Introduction
At Pooled (“we”, “us”, or “our”), we are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal and financial information with care. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our money pooling platform, including our website and mobile applications (collectively, the “Service”).
By using Pooled, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.
Information We Collect
Personal Information
We collect the following personal information:
- Phone number: Required for account authentication via SMS verification (OTP)
- Name: Your display name for identification within pools
- Profile photo: Optional avatar image you choose to upload
- Email address: If provided, for additional communication preferences
Pool and Contribution Data
We collect information related to your pool activities:
- Pools you create, including title, description, funding goals, and deadlines
- Pool cover images you upload from your camera or photo library
- Contribution history and amounts
- Pool participation and membership records
Financial Information
We facilitate contributions but do not directly process payments:
- Transaction records and contribution amounts
- Bank account information for fund disbursement (for pool creators)
- Refund calculation and processing records
Note: Actual payment transfers are handled externally via services like Zelle, Venmo, or bank transfers. Pooled does not store your payment card numbers or banking credentials for contributors.
Device and Usage Information
We automatically collect certain information:
- Device information (device type, operating system, unique device identifiers)
- IP address and approximate location
- App usage patterns and interaction with features
- Push notification tokens (if you enable notifications)
- Cookies and similar tracking technologies (on web)
Camera and Photo Library Access
With your permission, we may access your device's camera and photo library to allow you to:
- Upload a profile photo
- Add cover images to your pools
We only access photos you explicitly select. We do not scan or access your full photo library.
How We Use Your Information
We use your information for the following purposes:
- Authentication: To verify your identity via phone number and secure your account
- Pool Facilitation: To create, manage, and display pool information and track contributions
- Communication: To send pool updates, contribution confirmations, deadline reminders, and important notices via SMS or push notifications
- Push Notifications: With your consent, to send you real-time updates about pool activity, contributions, and deadlines
- Fraud Prevention: To detect and prevent fraudulent activity and protect our users
- Service Improvement: To analyze usage patterns and improve our platform
- Customer Support: To respond to your inquiries and provide assistance
- Legal Compliance: To comply with applicable laws and regulations
Financial Data and Payments
Pooled facilitates the coordination and tracking of group contributions but does not directly process payments:
- We track contribution amounts and calculate refunds when pools are overfunded
- Actual money transfers occur through external services (such as Zelle, Venmo, or direct bank transfers) that you arrange separately
- We do not store payment card numbers, bank account credentials for contributors, or process payments on your behalf
- Pool creators may provide bank account information for receiving disbursements, which is encrypted and securely stored
- All data transmission uses industry-standard SSL/TLS encryption
- Transaction records are maintained for transparency and dispute resolution
Information Sharing and Disclosure
Public Information
Certain information is made public by design to ensure transparency:
- Your name and profile picture when you contribute to a pool
- Contribution amounts (visible to all pool participants)
- Pool creation and participation history
Third-Party Service Providers
We share information with trusted third parties who assist us in operating our Service:
- Supabase: Our authentication and database provider, which handles phone number verification (SMS OTP) and securely stores your account and pool data
- Vercel: Our web hosting provider for the Pooled website
- Push Notification Services: Apple Push Notification Service (APNs) and/or Firebase Cloud Messaging to deliver notifications to your device
- Analytics Providers: To understand how our Service is used and improve the experience
Note on Payments: While we may reference payment services like Zelle for coordinating contributions, we do not have a direct integration with these services. Users arrange payments separately, and those transactions are governed by the respective payment service's privacy policies.
Legal Requirements
We may disclose your information when required by law or to:
- Comply with legal processes or government requests
- Enforce our Terms of Service
- Protect against fraud or security threats
- Protect the rights, property, or safety of Pooled, our users, or others
Data Security
We implement robust security measures:
- End-to-end encryption for all data in transit
- Encrypted data storage for sensitive information
- Regular security audits and penetration testing
- Multi-factor authentication for account access
- Strict access controls for employee data access
- Regular backups and disaster recovery procedures
However, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Data Retention
We retain your information for as long as necessary to:
- Provide our services to you
- Comply with legal, tax, and accounting obligations (typically 7 years for financial records)
- Resolve disputes and enforce our agreements
- Prevent fraud and ensure platform security
When you delete your account, we will delete or anonymize your personal information within 30 days, except where retention is required by law or for legitimate business purposes.
Your Rights and Choices
You have the following rights regarding your information:
- Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you
- Correction: Update or correct inaccurate information through your account settings
- Deletion: Request deletion of your account and personal information
- Data Portability: Request a copy of your data in a portable format
- Push Notification Controls: Manage or disable push notifications through your device settings at any time
- Camera/Photo Access: Revoke camera or photo library permissions through your device settings at any time
- Opt-Out: Unsubscribe from marketing communications
To exercise these rights, please contact us at support@pooled.money. We will respond to your request within 30 days.
Cookies and Tracking
We use cookies and similar technologies to:
- Maintain your session and keep you logged in
- Remember your preferences
- Analyze platform usage and performance
- Prevent fraud and enhance security
You can control cookies through your browser settings, but disabling cookies may affect platform functionality.
Children's Privacy
Pooled is not intended for users under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at support@pooled.money. If we discover that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will promptly delete that information from our systems.
Users between 13 and 18 years of age should review this Privacy Policy with a parent or guardian to ensure they understand it.
International Data Transfers
Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your country of residence. These countries may have different data protection laws. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your information in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
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
- Updating the "Last updated" date
- Sending you an email notification (for significant changes)
Your continued use of Pooled after any changes indicates your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.
Contact Us
If you have questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us:
- Email: support@pooled.money
- Contact Form: pooled.money/contact
We are committed to resolving any concerns you may have about our privacy practices.