information. There is nothing to opt out of.
- Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising your CCPA rights
To submit a CCPA request, email privacy@walkupandtalk.com with the subject line "CCPA Request."
8. GDPR — European Users
If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), Switzerland, or the UK, you have rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), including the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict, and port your data, and to object to processing. Our lawful bases for processing are:
- Contract performance: Processing necessary to provide you with the Service
- Legitimate interests: Fraud prevention, security, and improving the Service
- Legal obligation: Compliance with applicable laws
- Consent: For optional processing such as marketing communications
To exercise your GDPR rights or to lodge a complaint, contact privacy@walkupandtalk.com. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.
9. Security
We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information, including: bcrypt password hashing, TLS/HTTPS encryption for all data in transit, restricted access to production systems, and regular security reviews. However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.
10. Cookies
We use essential cookies to operate the Service (authentication tokens). We do not use third-party advertising or tracking cookies without your consent. You can control cookie settings through our cookie consent banner and your browser settings.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the new policy in the App and, where required, sending you an email notification. Your continued use of the Service after changes become effective constitutes your acceptance of the revised policy.
12. Contact Us
For privacy questions or to exercise your rights:
Email: privacy@walkupandtalk.com
Safety: safety@walkupandtalk.com