Privacy Policy

1. About us and this privacy policy

1. This privacy policy sets out how Vidnik FZCO ("Vidnik", "we", "our", or "us") collects, stores, processes, transfers, shares and uses data that identifies or is associated with you (your "personal information") when you use our website at vidnik (our "Website") or our app to help you find and marry your ideal spouse (our "Platform" and, together with our Website, our "Services"),or otherwise interact with us by email, phone or social media.
2. Please ensure that you have read and understood how we collect, store, use and disclose your personal information as described in this privacy policy.
3. If you have any questions about this privacy policy or how we use your personal information, please contact us by emailing us at [email protected].

2. Who is responsible for your personal information

1. We are the data controller of the personal information we collect and use as described in this privacy policy. This means that we determine and are responsible for how your personal information is used when you use our Services or otherwise interact with us by email, phone or social media.

3. Personal information we collect and how we use it

Information you provide to us.

1. We collect personal information that you submit directly to us when you use the Services, or otherwise communicate with us through email, phone or social media. We will collect the following information in this way:
   1. Contact information, such as your first name, last name, email address and telephone number.
      How we use this personal informationLegal basis we rely on

      We use this information to set up and manage your account with us.

      The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract with you (namely our Terms of Service).

      We use this information to send you service-related communications, such as password recovery emails and service updates.

      The processing is necessary for our legitimate interests, namely communicating and responding to queries and customer service requests from our customers, prospective customers, and business contacts.

      We use this information to respond to any queries you submit to us about our Services.

      We will only process your personal information in this way to the extent you have given us your consent.

      We use this information to send you newsletters and information about promotions and new features on our Services.

   2. Content you submit when using the Platform, such as your gender, date of birth, profile picture, other photographs you upload, information about you and your preferences for a partner, and information you provide on your profile regarding your personality, your interests and your lifestyle. You may also submit information that is considered 'special' or 'sensitive' under data protection legislation, such as your nationality, racial or ethnic origin and your religious or philosophical beliefs ("Sensitive Information"). Our Platform is generally provided for Muslim marriage matching purposes, and so we assume that all of our users are Muslim. You can, however, update your profile to further specify your religious beliefs (e.g. Sunni or Shia) in order to get more tailored matches through the Platform.
      How we use this personal informationLegal basis we rely on

      Non-Sensitive Information: We use this information to complete your profile, to fulfil your requests to search for and present potential matches on the Platform, and allow other users of the Platform to search for matches and browse user profiles. We may also moderate this information when you make changes to your profile to enforce our Terms of Service.

      The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract (namely our Terms of Service).

      Non-Sensitive Information: We use this information for data, analytics and operational purposes to improve and maintain our Services. This is carried out with strict access controls and policies in place to protect your privacy. These activities may include: - reviewing and detecting content prohibited by our Terms of Service;
      

      • - content and user moderation;
      • - troubleshooting and fixing the Services when they are not working correctly;
      • - getting feedback on our ideas for products or features.

      The processing is necessary for our legitimate interests, namely:

      • - to create, provide and maintain our Services;
      • - to ensure the safety of our users;
      • - to enhance our Services via research and development and data analytics.

      Sensitive Information: We use this information for data, analytics and operational purposes to improve and maintain our Services. This is carried out with strict access controls and policies in place to protect your privacy. These activities may include:
      - reviewing and detecting content prohibited by our Terms of Service;
      We use this information to complete your profile, to fulfil your requests to search for and present potential matches on the Platform, and to allow other users of the Platform to search for matches and browse user profiles.

      We only process your Sensitive Information with your explicit consent. You may withdraw your consent at any time by deleting your content (for instance where you entered information in your profile that may be considered Sensitive Information) and, in any case, you may withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us at [email protected].

   3. Information you provide to other users on the Platform, such as information regarding you, your personality, your interests and your lifestyle through in-app messages to other users.
      How we use this personal informationLegal basis we rely on

      We transmit this information to users (including wali users (as defined below)) you have chosen to communicate with them on the Platform. We may also review and moderate this information if, for example, another user has reported concerns about your behaviour or user content.

      The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract (namely our Terms of Service).

   4. Comments, queries and feedback that you submit to us when you contact us. We collect this information directly from you.
      How we use this personal informationLegal basis we rely on

      We use this information to respond to your comments, queries and feedback about the Services or us.

      The processing is necessary for our legitimate interests, namely communicating with customers, prospective customers and business contacts.

      We use this information to tailor the communications we send to you so that they are more relevant to you.

      The processing is necessary for our legitimate interests, namely ensuring that the contents of any communications that we send is relevant to the recipient's needs and interests.

   5. Your communication preferences, such as whether you asked or agreed to receive emails from us promoting our Services. We collect this information directly from you.
      How we use this personal informationLegal basis we rely on

      We use this information to ensure that we only send promotional communications to you in accordance with your preferences.

      The processing is necessary to comply with a legal obligation to which we are subject, namely laws implementing the ePrivacy Directive 2002/58/EC (as amended).

Information we collect automatically

2. We also automatically collect certain personal information about you and about how you access the Services and your device, including the date and time you access the Services, the actions you take on the Services, the operating system and IP address you access the Services from, as well as your device name, model, screen resolution, operating system, user region, time zone, country code, battery level/state and (with your consent) geolocation.
How we use this personal informationLegal basis we rely on

We use this information so we can present the Services to you in the correct format for your device and browser.

The processing is necessary for the performance of a contract, namely the Terms of Service.

We use this information to:

• - monitor and maintain the performance and security of our Services;
• - identify errors and ways in which we can improve the Services, including developing and testing new features;
• - conduct analytics.

We will only process your personal information in this way to the extent you give us your consent to do so.

If you consent to us using your geolocation data, we will use this data to help you find potential matches in accordance with your geographic preferences.

We will only process your personal information in this way to the extent you give us your consent to do so.

3. We collect the above information through log files and similar tracking technologies (see below for further information).

4. Cookies and similar technologies

1. Cookies are small pieces of text used to store information on web browsers. Cookies are used to store and receive identifiers and other information on computers, phones and other devices. Other technologies are used for similar purposes, such as storing data in your web browser or device or placing identifiers on your device and other software. In this privacy policy, we refer to all of these technologies as "cookies". Cookies help us to provide, protect and improve the Services, such as by remembering your preferences and personalising and measuring content.
2. Cookies set by the website owner or service provider are called "first party cookies". Cookies set by parties other than the website owner are called "third party cookies". Third party cookies enable third party features or functionality to be provided on or through the website or service you are using (such as advertising, interactive content and analytics). The third parties that set these third party cookies can recognise your device both when it visits the service and when it visits certain other websites or services. Data collected by these third parties is processed in accordance with the terms of their privacy policies and practices.
3. The specific types of first and third party cookies served through our Services are set out below and detailed further in the annex to this privacy policy.
   Strictly Necessary Cookies: These cookies are strictly necessary to provide you with our Services. Without them our Services would not function as intended. Because these cookies are strictly necessary to deliver our Services, you cannot refuse them without impacting how our Services function. You can block or delete them by changing your browser settings.
   Functionality Cookies: These cookies are used to enhance the performance and functionality of our Services but are non-essential. For example, functionality cookies are used to keep track of your language preferences so that the next time you log in to your account, the appropriate language appears. You may refuse these cookies, but if you do so, certain functionality may become unavailable.
   Analytics / Performance Cookies:These cookies collect information that is used in aggregate form to help us understand how our Website is being used or how effective our marketing campaigns are. These cookies are also used to help us customise our Services for you in order to enhance your experience.
   Marketing Cookies:These cookies are used to make advertising messages more relevant to you and your interests. They also perform functions like preventing the same ad from continuously reappearing, ensuring that ads are properly displayed, and choosing which ads to display to you based on your interests.
   Third Party Cookies: These cookies are used by third parties on our Website for certain functions such as allowing you to access our social media pages, analytics or for the purposes of serving relevant advertisements to you.
4. If you do not want to receive cookies at all, block third party cookies or change your cookie preferences, you can do through your browser or mobile device settings. These settings will typically be found in the "options" or "preferences" menu of your browser.
5. The following links contain further information about how to delete cookies from popular browsers:
   1. Delete cookies in Microsoft Edge;
   2. Delete cookies in Mozilla Firefox;
   3. Delete cookies in Google Chrome;
   4. Delete cookies in Safari web;
   5. Delete cookies in IOS
   6. Delete cookies in Google Chrome for Android

5. how long we keep your personal information

1. Unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law, we will only hold your personal information on our systems for the following periods:
Personal informationHow long we keep it

Contact information
Comments, queries and feedback
Communication preferences

We will store this personal information for no longer than we need it to provide the Services you request from us and for the other purposes set out above. We may also need to keep it to comply with our legal obligations and enforce our rights from time to time. As a result, the length of time that we keep your information will vary depending on the purposes for which we have it. In any event, we will review what information we need on an ongoing basis and will only retain it for the minimum amount of time that we need it for.

Content you submit when using the Platform

We will store this personal information for as long as your account remains active. If you request the deletion of your account, we will keep your user content for 90 days in case you decide to reactivate your account. After this, we reserve the right to delete your user content.

2. We may, however, need to retain your personal information for longer where required under applicable laws.

6. Recipients

1. As required in accordance with how we use your personal information, we may share your personal information as follows:
RecipientHow they use it

Other users of the Platform.You share information with other users when you voluntarily disclose information on the Platform (including your public profile). Please remember to only share information that you are comfortable sharing or being viewable by other users. Neither you nor we can control what others do with your information once you share it. If you choose to limit the audience for all or part of your profile or for certain content or information about you, it will be visible according to your settings.

Other users will use and have access to your personal information (subject to any viewing restrictions you apply through the Platform settings) when using the Platform to search for and interact with potential matches.

Wali users. If you use or communicate with a wali user on the Platform or if a wali user is present when you communicate with potential matches, theywill have access to your profile and will be able to see the information you share with your potential match

Wali users will use and have access to your personal information when using the Platform to carry out their role effectively.

Service providers. We may share your personal information with third party vendors and other service providers that perform services for us or on our behalf, such as providing hosting or other technical services such as analytics services, payment services or communication services.

These service providers will use your personal information as processors on our instructions.

Social media. When we interact with you through a social media platform, that social media platform will receive and process the personal information contained in such communications.

Social media platforms will use the personal information they collect in accordance with their privacy notices. The lawful basis we rely on for transferring this personal information is that the processing is necessary for our legitimate interests, namely communicating with you and our customers through social media, and promoting our Services.

Purchasers and third parties in connection with a business transaction. Your personal information may be disclosed to third parties in connection with a transaction, such as a merger, sale of assets or shares, reorganisation, financing, change of control or acquisition of all or a portion of our business.

These recipients will use your personal information to assess the potential transaction with us, and otherwise only as disclosed in this privacy policy. The lawful basis we rely on for transferring this personal information is that the processing is necessary for our and the third party's legitimate interests, namely assessing and executing a potential transaction with us.

Law enforcement, regulators and other parties for legal reasons. We may share your personal information with third parties as required by law or if we reasonably believe that such action is necessary to

• (i) comply with the law and the reasonable requests of law enforcement;
• (ii) detect and investigate illegal activities and breaches of agreements;
• (iii) exercise or protect the rights, property, or personal safety of Vidnik, its users or others.

These recipients will use your personal information in the performance of their regulatory or law enforcement role, or to advise us in connection with a potential claim or regulatory enforcement action. The lawful basis we rely on for sharing personal information with these recipients is that the processing is either necessary to comply with a legal obligation to which we are subject or is necessary for our legitimate interests, namely enforcing our rights or complying with requests from regulatory authorities.

7. Storing and transferring your personal information

1. Security. We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information against accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, change or damage. All personal information we collect will be stored on our hosting provider's secure servers. We will never send you unsolicited emails or contact you by phone requesting your credit or debit card information or national identification numbers.
2. International Transfers of your personal information. Your personal information is primarily processed and stored within the EEA by our hosting provider.
3. However, we may occasionally need to transfer personal information from the EEA or the UK to other locations. If we do engage in such transfers of personal information, we will rely on:
   1. Adequacy decisions made by the European Commission that recognise the destination country as offering an equivalent level of protection as compared to the level of protection in the country where you are located; or, if you are in the United Kingdom, similar recognition that the destination country offers an equivalent level of protection under the UK Data Protection Act 2018 or regulations made by the UK Secretary of State under the UK Data Protection Act 2018; and
   2. Standard Contractual Clauses issued by the European Commission and, if you are in the United Kingdom, the approved addendum to those Standard Contractual Clauses issued under the UK Data Protection Act 2018.
4. We also continually monitor the circumstances surrounding such transfers in order to ensure that these maintain, in practice, a level of protection that is essentially equivalent to the one guaranteed by the UK GDPR and EU GDPR.
5. If you wish to enquire further about the safeguards we use, including obtaining a copy of any Standard Contractual Clauses we have in place with recipients outside the EEA or UK, please contact us using the details in the "About us" section above.

8. Your rights in respect of your personal information

1. In accordance with applicable privacy law you may have the following rights in respect of your personal information that we hold:
   1. Right of access. The right to obtain:
      1. confirmation of whether, and where, we are processing your personal information;
      2. information about the categories of personal information we are processing, the purposes for which we process your personal information and information as to how we determine applicable retention periods;
      3. information about the categories of recipients with whom we may share your personal information; and
      4. a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
   2. Right of portability. The right, in certain circumstances, to receive a copy of the personal information you have provided to us in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format that supports re-use, or to request the transfer of your personal data to another person.
   3. Right to rectification. The right to obtain rectification of any inaccurate or incomplete personal information we hold about you without undue delay.
   4. Right to erasure. The right, in some circumstances, to require us to erase your personal information without undue delay if the continued processing of that personal information is not justified.
   5. Right to restriction. The right, in some circumstances, to require us to limit the purposes for which we process your personal information if the continued processing of the personal information in this way is not justified, such as where the accuracy of the personal information is contested by you.
   6. You have the right to object to any processing based on our legitimate interests where there are grounds relating to your particular situation. There may be compelling reasons for continuing to process your personal information, and we will assess and inform you if that is the case.
   7. You also have the right to withdraw your consent to our processing of your personal information, where our processing is solely based on your consent.
2. If you wish to exercise one of these rights, please contact us using the contact details in the "About us" section above.
3. You may also have the right to lodge a complaint to your local data protection authority. If you are based in the European Union, information about how to contact your local data protection authority is available here. If you are based in the UK, information about how to contact your local data protection authority is available here.

9. Links to third party sites

10. Our policy towards children

11. other changes to this policy

12. Notice to you