Privacy Policy

“Beside”, “we”, “us” and “our” refer to the individual operator providing the service under the Beside name, not a separate incorporated company. The operator is responsible for the personal information processed for the purposes described in this notice, except where an independent provider is responsible for its own processing.

This notice covers the Beside mobile app, website and related support. It complements our Terms of Service. Independent services you visit or use have their own privacy notices.

Accounts and sign-in

We process account identifiers, email address, name, date of birth, gender and information needed to authenticate your account. A supported third-party sign-in provider supplies the information authorized through its sign-in process.

Information necessary to create an account, apply age restrictions or provide a requested feature is required for that purpose. Without it, the account or related feature may not work.

Profiles

We process photos and profile details you add, such as your introduction, work or education, interests and an optional Instagram handle. Additional profile details are optional unless a field is identified as required when you provide it.

Photos and free text can reveal sensitive matters, such as health, beliefs or sexual orientation. Consider carefully what you share, and do not disclose sensitive information about someone else without lawful authority. Where special-category data is processed, an additional condition under applicable law is needed; accepting the Terms is not universal explicit consent.

Encounters and interactions

We process identifiers and timestamps associated with detected encounters, along with likes, matches and other interactions. Age and gender discovery preferences are stored and applied on your device in the relevant discovery flows.

Detection uses nearby-device signals. An encounter is not proof that people met or of someone’s exact or current location. It may still reveal that users were close to one another, and people may infer places from their own experiences.

Location-related information

Depending on the device and operating system, nearby discovery may also require location permissions, including background permission on Android. A permission request does not, by itself, mean Beside records your GPS routes. You can manage permissions in your device settings; refusing or withdrawing a required permission may stop the related feature.

Messages, images and notifications

We process conversation messages and images to store and deliver them. Notification providers process device tokens, delivery information and, where included in a notification, message content. Previews may show content on a lock screen or connected device; you can manage previews in device settings.

Relevant content may also be processed to address a report, support request, security issue or legal obligation. This does not mean every conversation is routinely reviewed by a person.

Reports and support

We process information supplied in reports, help requests, challenges to restrictions and privacy requests. Another person may provide information about you, including if you do not have an account.

Support email uses Google Workspace, which processes email addresses, message content, attachments and delivery information. Beside does not use an outsourced customer-support team. Send only relevant information, not passwords, full card details or unnecessary identity documents.

Contributions and purchases

We receive transaction-related information such as account or transaction identifiers, date, product, amount and account email, depending on the payment channel. The relevant app store processes store payments; Beside’s in-app purchase flow does not collect full card numbers or card security codes.

Technical information and analytics

The app and supporting services process information such as device and app versions, identifiers, IP addresses, notification tokens, errors and interactions. We use Firebase Analytics and Meta app events to measure app use and interactions, including registration. The data depends on the tool and its configuration. App-event processing is different from an ordinary link to a social-media page.

Website visits

Website hosting processes technical request information, including IP address, browser information and requested resources. This website does not load analytics scripts, advertising pixels or embedded video/social players when you open a page. Following an external link opens a separate service with its own privacy practices.

Profile screens display information such as your name, age, photos and details you choose to add. An Instagram handle can connect your profile with information available on that external service. Email address and full date of birth are not fields displayed on the normal profile screen.

People you previously encountered may retain access to your profile through their encounter history after you pause new discovery. Pausing does not erase earlier encounters.

Other participants receive messages and images you send them. They may save or share content outside Beside, even where doing so breaches our Terms or applicable law. Deleting an account cannot remove copies controlled independently by another person. This does not remove Beside’s own responsibilities or your legal rights.

Each use of information needs a lawful basis appropriate to its actual purpose. Where GDPR applies, the relevant bases and limits are described below. A device permission or acceptance of the Terms does not replace separate consent where the law requires it.

A new purpose must be assessed and explained before the changed processing begins. A general reference to future features does not authorize unrelated reuse of information.

Relevant information is disclosed to recipients involved in the purpose concerned, not every category to every provider.

Some providers act on Beside’s instructions for particular services; others process information for their own purposes under their own terms. Their role depends on the service and processing, not merely on being an SDK supplier. Further product information is available in Firebase’s privacy documentation and the Google Workspace / Cloud Data Processing Addendum.

If the service changes operator through a genuine transfer or reorganization, related data handling must have a lawful basis and appropriate safeguards. Required notices must identify the change. This does not authorize unrestricted sale or unrelated reuse of personal information.

You can edit profile information supported by the app, adjust discovery preferences, pause discovery and manage device permissions. Pausing discovery or withdrawing a permission does not itself erase stored encounters, messages or other records.

Device settings control permissions, notifications and previews. Removing an external sign-in permission or uninstalling the app does not itself delete your Beside account or information already received.

You may withdraw consent to consent-based processing without affecting its lawfulness before withdrawal. That does not invalidate processing that has another independently applicable lawful basis. Optional tracking cannot be made lawful merely by accepting this notice.

For questions, objections, consent-withdrawal requests or help exercising a privacy right, contact info@besideapp.com. Device advertising or tracking settings do not necessarily stop every analytics event; they are separate from a request to Beside about processing your information.

Beside uses recorded encounters and discovery settings to select profiles shown by the relevant features. This does not establish compatibility, reciprocal preferences, verified identity or someone’s exact whereabouts.

Account-report processing can trigger an automated restriction based on accumulated reports. A restriction can affect your ability to use the account or features. A report is an allegation, not proof of misconduct.

You may challenge a restriction and request human review at info@besideapp.com, identifying the decision and explaining why you believe it is incorrect. Where the law protects against solely automated decisions with legal or similarly significant effects, the applicable rights include the opportunity to express your position and contest the decision.

Account deletion is available only in the app’s account settings. Accounts cannot be deleted by email. For technical help with signing in or using the in-app deletion option, contact info@besideapp.com.

Uninstalling, signing out or stopping discovery is not account deletion. The deletion flow removes core account/profile records and associated account photos; it is not a promise of immediate erasure of every related record.

Deleting your account does not automatically erase shared messages and images from the other participant’s conversation history. This supports their continued access to the conversation but does not override an applicable erasure right.

Transaction records, optional deletion feedback, information held by supporting providers and records relevant to reports or legal obligations require separate handling. Relevant retention criteria are described in Section 9. Copies saved independently by other people are outside the account-deletion flow.

Retention is limited by the purpose of processing and applicable obligations. Relevant criteria include the life of an account or shared conversation, completion of a request or investigation, legal record-keeping obligations and the period in which relevant claims may be brought. An unspecified possible future use is not, by itself, a reason to keep information.

Information no longer needed for a lawful purpose must be deleted or irreversibly anonymized. Deletion timing can differ for active account records, shared conversations, provider-held information and recoverable copies. You may contact info@besideapp.com about the records and retention affecting your account or to request erasure.

Beside’s core database and storage are located in the EU. Supporting authentication, notifications, analytics, email and provider operations can involve processing elsewhere, including outside the European Economic Area. An EU storage location does not make the whole service EU-only.

Where GDPR applies, a transfer outside the EEA must meet the relevant transfer requirements. Depending on the recipient and arrangement, the applicable mechanism may be an adequacy decision covering that recipient or appropriate safeguards such as European Commission standard contractual clauses, with supplementary measures where necessary.

Contact info@besideapp.com for information about relevant destinations and safeguards or a copy where applicable, subject to lawful redactions. Accepting Beside’s Terms or this notice is not blanket consent to international transfers.

Depending on applicable law and circumstances, you may:

• Request access to your information and a copy.
• Correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Request erasure or restriction of processing.
• Receive eligible information in a portable format.
• Object to processing based on legitimate interests and, where GDPR applies, object unconditionally to direct marketing.
• Withdraw consent for consent-based processing.
• Exercise applicable protections concerning solely automated decisions, including requesting human intervention and challenging a decision.

Send requests to info@besideapp.com. You do not need special legal wording. Where there are reasonable doubts about identity or authority, proportionate additional information may be needed; do not send an identity document unless specifically requested and necessary.

Where GDPR applies, the normal response period is one month. A lawful extension of up to two further months must be explained within the original month. A refusal must explain the applicable reason and available remedies. Requests are normally free; exceptions or reasonable fees apply only where the law permits.

Protecting another conversation participant’s rights can affect how information is supplied, but is not a blanket reason to refuse access to your own information.

You may complain to a competent data-protection authority, including in your place of habitual residence, work or alleged infringement. In Poland this is the President of the Personal Data Protection Office (UODO). You do not need to contact Beside first, and your right to a judicial remedy is unaffected.

Protect your sign-in credentials and device, and report suspected account misuse to info@besideapp.com. Consider what a profile, encounter or message may reveal before sharing it.

No online service can guarantee prevention of every security incident. That limitation does not waive Beside’s security obligations, any applicable notification duties or your legal rights. This notice does not promise end-to-end encryption or guarantee that content cannot be copied.

Beside is intended for adults aged 18 and over. If you believe an account belongs to someone under 18, use the reporting controls or contact info@besideapp.com.

Reports concerning minors require assessment and appropriate steps to restrict access and address associated information in accordance with applicable law, including necessary safeguarding or evidential obligations. This does not mean every user’s age or identity has been independently verified.

We will update this notice when data practices or legal obligations change and show its revision date. Required notice of material changes must be provided before the changed processing begins.

If a new purpose requires consent, changing this notice or the Terms does not replace obtaining that consent. The revision date does not mean you have accepted a new agreement or consented to new processing.

For privacy questions, requests or help with account deletion, contact info@besideapp.com. Account deletion is available only in the app’s account settings (Section 8). Accounts cannot be deleted by email.