Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

PhotoAssist ("we", "our", or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal data when you use our website at photoassist.co.uk (the "Service").

We comply with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

2. Data Controller

PhotoAssist is the data controller responsible for your personal data. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:

Email: info@photoassist.co.uk

3. Information We Collect

3.1 Information You Provide

When you register and use the Service, we collect:

• Account information: Name, email address, password
• Profile information: Phone number, location (town, county, postcode), professional bio, skills, experience
• Portfolio content: Images you upload to your profile
• Payment information: Processed securely by Stripe (we do not store card details)
• Communications: Messages sent through our contact form

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you use the Service, we automatically collect:

• Usage data: Pages visited, searches performed, features used
• Device information: Browser type, operating system, device type
• Log data: IP address (hashed for privacy), access times, referring URLs

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal data for the following purposes:

• Provide the Service: Create and manage your account, display your profile to other users, facilitate connections between photographers and assistants
• Process payments: Handle Premium subscription billing through Stripe
• Communicate with you: Send service updates, respond to enquiries, deliver messages from other users
• Improve the Service: Analyse usage patterns, develop new features, fix issues
• Premium analytics: Show Premium members who has viewed their profile (photographers' names and companies)
• Security: Detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and security incidents

5. Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data based on:

• Contract: Processing necessary to provide the Service you requested
• Legitimate interests: Improving the Service, preventing fraud, marketing (where applicable)
• Consent: Where you have given specific consent for a particular purpose
• Legal obligation: Where we are required to process data by law

6. Profile Visibility

Assistant profiles: Your profile information (name, location, skills, bio, portfolio) is publicly visible to help photographers find you.

Photographer viewing: When you view assistant profiles while logged in as a photographer, your name and company may be visible to Premium assistant members through our analytics feature. To browse anonymously, you may do so while logged out.

Contact details: Email addresses are not publicly displayed. Phone numbers are only visible if you choose to enable phone visibility in your settings.

7. Data Sharing

We may share your personal data with:

• Other users: Profile information is shared as described in this policy
• Service providers: Third parties who help us operate the Service:
  • Supabase (database and authentication hosting)
  • Vercel (website hosting)
  • Stripe (payment processing)
  • Resend (email delivery)
• Legal requirements: When required by law or to protect our rights

We do not sell your personal data to third parties.

8. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide the Service. If you delete your account, we will delete or anonymise your personal data within 30 days, except where we are required to retain it for legal purposes.

9. Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of your personal data
• Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data
• Erasure: Request deletion of your data ("right to be forgotten")
• Restriction: Request limitation of processing
• Portability: Request transfer of your data to another service
• Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interests
• Withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent

To exercise these rights, please contact us at info@photoassist.co.uk.

10. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data, including:

• Encryption of data in transit (HTTPS)
• Secure password hashing
• Access controls and authentication
• Regular security reviews

However, no method of transmission over the Internet is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

11. International Transfers

Your data may be processed by service providers located outside the UK. Where this occurs, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as Standard Contractual Clauses or adequacy decisions.

12. Cookies

We use essential cookies required for the Service to function (e.g., authentication). We do not use tracking or advertising cookies.

13. Children's Privacy

The Service is not intended for users under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children.

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by posting the new policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date.

15. Complaints

If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, please contact us first. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO):

Website: ico.org.uk
Phone: 0303 123 1113

16. Contact Us

For any questions about this Privacy Policy or to exercise your rights, please contact us at:

Email: info@photoassist.co.uk