Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Joiyn is a social event matching platform that connects people through shared interests and location-based event discovery. By using Joiyn, you agree to the collection and use of information as described in this policy.

If you have questions about this policy, please contact us at: shirocoding@gmail.com

2. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of information to provide and improve our services:

Account & Profile Data

• Email address (required for registration)
• User ID (generated by our authentication service)
• Display name (optional)
• Profile avatar or photo (optional)
• Selected interests and activities
• Availability time slots

Location Data

• City or region for event discovery
• Approximate geographic coordinates when you create or browse nearby events
• A preferred search radius (in kilometres) that you configure

We collect location data only to provide core app functionality (finding and creating events near you). We do not track your location in the background or sell location data to third parties.

User-Generated Content

• Events you create, including title, description, location, date, and participant settings
• Chat messages sent within event conversations
• Feedback and ratings you submit after events
• Images or photos you share within the app

App Activity & Usage Data

• Events you join, leave, or attend
• Likes or dislikes submitted after events
• Quick-invite connections you send or receive
• Notification interactions (opens, dismissals)

Device & Technical Data

• Expo push notification token (to send you event alerts)
• Basic device and operating system information required for notifications
• App version and crash reports (if applicable)

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• Authentication: To create and secure your account using our identity service (AWS Cognito).
• App functionality: To show you relevant events, match you with participants who share your interests, and enable you to create and manage events.
• Event discovery: To surface nearby events based on your city, interests, and radius preference.
• Messaging: To deliver in-app chat messages between event participants.
• Notifications: To alert you about event invitations, confirmations, cancellations, and participant activity.
• Safety & support: To investigate in-app reports (including profiles, events, and images), respond to support requests, and enforce our community guidelines.
• Product improvement: To understand how people use Joiyn and improve the experience over time.

4. Legal Bases for Processing (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), we process your personal data under the following legal bases:

• Contract performance: Processing necessary to provide the services you have signed up for.
• Legitimate interests: Improving product functionality, preventing abuse, and keeping the platform secure.
• Consent: Where we ask for explicit consent (e.g. push notifications), you may withdraw it at any time via your device settings.
• Legal obligation: Where we are required to process data to comply with applicable law.

5. Information Sharing

We do not sell your personal data. We share information only in the following circumstances:

Other Users

Your display name, profile photo (if set), and selected interests are visible to other users as part of the normal functioning of the platform (e.g. on event pages, participant lists, and in chat). Your exact coordinates are never shared; only approximate city-level location is displayed.

Service Providers & Sub-processors

We use the following third-party services to operate Joiyn:

• Amazon Web Services (AWS): Serverless compute (Lambda), database (DynamoDB), authentication (Cognito), and message queuing (SQS), all hosted in the eu-central-1 (Frankfurt) region.
• Expo: Mobile build infrastructure and push notification delivery.
• Apple Inc.: App distribution via the App Store and Apple Push Notification service (APNs).
• Google LLC: App distribution via Google Play and Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM).

Each provider is bound by appropriate data processing agreements and must handle your data in accordance with applicable privacy law.

Legal Requirements

We may disclose information when required by law, court order, or when we believe disclosure is necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Joiyn, our users, or the public.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with our services. If you delete your account, we will delete or anonymise your personal data within a reasonable period, unless retention is required by applicable law or legitimate business interests (e.g. resolving disputes or preventing abuse).

Aggregated and anonymised data that cannot identify you may be retained indefinitely for analytical purposes.

7. Data Security

All data transmitted between your device and our servers is encrypted in transit using HTTPS/TLS. Our backend infrastructure is hosted on AWS with industry-standard security controls including IAM access policies, encrypted storage, and network isolation.

No method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Deletion: Request that we delete your personal data. You can delete your account directly from within the Joiyn app or via our Account Deletion page.
• Portability: Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
• Restriction: Ask us to restrict processing while a dispute is resolved.
• Withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time via device settings or by contacting us.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at shirocoding@gmail.com. We will respond within 30 days.

9. Children's Privacy

Joiyn is rated 12+ and is not directed to children under the age of 13 (or 16 in certain jurisdictions). We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under the applicable age threshold. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information without parental consent, please contact us immediately and we will take steps to remove that information.

10. International Data Transfers

Our infrastructure is hosted primarily in the AWS eu-central-1 (Frankfurt, Germany) region. If you access Joiyn from outside the European Union, your data may be transferred to and processed in the EU. Such transfers are subject to appropriate safeguards as required by applicable data protection law.

11. Third-Party Links

Joiyn may contain links to third-party websites or services. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties. We encourage you to read their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

12. Push Notifications

We send push notifications to keep you informed about your events and connections. You can disable push notifications at any time via your device's notification settings. Disabling notifications will not affect your ability to use the core features of Joiyn.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will notify you via in-app notification or email (if provided) and update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. Your continued use of Joiyn after changes take effect constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or requests relating to this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:

• Email: shirocoding@gmail.com
• Support: Support page