Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Welcome to Locomart ("we," "our," or "us"). Locomart is a marketplace platform that connects local buyers with sellers, service providers, restaurants, and community organizations in their area. We are committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our mobile application (available on iOS and Android), our website at locomart.co, and any related services (collectively, the "Services"). Please read this policy carefully. If you do not agree with the terms of this privacy policy, please do not access the Services.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account information: Name, email address, phone number, and profile photo when you create an account.
• Payment information: Payment method details processed securely through our third-party payment processors (e.g., M-Pesa, card payments). We do not store full payment card numbers.
• Transaction information: Details of orders, purchases, bookings, and communications between buyers and sellers.
• Seller information: Business name, product listings, service descriptions, pricing, and business-related images if you register as a seller.
• User-generated content: Reviews, ratings, community posts, messages, and any other content you submit through the Services.
• Support communications: Information you provide when contacting our support team, including support tickets and chat messages.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Device information: Device type, operating system, unique device identifiers, and mobile network information.
• Location data: With your permission, we collect precise or approximate location data to provide location-based services such as finding nearby sellers, restaurants, and services.
• Usage data: Pages viewed, features used, search queries, browsing patterns, and interaction data within the app and website.
• Log data: IP address, browser type, access times, and referring URLs.

2.3 Information from Third Parties

• Social login providers: If you sign in using Google or Apple, we receive basic profile information as permitted by your social account settings.
• Analytics providers: We receive aggregated analytics data from Firebase Analytics and similar services.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• Provide and maintain the Services: Process transactions, facilitate orders between buyers and sellers, manage bookings, and deliver the core marketplace experience.
• Personalize your experience: Show relevant products, services, restaurants, and events based on your location and preferences.
• Communications: Send order confirmations, delivery updates, booking notifications, and respond to your inquiries.
• Safety and security: Detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and unauthorized access to protect our users and platform.
• Analytics and improvement: Understand usage patterns, diagnose technical issues, and improve the quality and performance of our Services.
• Legal compliance: Comply with applicable laws, regulations, and legal processes.
• Marketing: With your consent, send promotional messages about new features, products, or services. You can opt out at any time.

4. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We may share your information in the following circumstances:

• With sellers and buyers: To facilitate transactions, we share necessary information (e.g., delivery address, contact details) between parties in a transaction.
• Service providers: We engage trusted third-party companies to perform services on our behalf, including payment processing, cloud hosting (Google Firebase), analytics, push notifications, and customer support.
• Legal requirements: We may disclose information if required by law, regulation, legal process, or governmental request.
• Protection of rights: We may share information to protect the rights, property, or safety of Locomart, our users, or others.
• Business transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction.

5. Data Storage and Security

Your data is stored securely using Google Firebase infrastructure, which provides enterprise-grade security including:

• Encryption of data in transit (TLS/SSL) and at rest
• Firestore security rules that restrict data access based on authentication and authorization
• Regular security audits and monitoring
• Access controls limiting employee access to personal data on a need-to-know basis

While we implement commercially reasonable security measures, no method of electronic storage or transmission over the Internet is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.

6. Your Rights and Choices

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your personal data, subject to certain legal exceptions.
• Portability: Request a copy of your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Withdraw consent: Where processing is based on consent, you may withdraw it at any time.
• Opt out of marketing: Unsubscribe from promotional emails and push notifications through your account settings.
• Location data: Disable location services through your device settings at any time.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at privacy@locomart.co or support@locomart.co.

7. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

Our website and Services may use cookies and similar tracking technologies to:

• Keep you signed in and remember your preferences
• Understand how you interact with our Services
• Analyze website traffic and usage patterns
• Improve our Services based on aggregated usage data

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our Services.

8. Third-Party Services

Our Services integrate with the following third-party services, each governed by their own privacy policies:

• Google Firebase: Authentication, database, analytics, cloud functions, and hosting — Firebase Privacy Policy
• Google Analytics: Usage analytics and reporting — Google Privacy Policy
• Google Sign-In / Apple Sign-In: Social authentication for account creation and login.
• Payment processors: Third-party payment services for processing transactions securely.
• Push notification services: Firebase Cloud Messaging for delivering notifications.

9. Children's Privacy

Our Services are not intended for children under the age of 13 (or the applicable minimum age in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at privacy@locomart.co, and we will take steps to delete such information.

10. International Data Transfers

Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your country of residence, including countries where Google Cloud infrastructure is located. These countries may have data protection laws that differ from your jurisdiction. By using our Services, you consent to such transfers. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for any international data transfers in compliance with applicable data protection laws.

11. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide you with our Services. We may also retain and use your information as necessary to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Transaction records may be retained for a period required by applicable financial regulations.

When your data is no longer needed, we will securely delete or anonymize it.

12. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date at the top. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes. Your continued use of the Services after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

13. Account Deletion

You may request deletion of your account and associated personal data at any time by:

• Using the account deletion feature in the app (Settings → My Account → Delete Account)
• Visiting our account deletion page
• Emailing us at support@locomart.co

Upon receiving your request, we will delete your personal data within 30 days, except where retention is required by law or for legitimate business purposes (e.g., fraud prevention, financial record-keeping).