Privacy Policy
Version 1.0 · Effective 30 July 2026 · Last updated 30 July 2026
This policy explains how Dog and Cat Rescue Samui Foundation handles personal information in the Meet Your Samui Match app. It is written for ordinary shelter visitors, in plain English. It describes what the app actually does — it is not a general legal guarantee, and we do not claim certification under any privacy law.
Who is responsible
The data controller is Dog and Cat Rescue Samui Foundation, 112/35 Talat Dao, Bo Put, Amphoe Ko Samui, Surat Thani 84320, Thailand.
Privacy contact: pmhaupt@gmail.com
The app was built and is maintained by volunteers on behalf of the Foundation. Volunteers are not independent operators of the app.
Our approach
- No visitor accounts. You can browse, favourite animals and share photos without signing up.
- No advertising cookies, no advertising pixels, no cross-site tracking and no profiling.
- No third-party trackers, widgets, social feeds, embedded videos or embedded maps load automatically.
- Fonts are served from our own app, not from an external font provider.
- External services (WhatsApp, e-mail, Instagram, PayPal, GoFundMe) are only contacted after you deliberately tap their link.
What we collect and why
| What | Why | Legal basis | How long |
|---|---|---|---|
| Information stored on your device (favourites, discovery position, species preference, campaign spacing, search box text) | To make the app work the way you asked it to | Necessary to provide the service you requested; strictly necessary storage | Stays on your device until you remove it or clear your browser data |
| An anonymous, randomly generated browser identifier | Abuse and spam prevention on photo uploads, correction suggestions and match counts. It is hashed with a secret value before it is stored on our server, so we cannot reverse it back to your browser id | Legitimate interest in protecting the service from abuse | Kept with the related submission or match record |
| Photos you choose to submit, plus an optional first name and optional caption | So our team can review them and, if approved, show them in the animal's community gallery and use them to support the shelter | Your consent, given by ticking the permission box on the upload form | Kept while used to support the animal or the Foundation, or until removal is requested |
| Correction suggestions and animal submissions (the text you type, and any contact details you choose to give) | So our team can check and update animal information | Legitimate interest in keeping animal information accurate; any contact details you add are voluntary | Kept while needed to process and verify the change |
| Optional usage analytics: which screens and cards were used, with a random session identifier | To understand how the app is used so we can improve it. Stored in our own database — not shared with an advertising network | Your consent (optional; off unless you turn it on) | Aggregated shelter statistics; event rows kept up to 12 months |
| Your consent choice | To remember whether you allowed optional analytics | Legal obligation / necessary to record your choice | Up to 12 months, then you are asked again |
| Technical server logs kept by our hosting and database providers (including IP address, timestamp, browser type) | Security, abuse prevention and keeping the service running | Legitimate interest in operating a secure service | Short-term, as retained by our providers |
| Administrator accounts and admin activity logs (staff only) | Access control and accountability for changes to animal records | Legitimate interest in secure administration | 12 months, unless a documented security need requires longer |
Giving your name, caption, correction text or contact details is always optional except where a form clearly marks a field as required. You are never required to create an account.
Who processes data for us
- Lovable Cloud (built on Supabase) — application database, file storage, and administrator authentication.
- Lovable — application hosting and delivery of the web app.
- Where you tap an external link, that provider (for example WhatsApp/Meta, Instagram/Meta, your e-mail provider, PayPal, GoFundMe, Google Maps) receives the request under its own privacy policy. We do not send your browsing history in the app to them.
Some donations may be received through a supporting organisation in Germany, which then transfers the funds to the Foundation. Donor information handled by external donation services or by a supporting organisation is processed under their own privacy policies. We have not been given the verified legal details of that organisation, so we do not name it here or describe it as a controller or processor of app data.
International transfers
The Foundation is based in Thailand. Our hosting, database and storage providers operate internationally, so data may be stored or accessed outside Thailand, including in the European Union and the United States, by our providers and by Foundation staff and volunteers who may be located in other countries. Where you choose to use an external service such as WhatsApp, PayPal or GoFundMe, your data goes to that provider under its own terms.
Photo submissions
- Photos are uploaded to a private storage area and are not publicly accessible before approval.
- Location data (GPS/EXIF) and other camera metadata are removed in your browser before the photo is uploaded, because the image is re-encoded during upload.
- The uploader's name is never published automatically and is not part of the image address.
- Rejected submissions and their files are deleted within 30 days.
- You can ask us to remove a photo at any time by e-mailing us.
Security
Access to the database is restricted by row-level security rules; unapproved photos, submitter details and internal notes are only readable by signed-in staff. Uploads are size- and count-limited, re-encoded to a safe image format, and rate limited. Administrator access requires a password-protected account. No system can be guaranteed completely secure.
Children
The app is intended for general audiences and we do not knowingly collect data from children. Photos may only be submitted by people aged 16 or over, or by a parent or legal guardian on a younger person's behalf.
Your rights
Depending on where you live and which law applies, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict or object to the processing of your personal data, to receive it in a portable format, and to withdraw consent at any time without affecting processing that already happened. Not every right applies in every country or to every kind of data.
- To make a request, e-mail pmhaupt@gmail.com. Please tell us enough to find the relevant photo or submission (for example the animal's name and roughly when you submitted it). We will not ask for more identification than we need.
- To change or withdraw your analytics consent, use in the footer.
- To remove favourites and discovery progress, clear this site's data in your browser.
- If you are in the EU/EEA or the UK, you may be able to complain to the data protection authority for your country or place of residence. In Thailand, you may be able to complain to the Personal Data Protection Committee.
Changes
We may update this policy. The version number and dates at the top of the page show the current version; material changes will be reflected there.