Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Global Village is operated by [Insert legal entity name, e.g., Omowale LLC], based in [Insert jurisdiction, e.g., the State of Texas, United States]. For the purposes of data protection laws, we are the "data controller" for information collected through the Platform.

2. Information We Collect

We collect information in three ways: information you give us, information we collect automatically when you use the Platform, and information from third parties.

2.1 Information You Give Us

When you create an account and use Global Village, you may provide:

• Account information: your email address, password (stored only in encrypted form), display name, and chosen username.
• Profile information: a profile photo, a short bio, your location (city or region, only if you choose to share it), and any other details you add to your profile.
• Content you post: posts, comments, replies, photos, videos, marketplace listings, direct messages, and reactions to other people's content.
• Marketplace information: for listings, the price, currency, category, description, photos, and any contact preferences you choose to share.
• Communications with us: when you contact support, report content, or send us feedback, we receive your message and any information you include.

2.2 Information We Collect Automatically

When you use the Platform, we automatically collect:

• Device information: device type, operating system version, device identifiers (such as Apple's Identifier for Vendors), app version, and crash logs.
• Usage information: which screens you visit, which posts and listings you view, how long you spend on the app, and what actions you take (for example, creating a post or sending a message). We use this to understand how the Platform is used and to improve it.
• Approximate location: if you grant the app permission, we use your device's location to show you events and marketplace listings near you. You can revoke this permission at any time in your device settings. We do not track your precise location in the background.
• Log and technical data: IP address, request timestamps, and other information sent by your device or browser.

2.3 Information from Third Parties

At this time, we do not receive information about you from third-party data brokers, social logins, or advertising networks. If this changes, we will update this policy before doing so.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Provide the Platform: create and maintain your account, show you content, deliver your messages, process marketplace listings, and keep everything working.
• Keep the community safe: review reports, moderate content, investigate violations of our Community Guidelines, and enforce our Terms of Service.
• Communicate with you: send you service-related notifications (for example, when someone replies to your post or messages you), respond to your support requests, and send important announcements about the Platform.
• Improve the Platform: understand how the Platform is used, diagnose bugs, and develop new features.
• Comply with law: meet our legal obligations, respond to lawful requests, and protect our rights and the rights of our community.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not share it with advertisers for behavioral targeting.

4. How We Share Your Information

We share your information only in these situations:

4.1 With Other Community Members

• Your profile, posts, comments, and public marketplace listings are visible to other people on the Platform. Think of this as the digital equivalent of speaking in a village square — what you post publicly, others can see.
• Direct messages and group chats are visible only to the people in that conversation.
• Your email address and precise location are never shown to other community members unless you choose to include them in a post or listing.

4.2 With Service Providers

We work with a small number of trusted service providers to run the Platform. They process your information only on our behalf and under contractual obligations to protect it:

• Supabase — database, authentication, and real-time messaging infrastructure.
• Cloudflare — content delivery, media storage (photos and videos), and website hosting.
• Render — backend server hosting.
• Sentry — crash and error reporting, so we can identify and fix bugs. Sentry receives technical information about errors (device type, operating system version, app version, and the sequence of actions that led to the crash). We do not send personal content such as post text, direct messages, or profile details to Sentry.
• Apple — app distribution and push notifications (via Apple Push Notification Service).

If we add new providers (for example, for payments or analytics), we will update this policy.

4.3 For Legal Reasons

We may disclose information if we believe in good faith that it is necessary to:

• comply with a law, regulation, legal process, or government request;
• enforce our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines;
• detect, prevent, or address fraud, security, or technical issues;
• protect the rights, property, or safety of Global Village, our community, or the public.

4.4 Business Transfers

If Global Village is ever involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you before your information becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

5. How Long We Keep Your Information

• Account information: kept while your account is active and for up to 90 days after deletion, to allow for account recovery and to meet legal obligations.
• Posts, comments, and listings: kept while your account is active. When you delete a post, it is removed from public view immediately and fully deleted from our systems within 30 days.
• Direct messages: kept while your account is active. Deleting a message removes it from your view; the other person in the conversation may still see their copy until they also delete it.
• Moderation records: when someone violates our guidelines, we may keep a record of the violation and related content for up to two years to enforce the guidelines consistently.
• Server logs: kept for up to 90 days for security and debugging.

When you delete your account, we delete or anonymize your information within 30 days, except where we are required to keep it longer by law.

6. Your Rights and Choices

You have the right to:

• Access the information we hold about you.
• Correct inaccurate information — most of this you can edit directly in the app.
• Delete your account and associated information. You can do this from the app's settings, or by emailing [email protected].
• Export a copy of your data in a portable format. Email [email protected] to request this.
• Object to certain uses of your information.
• Withdraw consent for uses that rely on your consent, such as location access.

Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under laws like the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the United Kingdom's Data Protection Act, the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), Nigeria's Data Protection Regulation (NDPR), South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), Kenya's Data Protection Act, Rwanda's Law 058/2021, and similar laws in other countries. We honor these rights for everyone, not only people in those jurisdictions.

To exercise any of these rights, email [email protected]. We respond within 30 days.

7. Data Security

We use industry-standard safeguards to protect your information, including encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS), encryption at rest, access controls, and regular security review of our systems. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security, but we take this seriously and will notify you without undue delay if a data breach affects your personal information.

8. Children

Global Village is not intended for people under 17 years old. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has created an account, email [email protected] and we will delete the account and associated information.

9. International Data Transfers

Global Village serves a community across continents. Your information may be processed in countries other than the one you live in, including the United States, where our primary service providers operate. We take steps to ensure that transfers comply with applicable law, including using standard contractual clauses where required.

10. Third-Party Links and Content

Posts, comments, and marketplace listings on the Platform may contain links to other websites. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those sites. Check their privacy policies before sharing information with them.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy as the Platform evolves. When we make material changes, we will notify you in the app and update the "Last Updated" date above. For significant changes, we will give you reasonable notice before the changes take effect.

12. Contact Us

Questions, concerns, or requests:

Email: [email protected]
Mailing address: [Insert mailing address — required for GDPR/CCPA compliance]

If you are in the European Union, you have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority. If you are in the United Kingdom, you can contact the Information Commissioner's Office. We would appreciate the chance to address your concerns before you do.