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Privacy Policy

Last updated: 9 October 2026

This Privacy Policy explains what personal information Linkup collects, why we collect it, who we share it with, how long we keep it and the rights you have over it. It should be read together with our Terms of Use. Capitalised terms not defined here (such as linkup, Host, Co-host, Attendee, Shout, Creator, Paid Linkup, Joining Price, Wallet and Linkup Plus) have the meanings given in the Terms of Use.

1. Who we are

1.1 Linkup is operated by Linkup Social Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales (company number 13498608), whose registered office is at International House, 61 Mosley Street, Manchester, M2 3HZ, United Kingdom (“Linkup”, “we”, “us” or “our”).

1.2 Linkup is the controller of the personal information described in this policy, which means we decide how and why it is used. Where we use service providers to process information for us, they act as our processors under contract.

1.3 This policy covers the Linkup mobile app and all related features and services (the “Service”). It also covers our website at www.linkupapp.io, which is a marketing site; cookies on the website are explained in our Cookie Policy. It does not cover third-party services you reach through Linkup, such as Apple, Google or our payment processor, which have their own privacy policies.

1.4 Contact us. For any privacy question or request, email support@linkupapp.io (subject “Privacy”) or write to us at the address above.

Summary

Who can use Linkup: Adults aged 18 and over only
What we collect: Your sign-up details, profile, linkups, Shouts, messages, location, verification selfies, payment and payout details for Paid Linkups, and device and usage information
Why: To run Linkup, help you find and join linkups, process payments, keep people safe, and improve the app
Who sees it: Other users see your profile and what you post; Hosts see who has joined their linkups; our service providers process it on our behalf
Selling data: We do not sell your personal information
Your rights: Access, correct, delete, object, restrict, export and withdraw consent; email support@linkupapp.io
Complaints: You can complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) or your local data protection authority

2. Information we collect

2.1 Information you give us

Sign-up details. You sign up with your mobile number, your Apple account or your Google account. With a mobile number we receive the number and send you a verification code. With Apple or Google we receive an account identifier and, depending on your settings, your name and email address (Apple lets you hide your real email). We never receive your Apple or Google password.
Profile. Your first name, date of birth (we show your age, not your full date of birth), gender, photos, bio, interests and any other details you choose to add.
Linkups. Linkups you create or co-host (title, description, date, time, meeting point, category, photos, whether it is public or private, whether it is men-only or women-only, and the Joining Price for Paid Linkups), and the linkups you request to join, join or leave.
Shouts and comments. Shouts you post as a Creator and comments you post on Shouts.
Messages. One-to-one messages and messages in linkup group chats, including any photos or other content you send.
Verification selfie. If you choose to get a verified badge, the selfie you send us so we can check it against your profile photos (see Section 4.1).
Identity and business checks for Paid Linkups. If you want to create Paid Linkups, the information Ryft needs for “know your customer” and “know your business” checks, such as your full legal name, date of birth, address, identity document, and, where relevant, business details (see Section 4.2).
Payment and payout details. When you pay to join a Paid Linkup, your card details are entered into and held by Ryft, our payment processor; we receive only limited information such as the card type, last four digits, expiry date and payment status. If you are a Host, we hold your Wallet balance and payout history, and Ryft holds your bank account details for payouts.
Linkup Plus. If you subscribe, Apple or Google tell us your subscription status (for example active, trial, renewed or cancelled). We never receive your card details for Linkup Plus.
Reports, appeals and support. Reports you make about profiles, linkups or Shouts, appeals, and anything you send when you contact us, including screenshots.
Feedback and surveys. Answers you give to surveys, research or feedback requests, and information you provide to enter promotions or referral schemes.

2.2 Information collected automatically

Location. Your device’s location, so we can show you linkups and people nearby and give you AI-powered linkup suggestions based on what’s happening in an area. Linkup needs your location to work, so you must allow location access to use the app. We show other users an approximate distance or area, never your precise location (see Section 5.1).
Device and technical information. Device model, operating system, app version, language and region settings, time zone, IP address, mobile network, and device and app identifiers.
Usage information. How you use the app, such as the screens and features you use, linkups and profiles you view, searches, actions you take, and the time and date of your activity.
Diagnostics. Crash reports, error logs and performance data.
Notification tokens. A device token so we can send you push notifications, if you allow them.
Advertising and attribution identifiers. If you allow it (on iOS, through Apple’s App Tracking Transparency prompt), your device’s advertising identifier and information about the ad or link that led you to install Linkup.

2.3 Information from other people and sources

Other users. Other users may give us information about you, for example when they report you, mention you in a message or Shout, add you as a Co-host, or remove you from a linkup.
Apple and Google. Sign-in information (Section 2.1) and Linkup Plus subscription status.
Ryft. The outcome of identity and business checks, payment and authorisation results, refunds, chargebacks and payout status.
Safety and moderation providers. Signals and classifications from our automated moderation tools (Section 4.3).
Public sources and authorities. Where permitted by law, information from public records, sanctions lists and law-enforcement or regulatory bodies, for safety, fraud-prevention and legal reasons.

2.4 Information we do not want

Please do not share sensitive information about yourself or others in your profile, linkups, Shouts or messages, such as health information, religious or political beliefs, sexual orientation, financial account numbers or government identity numbers. If you choose to share it publicly, other users will be able to see it.

2.5 If you do not give us information

You need to give us your sign-up details, date of birth and gender, and allow location access, to use Linkup, because we need them to run your account, confirm you are 18 or over, apply men-only or women-only linkups and show you linkups and people nearby. You need to pass identity checks to create Paid Linkups, and give payment details to join one. Everything else is optional, but some features may not work without it (for example, you need to send a selfie to get a verified badge).

3. How we use your information and our legal bases

UK and EU data protection law requires us to have a legal basis for each use of your personal information. The table below sets out what we use your information for and the basis we rely on. Where we rely on legitimate interests, we have balanced our interests against your rights, and you can object (Section 7).

Creating and running your account, signing you in and confirming you are 18 or over: Sign-up details, date of birth, device information (Contract)
Showing your profile, letting you create, co-host, join and leave linkups, post and comment on Shouts, and message other users: Profile, linkups, Shouts, comments, messages (Contract)
Applying men-only and women-only linkups: Gender (Contract)
Showing linkups and people nearby and letting you change location: Location, profile (Contract)
AI-powered linkup suggestions: Location, interests, linkups you have viewed or joined (Legitimate interests (making the app useful))
Verified badge: Verification selfie, profile photos (Consent)
Identity and business checks for Paid Linkups: Identity, business and verification information (Legal obligation (anti-money-laundering and payment rules) and contract)
Processing payments to join Paid Linkups, authorisation holds, refunds and chargebacks: Payment information, linkup and attendance information (Contract and legal obligation)
Running Host Wallets, payouts and the Platform Fee: Wallet balance, payout history, bank details held by Ryft (Contract and legal obligation)
Linkup Plus subscriptions: Subscription status (Contract)
Sending service messages (verification codes, payment confirmations, linkup updates, security alerts, changes to our terms): Contact details, notification tokens (Contract and legitimate interests)
Sending marketing about Linkup: Contact details, notification tokens (Consent, or legitimate interests where the law allows (you can opt out at any time))
Moderating content and enforcing our Terms of Use, including automated detection: Profiles, photos, linkups, Shouts, comments, messages, reports, device information (Legitimate interests (keeping users safe) and legal obligation)
Handling reports, appeals and support requests: Reports, appeals, support messages, related account information (Legitimate interests and legal obligation)
Preventing fraud, scams, ban evasion and other misuse: Account, device, payment, usage and moderation information (Legitimate interests and legal obligation)
Reporting suspected illegal activity, including child exploitation, and responding to lawful requests from authorities: Any relevant information (Legal obligation and legitimate interests (protecting people from serious harm))
Measuring how people find Linkup and how well our ads work: Advertising and attribution identifiers, install events (Consent)
Understanding how Linkup is used, fixing bugs and improving the app: Usage information, diagnostics, device information (Legitimate interests)
Tax, accounting and regulatory reporting (including reporting Host earnings to HMRC where required): Payment, Wallet, payout and identity information (Legal obligation)
Establishing, exercising or defending legal claims: Any relevant information (Legitimate interests)
Running promotions, referrals, surveys and research: Contact details, responses, referral information (Consent or legitimate interests)

We will only use your information for a new purpose if it is compatible with the purpose we collected it for, or if we have your consent or another legal basis.

4. Verification, identity checks, moderation and AI

4.1 Verified badge (selfie check)

Getting a verified badge is optional. You send us a selfie and we check it against the photos on your profile. If they match, you get a verified badge.
We use your selfie only for this check and for related safety and fraud-prevention purposes. We do not use it to identify you from other people’s photos, to build a facial recognition database, for advertising, or to train AI models, and we do not sell it.
We keep the selfie securely, with access limited to our team, for as long as you have a verified badge, and delete it when you withdraw consent or delete your account, unless we need to keep it longer to investigate fraud or a safety concern, or because the law requires it.
You can withdraw your consent at any time by emailing support@linkupapp.io; we will then delete the selfie and remove the badge.
A verified badge is not a background check and does not guarantee anyone’s identity or conduct.

4.2 Identity and business checks for Paid Linkups

Before you can create Paid Linkups and receive payouts, you must pass “know your customer” (KYC) and, where relevant, “know your business” (KYB) checks. These are carried out by Ryft, as required by anti-money-laundering, counter-terrorist-financing, sanctions and payment rules.
The checks may involve your full legal name, date of birth, home address, nationality, identity document, business registration and ownership details, and screening against sanctions, politically-exposed-person and fraud databases.
Where checks use facial comparison between your selfie and your identity document, this may involve biometric data. Where the law requires it, we or our provider will ask for your explicit consent first.
We receive the outcome of the checks and only the information we need. Ryft keeps records of the checks for as long as the law requires it to, under its own privacy policy.

4.3 Moderation and safety

To keep Linkup safe, we use automated moderation tools, including our third-party AI moderation provider, alongside user reports and human review. These tools may scan profiles, photos, linkups, Shouts, comments and messages (including one-to-one and group messages) for content that breaks our Terms of Use, such as nudity, sexual content, exploitation, violence, hate, harassment, scams, spam and requests to pay off the platform.
Automated tools can remove or block content and apply restrictions to accounts, including warnings, temporary restrictions and strikes. Where we take action against your account, you can appeal and ask for a person to review the decision (see Section 17.6 of our Terms of Use).
People on our safety team may review content and account information when content is flagged or reported, or when needed to investigate a safety, legal or policy issue. We do not routinely read private messages.
We keep records of reports, moderation decisions and enforcement actions, which may include limited content and device information, to prevent repeat abuse and ban evasion (see Section 6.2).

4.4 AI features

We use AI, including third-party AI models, to generate linkup suggestions based on what’s happening in an area, to help write or improve text such as linkup descriptions, and to support moderation.
When you use these features, relevant information (such as your approximate location, interests and the text you enter) is sent to our AI provider to generate a response. Our AI providers act as our processors and are not permitted to use your information to train their own models.

4.5 Automated decisions

We do not make decisions about you based solely on automated processing that have legal or similarly significant effects, except for automated moderation actions described in Section 4.3, which you can always ask a person to review. Some decisions, such as whether you pass identity checks, are made by Ryft; if you disagree with the outcome, contact us and we will help you request a review.

4.6 Sensitive information

Gender is used to apply men-only and women-only linkups and is shown on your profile.
We do not ask for information about your health, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or political views. If you choose to include this kind of information in your profile, linkups, Shouts or messages, you do so voluntarily and it will be visible to the people you share it with.
Precise location is treated as sensitive information under some US state laws. We use it only to provide the features you ask for and to keep the Service safe.

5. Who we share your information with

We do not sell your personal information.

5.1 Other users

Your profile (first name, age, photos, occupation, bio, interests and verified badge, if you have one) is visible to other users.
Linkups. Public linkups can be seen by anyone on Linkup; private linkups can be seen by anyone with the link. Hosts and Co-hosts can see who has requested to join and who has joined their linkups. Attendees of a linkup can see each other and take part in its group chat.
Shouts and comments are visible to other users, along with your profile.
Messages are visible to the people you send them to and, in group chats, to everyone in the chat.
Location. Other users see an approximate distance or area, not your precise location. Every linkup has a location, which is visible to people who can see the linkup.
Sharing outside Linkup. Users can share links to linkups and profiles outside the app. Other users may also take screenshots of what you share, so please think before you post.

Hosts and Co-hosts. Hosts and Co-hosts may use information about the people who join their linkups only to organise and run them, as our Terms of Use require. Where they use it in other ways, they do so as independent controllers, and this policy does not cover what they do with it.

5.2 Service providers

We use trusted service providers who process information on our behalf, under contract, only for the purposes we set, and with appropriate security. They include:

Ryft Pay Ltd: Payment processing for Paid Linkups, authorisation holds, refunds, chargebacks, Host payouts, and identity and business (KYC/KYB) checks for Hosts who create Paid Linkups
Bodyguard (Bodyguard.ai): AI-powered automated content moderation
Stream (GetStream.io): One-to-one and group chat, including storing and delivering messages
Amazon Web Services (AWS): Cloud hosting, database and file storage
OpenAI: AI-powered linkup suggestions and text help
Google Maps and Google Places: Maps, place search and location details
GIPHY: Searching for and showing GIFs in chats (your search terms and device information are sent to GIPHY)
Apple and Google: Sign-in, app distribution, Linkup Plus purchases and push notification delivery
RevenueCat: Managing Linkup Plus subscription status
Superwall: Showing Linkup Plus offers and recording how you respond to them
OneSignal: Sending push notifications
Twilio: Sending sign-up verification codes by SMS
Brevo: Sending emails
Google Workspace: Email and customer support correspondence
Mixpanel: Product analytics
Sentry: Crash and error reporting
Airbridge: App install attribution and campaign measurement (only with your consent)
AppStack: Ad attribution and campaign optimisation (only with your consent)
Insert Affiliate: Tracking referrals from creators and affiliates
Microsoft Azure DevOps: Software development, testing and deployment
Professional advisers: Legal, accounting, audit and insurance advice

Advertising platforms. If you allow tracking, Airbridge and AppStack share app install, trial and subscription events, together with device and campaign identifiers, with advertising platforms such as Meta, Google, TikTok and Apple Ads, so we can measure and improve our own ads. We do not show third-party ads in the app. You can stop this at any time (see Section 7.1).

Some of these providers (including Ryft, Apple and Google) also act as independent controllers for some processing, under their own privacy policies.

5.3 Legal, safety and protection

We may access, preserve and share information with law enforcement, regulators, courts, child-safety organisations (such as the US National Center for Missing & Exploited Children) or other third parties where we believe in good faith it is reasonably necessary to:

comply with the law, a court order, legal process or a lawful request from a government or regulatory authority;
prevent or respond to a threat to someone’s life or safety, or report suspected crime, including human trafficking and child sexual exploitation;
detect, prevent or investigate fraud, money laundering, security issues or misuse of the Service;
enforce our Terms of Use; or
protect the rights, property or safety of Linkup, our users or the public.

5.4 Business transfers

If we are involved in a merger, acquisition, financing, reorganisation, bankruptcy or sale of all or part of our business, your information may be shared with the parties involved (including during due diligence) and transferred to a new owner, who will be bound by this policy or tell you about any changes.

5.5 With your consent

We will share your information in other ways if you ask us to or give us your consent.

5.6 Aggregated information

We may share aggregated or de-identified information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you, for example statistics about how many linkups take place in a city.

6. Transfers, retention and security

6.1 International transfers

Linkup is based in the UK, and some of our service providers are located in, or access information from, other countries, including the United States and countries in the European Union. When we transfer personal information outside the UK or EEA to a country without an adequacy decision, we use appropriate safeguards, such as the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or Addendum, the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, or a provider’s certification under the UK Extension to the EU-US Data Privacy Framework. You can ask us for more information about these safeguards.

6.2 How long we keep your information

We keep personal information only for as long as we need it for the purposes in this policy, unless the law requires or allows us to keep it longer.

Account and profile information: While your account is open. Accounts inactive for 24 months may be closed (we will try to tell you first)
Linkups, Shouts, comments and messages: While your account is open, unless you delete them sooner. Messages you sent may remain visible to the people you sent them to
After you delete your account: Your profile, linkups and Shouts stop being visible straight away. We delete or anonymise your information within 3 months, except as set out below
Verification selfies: While you have a verified badge; deleted when you withdraw consent or delete your account
Identity and business check records: Held by Ryft for as long as anti-money-laundering law requires, usually 5 years after our relationship with you ends
Payment, Wallet, payout and transaction records: 6 years after the end of the financial year they relate to, for tax and accounting
Reports, moderation and enforcement records: As long as needed to keep users safe, usually up to 1 year after account closure, or longer for serious breaches
Records of banned accounts: A minimal record (account identifiers, device identifiers, the reason and date) for as long as needed to stop banned users from returning
Support correspondence: 2 years after your request is resolved
Usage analytics and diagnostics: Up to 24 months
Location: Your current location only; we do not keep a history of your movements
Information subject to a legal claim, investigation or preservation request: Until the matter is resolved

Deleted information may remain in backups for a short period, normally up to 30 days, before it is overwritten. We may keep aggregated or anonymised information indefinitely.

6.3 Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your information, including encryption in transit and at rest, access controls that limit who on our team can see your information, and contractual security requirements for our service providers. We do not store full card numbers. No system is completely secure, so please keep your account and device secure and tell us straight away at support@linkupapp.io if you think your account has been accessed without permission. If a data breach is likely to put your rights at risk, we will tell you and the relevant regulator as required by law.

7. Your rights and choices

7.1 Choices in the app and on your device

Profile and content. You can edit your profile and delete your linkups, Shouts and comments in the app.
Location. Linkup needs location access to work. You can change your location permission in your device settings, but if you turn it off you will not be able to use the app until you turn it back on.
Push notifications. You can turn notifications on or off in your device settings.
Marketing. You can opt out of marketing emails using the unsubscribe link, or by emailing support@linkupapp.io. You will still receive service messages while you have an account.
Tracking. On iOS, you can choose whether to allow tracking when prompted, and change this later in Settings > Privacy & Security > Tracking. On Android, you can reset or delete your advertising ID in your device settings.
Blocking. You can block other users at any time.
Deleting your account. You can delete your account in the app under Settings, or by emailing support@linkupapp.io. Deleting the app does not delete your account, and deleting your account does not cancel a Linkup Plus subscription; cancel it through the App Store or Google Play. If you are a Host, you will need to cancel any upcoming Paid Linkups first, and any Wallet balance will be paid out in line with our Terms of Use.
Apple or Google sign-in. You can stop Linkup’s access to your Apple or Google account at any time in your Apple ID or Google account settings. You may then need another way to sign in.

7.2 Your rights (UK, EU and similar laws)

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

access the personal information we hold about you and get a copy;
correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete;
delete your information, subject to the exceptions in Section 6.2 (for example, information we must keep for tax or legal reasons, or to stop banned users returning);
restrict how we use your information in certain circumstances;
object to our use of your information where we rely on legitimate interests, and to direct marketing (including any profiling for direct marketing) at any time;
data portability: receive information you gave us in a structured, machine-readable format, or ask us to send it to another organisation;
withdraw consent at any time where we rely on consent (for example for the verified badge or tracking), without affecting what we did before; and
not be subject to solely automated decisions with legal or similarly significant effects, and ask for human review.

To exercise these rights, email support@linkupapp.io with the subject “Privacy request”. We may need to verify your identity, for example by asking you to confirm details from your account. We will respond within one month, or tell you if we need longer (up to two further months for complex requests). Requests are free, but we may refuse or charge a reasonable fee for requests that are clearly unfounded or excessive. We will not treat you differently for exercising your rights.

7.3 United States residents

If you live in California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, Utah, Texas, Oregon or another US state with a consumer privacy law, you may have the right to know what personal information we collect and how we use and share it, to access, correct and delete it, to get a portable copy, to opt out of the “sale” or “sharing” of personal information or its use for targeted advertising, to limit the use of sensitive personal information, in some states (such as Connecticut, Delaware, Minnesota and Oregon) to get a list of the third parties we have disclosed your information to, and not to be discriminated against for exercising these rights. Where the law allows, you can use an authorised agent, and you can appeal if we refuse your request by replying to our decision with the subject “Appeal”.

No sale. We do not sell personal information for money. If you allow tracking for ad measurement, some states may treat sharing identifiers with our attribution providers as “sharing” or targeted advertising. You can opt out by declining or turning off tracking on your device, or by emailing support@linkupapp.io with the subject “Do not sell or share my personal information”. We honour Global Privacy Control signals where required by law.
Sensitive information. We use precise location only to provide the features you ask for and to keep the Service safe, which is a permitted use, so we do not offer a separate “limit” link.
California notice at collection. In the last 12 months we have collected: identifiers (such as name, phone number, email, account and device IDs, IP address); customer records and commercial information (Paid Linkup payments, Wallet and payout records, Linkup Plus status); characteristics of protected classifications (age, gender); internet and app activity; precise geolocation; audio, visual and similar information (photos and verification selfies); and inferences (such as the linkups we suggest). We collect these for the purposes in Section 3, share them with the categories of recipients in Section 5, and keep them as set out in Section 6.2. We do not knowingly sell or share the personal information of anyone under 16.
Shine the Light. We do not share personal information with third parties for their own direct marketing.
Do Not Track. The app does not respond to browser “Do Not Track” signals.

7.4 Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we handle your information, please contact us first so we can try to put it right. You also have the right to complain to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ico.org.uk, 0303 123 1113) or, if you live in the EU or elsewhere, to your local data protection authority.

8. Other important information

8.1 Children

Linkup is only for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If we learn that a user is under 18, we will close the account and delete their information, except where we need to keep it for safety or legal reasons. If you believe someone under 18 is using Linkup, please report it or email support@linkupapp.io.

8.2 Third-party services and links

Linkup may contain links to, or let you use, services run by others, such as Apple, Google, Ryft and maps. We are not responsible for how they handle your information, so please read their privacy policies.

8.3 Cookies and similar technologies

The app does not use browser cookies, but it uses software development kits (SDKs), device and app identifiers and local storage to keep you signed in, remember your settings, keep the Service secure, understand how the app is used and, only with your consent, measure our advertising. Our website uses cookies as explained in our Cookie Policy. In the UK and EU, non-essential cookies and tracking are off until you agree to them.

8.4 Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top shows when it last changed. If we make material changes, we will tell you in the app or by email before they take effect, and ask for your consent where the law requires it.