BarkMatch Privacy Policy -- Adopters

Effective date: July 23, 2026

Last updated: July 23, 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how BarkMatch ("we," "us," "BarkMatch") collects, uses, shares, and protects your information as an Adopter using our website and matching platform (the "Service").

1. What we collect

When you create an account, we collect your first name, email, and phone number, which we store separately from your questionnaire answers and do not share directly with Rescues. We also collect your zip code, used to determine your state for location-based matching.

You then complete a detailed questionnaire (154 questions) covering household composition, home and yard setup, daily routine, activity level, and prior pet experience, among other matching-relevant topics. Some questions go beyond what a typical adoption form asks -- for example, household stability and emergency planning, military status, and candid questions about behavioral tolerance. These are collected solely to improve match quality between you and Rescues, are shown only to Rescues for the purpose of evaluating a potential match, and are never used for any other purpose.

If you sign up using an invite or referral link from a specific Rescue, that Rescue receives temporary priority visibility into your profile (currently a period of about two weeks) before your profile becomes visible to all approved Rescues.

We do not intentionally collect, and ask that you not submit, information about race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, immigration status, or criminal history through this form.

2. How we use this information

• To match your profile with Rescues searching for a fit
• To notify you when a Rescue reaches out about a specific dog
• To investigate reports of concerning conduct by a Rescue
• To maintain the security and integrity of the Service

3. How this information is shared

Approved Rescues can search and filter Adopter profiles, including questionnaire answers and first name, but never your email or phone number. When a Rescue uses "Suggest a Dog" to reach out to you, we send you an email containing what the Rescue submitted (a dog listing link and/or message) along with the Rescue's own contact information, so you can choose whether to reach out directly. Your own contact information is never disclosed to the Rescue through this process.

You may optionally respond to that email as "interested" or "not interested," including an optional reason. This feedback is visible only to the Rescue that sent the suggestion and to BarkMatch administrators -- it is not shared with any other Rescue.

You can see, on your own account, which Rescues have reached out to you and when (Rescue name and date only).

We do not sell your personal information to third parties for advertising or marketing purposes.

We do not share your information with any party outside of the purposes described above, except: (a) as required by law, (b) to protect the safety of any person, or (c) with the service providers listed in Section 8 below, under obligations to protect that information.

4. Your choices and rights

• You can edit or permanently delete your profile at any time from your account.
• You can temporarily pause your profile (hidden from all Rescues without deleting it).
• You may contact us at barkmatch@outlook.com with questions about your data.
• Depending on your state of residence, you may have additional rights under applicable state privacy law (see Section 7).

5. Data retention

Your profile is retained until you delete it or request deletion by contacting us. A paused profile remains paused indefinitely until you resume, edit, or delete it yourself.

6. Security

We use reasonable administrative and technical safeguards to protect your information, including keeping your identity/contact information separate from your questionnaire data and restricting what Rescues can see. No method of storage or transmission is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. State-specific privacy rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights under laws such as the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) or similar state privacy laws, including the right to know what information is collected, the right to request deletion, and the right to non-discrimination for exercising these rights.

8. Service providers

We use the following third-party service providers, each of which processes certain information as described:

• Supabase -- database, account authentication (including "Continue with Google"), and backend hosting for account data.
• Vercel -- hosts and serves the website.
• Resend -- sends transactional emails described in this policy (account confirmation, password reset, Suggest a Dog notifications).
• Google -- provides the optional "Continue with Google" sign-in method.

9. Cookies and tracking

We do not currently use analytics, advertising, or tracking cookies/scripts on the Service.

10. Children's privacy

The Service is intended for users 18 and older. At signup, users confirm they meet this requirement. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be reflected by an updated "Last updated" date above.

12. Contact us

Questions about this policy can be sent to barkmatch@outlook.com.