Legal
Privacy Policy
How we handle your data, in plain English and in the detail the law requires. Last updated 20 March 2026.
For the shorter, friendlier version, see our privacy overview.
1. Who we are
What this means
Lovetick is made by EKO8 Ltd, a company registered in England. If you have questions about your data, you can email us at privacy@lovetick.com and a real person will reply.
Data controller: EKO8 Ltd, trading as Lovetick
Company number: Registration pending
Registered address: Registration pending
ICO registration number: [To be added on registration]
Contact email: privacy@lovetick.com
Supervisory authority: Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AF. ico.org.uk
This policy applies to the Lovetick mobile application (iOS and Android), the website at lovetick.com, and any related services we operate. When we say "Lovetick," "we," "us," or "our," we mean EKO8 Ltd. When we say "you" or "your," we mean you, the person using Lovetick.
2. What we collect
What this means
We collect what we need to verify you are real, match you with someone you will enjoy talking to, keep you safe, and run the service. We do not collect your contact list, your browsing history, your precise GPS location, or any advertising identifiers. Here is everything, broken down by category.
2.1 Account data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Phone number | Account creation and verification via SMS one-time code | Yes |
| Display name (first name) | Shown to your matches so they know what to call you | Yes |
| Date of birth | Age verification (you must be 18+) and age-range matching | Yes |
| Gender | Matching preferences | Yes |
| Gender preference | Determines who you are matched with | Yes |
| City | Converted to approximate coordinates for geographic matching. We do not use GPS or device location services. | Yes |
| Email address | Waitlist communication only (not required for in-app accounts) | No |
2.2 Profile data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Profile photos (up to 6) | Displayed to matches after the initial text-first period | Yes (at least 1) |
| Verification selfie | Compared against your profile photo to confirm your identity. Deleted immediately after comparison. | Yes |
| Personality portrait | Generated from your onboarding conversation. Captures communication style, values, humour type, emotional depth, and attachment signals. Used for matching. | Yes (generated automatically from the onboarding conversation) |
| Onboarding conversation transcript | The AI conversation that builds your personality portrait. Deleted within 30 days of personality extraction. | Yes (temporary) |
2.3 Conversation data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Text messages between matches | Displayed in your conversations. Subject to automated safety scanning. | Yes (core functionality) |
| Voice notes | Optional audio messages within conversations. Stored in our infrastructure. | No |
| Conversation feedback and reflections | Your feedback after conversations end. Used to improve future matching. | No |
2.4 Matching data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Compatibility scores | AI-generated scores predicting conversational chemistry between you and potential matches | Generated automatically |
| Connection notes | A short explanation of why the AI thinks you and your match will enjoy talking. Visible to both users. | Generated automatically |
| Match history | Record of who you were matched with and the outcome, used to improve future matches | Generated automatically |
2.5 Date data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Date cards (venue, time, notes) | Coordinate meeting details between matched users. Stored in our database. | Only if you plan a date through the app |
| During-date check-ins | Optional safety check-ins during a date. Response stored temporarily. | No (opt-in) |
| Post-date check-in | Your reflection on how the date went. Fed back into the matching engine to improve future matches. | No (opt-in, but strongly encouraged) |
| Voice notes (date context) | Optional voice reflections after a date | No |
2.6 Payment data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Stripe customer ID and subscription ID | Subscription management. We never see or store your card number, CVV, or billing address. Stripe handles all payment processing under their own privacy policy. | Only if you subscribe to a paid plan |
| Subscription tier and billing dates | Determining which features you have access to | Only if you subscribe |
2.7 Technical data
| Data | Purpose | Required? |
|---|---|---|
| Push notification token (Expo) | Delivering push notifications to your device. Includes device platform (iOS/Android). | No (you can decline notifications) |
| Anonymised analytics events (PostHog) | Understanding how the app is used in aggregate. Events use opaque UUIDs, no names, emails, or phone numbers. Hosted in the EU. | Automatic |
| Crash reports and performance traces (Sentry) | Keeping the app stable. Contains stack traces and error metadata only. Personal data sending is explicitly disabled. | Automatic |
| Activity windows (peak hours) | Timing match delivery for when you are most likely to engage | Automatic |
2.8 What we do not collect
Your contact list or address book
Precise GPS location (we use city-level only, entered by you)
IDFA, GAID, or any advertising identifiers
Browsing history
Search history (Lovetick has no search feature)
Health or fitness data
Government ID images (deleted immediately after verification)
3. Why we collect it (lawful bases)
What this means
Under UK data protection law, we need a legal reason for everything we do with your data. Here are the reasons we rely on, and which data each one covers. We never process your data without a lawful basis.
| Lawful basis | What it covers | Your control |
|---|---|---|
| Contract (Article 6(1)(b)) | Account creation, matching, messaging, subscription management. These are the core features you signed up for. | You can close your account at any time. Withdrawing from the contract means we can no longer provide the service. |
| Explicit consent (Article 9(2)(a)) | Processing of gender preference and relationship preferences, which may reveal sexual orientation. This is special category data under GDPR and requires your explicit, separate consent. | You give this consent during onboarding. You can withdraw it at any time, though this means we cannot match you (since matching requires understanding your preferences). |
| Explicit consent (Article 22(2)(c)) | AI-based automated matching decisions. You consent to AI predicting your compatibility with other users. | You can request human review of any matching decision. You can withdraw consent, though this means the core service cannot function. |
| Legitimate interest (Article 6(1)(f)) | Automated content moderation and safety scanning of messages. Analytics (PostHog) for product improvement. Error tracking (Sentry) for stability. | You can object to processing based on legitimate interest. For safety scanning, our assessment is that protecting all users from harassment and abuse outweighs the privacy impact, particularly because we apply strict data minimisation. |
| Legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c)) | Payment records retained for 7 years per UK tax law. Responding to law enforcement requests where legally required. | We cannot delete data we are legally required to retain. |
4. How AI processes your data
What this means
Lovetick is an AI-powered dating app. AI is central to how we work, not an add-on. We use Anthropic's Claude API to power onboarding, personality analysis, matching, and content moderation. Your data is never used to train AI models. Here is exactly how it works.
4.1 What AI does
| AI function | What data is sent | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Onboarding conversation | Your responses during the initial conversation (pseudonymised, with direct identifiers stripped) | AI analyses your communication style, values, and personality signals to build your portrait. The transcript is deleted within 30 days. |
| Personality portrait generation | Structured signals extracted from onboarding (not raw text) | AI generates a multi-dimensional personality profile used for matching. Stored in our database. |
| Matching and compatibility | Anonymised personality vectors from two users (no names, no photos, no contact details) | AI predicts conversational chemistry and generates a compatibility score and connection note. |
| Conversation starters | Anonymised compatibility data for a match pair | AI suggests opening topics based on shared interests or complementary traits. |
| Content moderation | Message text (without sender identity metadata where possible) | AI flags messages that may contain harassment, threats, explicit content, or scams. Flagged content may be reviewed by a human moderator. |
4.2 Our AI provider
We use Anthropic's Claude API (Anthropic, PBC, San Francisco, USA). Anthropic is our data processor for AI operations.
Key facts about Anthropic's data handling:
Anthropic does not train its models on API data. This is a contractual commitment, not just a policy.
API data is retained by Anthropic for up to 30 days solely for abuse detection, then automatically deleted.
Anthropic operates under a Data Processing Agreement (DPA) with Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) including the UK Addendum, providing the legal basis for data transfers.
Anthropic does not sell, share, or combine your data with any other customer's data.
If content is flagged by Anthropic's safety classifiers, it may be retained for up to 2 years for trust and safety purposes.
4.3 Data minimisation for AI
Before any data is sent to the AI, we apply a preprocessing layer that:
Strips direct identifiers (real names replaced with internal IDs, phone numbers and emails removed entirely)
Uses city-level location only, never precise coordinates
Sends age rather than full date of birth
Extracts structured signals from free text locally before sending to the API
Never sends photos to the AI (all AI processing is text-based)
4.4 Why messages are not end-to-end encrypted
Messages between matches are encrypted in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest (AES-256). However, they are not end-to-end encrypted. This is a deliberate choice: our automated safety scanning requires server-side access to message content in order to detect harassment, threats, and policy violations. We chose user safety over encryption purity, and we would rather be honest about that trade-off than pretend it does not exist.
5. Who we share data with
What this means
We do not sell your data. We do not share it with advertisers. We share it only with the service providers we need to run Lovetick, and only the minimum they need. Here is the complete list.
| Service | Provider | Data shared | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Database | Supabase (EU servers) | All account and app data | Primary data storage, encrypted at rest |
| AI processing | Anthropic (USA) | Pseudonymised conversation and personality data | Onboarding, matching, moderation. See Section 4. |
| SMS verification | Twilio | Phone number and one-time codes | Account verification via SMS |
| Payments | Stripe | Payment method and subscription data (we never see card details) | Subscription billing and management |
| Push notifications | Expo Push | Push token and notification content | Delivering notifications to your device |
| Analytics | PostHog (EU-hosted) | Anonymised usage events with opaque UUID, no PII | Understanding how the app is used in aggregate |
| Error tracking | Sentry | Crash reports, stack traces, performance data (no PII, sendDefaultPii explicitly disabled) | Keeping the app stable |
| Photo storage | AWS S3 | Profile photos and voice notes | Cloud storage for media files |
| Identity verification | Verification provider (e.g., Persona/Veriff) | Selfie and reference photo (transient, deleted after comparison) | Confirming you are a real person |
All of these providers act as data processors under Data Processing Agreements. None of them use your data for their own purposes.
That is the complete list. No advertising SDKs. No data brokers. No social media tracking pixels. No third-party analytics that tracks you across apps.
6. International transfers
What this means
Most of your data stays in the EU. The main exception is Anthropic, which processes AI data in the United States. This transfer is protected by Standard Contractual Clauses, the legal mechanism approved by UK and EU regulators for sending data to countries without an adequacy decision.
| Provider | Location | Transfer mechanism |
|---|---|---|
| Supabase (database) | EU (Frankfurt) | Data stays in the EU. No transfer required. |
| Anthropic (AI) | USA | Standard Contractual Clauses (Module 2: Controller to Processor) with UK Addendum, incorporated into the Data Processing Agreement. |
| Stripe (payments) | USA/EU | EU-US Data Privacy Framework, Standard Contractual Clauses. |
| Twilio (SMS) | USA | Standard Contractual Clauses. |
| PostHog (analytics) | EU (Frankfurt) | Data stays in the EU. No transfer required. |
| Sentry (errors) | USA | Standard Contractual Clauses. |
| AWS S3 (photos) | EU | Data stays in the EU. No transfer required. |
| Expo (push) | USA | Push tokens only. Minimal personal data. |
7. How long we keep your data
What this means
We keep your data only as long as we need it. When you delete your account, almost everything goes immediately. Here are the specific timelines.
| Data type | Retention period | What triggers deletion |
|---|---|---|
| Account data (name, phone, DOB, gender, preferences) | Active account + 30 days after deletion request | Account deletion |
| Profile photos | Active account + 30 days after deletion request | Account deletion |
| Verification selfie | Deleted immediately after identity comparison | Automatic |
| Onboarding conversation transcript | 30 days after personality portrait extraction | Automatic |
| Personality portrait | Active account + 30 days after deletion request | Account deletion |
| Messages between matches | 90 days after the match ends or conversation is closed | Automatic, or account deletion |
| Voice notes | 90 days after the match ends | Automatic, or account deletion |
| Date cards and check-ins | 90 days after the date | Automatic, or account deletion |
| Post-date feedback | Active account + 30 days after deletion request | Account deletion (anonymised aggregates may persist for matching improvement) |
| Compatibility scores and match history | Active account + 30 days after deletion request | Account deletion |
| Payment records (Stripe IDs, subscription tier) | 7 years from last transaction | UK tax law requirement (legal obligation) |
| Analytics events (PostHog) | 12 months | Automatic rotation. Cannot be linked to individual users. |
| Crash reports (Sentry) | 90 days | Automatic. Contains no PII. |
| Data held by Anthropic (API logs) | Up to 30 days (standard retention) | Automatic deletion by Anthropic. Up to 2 years if flagged for trust and safety. |
| Safety reports and moderation records | 3 years | Required for pattern detection and legal proceedings |
When you delete your account, the 30-day window exists to allow for account recovery if you change your mind. After 30 days, deletion is permanent and irreversible. No shadow profiles. No hidden retention.
8. Your rights
What this means
You have strong rights over your data under UK GDPR. Here they all are, with plain explanations of what each one means for you as a Lovetick user.
Right of access (Article 15)
You can request a copy of all personal data we hold about you. We will provide it in a commonly used, machine-readable format within 30 days.
Right to rectification (Article 16)
If any of your data is inaccurate or incomplete, you can ask us to correct it. You can also update most of your profile data directly in the app.
Right to erasure (Article 17)
You can request that we delete all your personal data. You can do this in the app (Settings > Delete Account) or by emailing us. Deletion covers all our systems, including instructing our processors to delete your data.
Right to data portability (Article 20)
You can request a portable copy of your data in a structured, commonly used format (JSON) so you can take it elsewhere.
Right to restrict processing (Article 18)
You can ask us to temporarily stop processing your data while a dispute is resolved.
Right to object (Article 21)
You can object to processing based on our legitimate interest (e.g., analytics, content moderation). We will stop unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds.
Right to withdraw consent
Where we rely on your consent (special category data processing, automated matching), you can withdraw it at any time. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing before you withdrew. If you withdraw consent for AI matching, we will not be able to provide the core service.
Right not to be subject to automated decisions (Article 22)
You have the right to request human review of any decision made solely by automated means that significantly affects you. See Section 9 for details.
Right to complain
If you are not happy with how we handle your data, you can complain to the ICO at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint. We would appreciate the chance to address your concerns first.
To exercise any right: Email privacy@lovetick.com with your request. We will verify your identity (typically by sending a code to your registered phone number) and respond within 30 days. If your request is complex, we may extend this by a further 60 days, but we will tell you within the first 30 days if that is the case. There is no fee for exercising your rights.
9. Automated decision-making
What this means
Our AI decides who you are matched with. This is an automated decision that significantly affects your experience. UK law gives you specific rights around this, and we take those rights seriously.
9.1 What decisions are automated
Which users are presented to you as matches (and which are not)
The compatibility score assigned to a potential match
The connection note explaining why you were paired
Content moderation decisions (flagging messages for safety review)
9.2 How the matching logic works
Our matching AI evaluates compatibility based on predicted conversational chemistry. It analyses multiple dimensions of your personality portrait, including communication style, values, humour, emotional depth, and life context, and compares these against other users' portraits. The goal is to find someone you will genuinely enjoy talking to, not someone who looks good on paper.
The AI does not make decisions based on race, religion, disability, or any protected characteristic beyond the gender preference you explicitly set.
9.3 Your rights regarding automated decisions
Under Article 22 of UK GDPR and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, you have the right to:
Request human review of any matching decision
Receive a meaningful explanation of how a match was determined (connection notes provide this by default)
Express your point of view and contest a decision
Withdraw consent for automated matching at any time (noting this means we cannot provide the core service)
To request human review of a matching decision, email privacy@lovetick.com or use the "Request review" option in the app.
9.4 Content moderation
Automated content moderation flags potentially harmful messages. Flagged content is reviewed by a human moderator before action is taken, except in cases of clear and severe violations (e.g., explicit threats) where immediate automated action may be taken to protect users. You can always appeal a moderation decision.
10. Children and young people
What this means
Lovetick is for adults only. You must be 18 or older to use it. We enforce this, not just ask.
Lovetick is strictly for users aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18.
We enforce the age requirement through:
Date of birth verification during account creation (you must be 18+)
Government ID verification for all users, which confirms age
Automated detection of potentially underage users based on profile content
If we discover that a user is under 18, we will immediately suspend the account and delete all associated personal data, including any data that may have been processed through third-party services.
If you believe a minor is using Lovetick, please report it immediately to safety@lovetick.com.
11. Payments and subscriptions
What this means
We use Stripe to handle payments. We never see your card number. You can cancel your subscription at any time in the app, and it runs until the end of the period you already paid for.
Lovetick offers a free tier and paid subscription plans. Payment processing is handled entirely by Stripe, Inc. We store only your Stripe customer ID and subscription ID in our database. We never receive, process, or store your card number, CVV, expiry date, or billing address.
Subscription terms:
Subscriptions renew automatically at the end of each billing period unless cancelled.
You can cancel at any time in the app (Settings > Subscription > Cancel). Your subscription remains active until the end of the current billing period.
We do not charge cancellation fees.
Refund requests are handled on a case-by-case basis. Contact support@lovetick.com.
Price changes will be communicated at least 30 days in advance, and you will have the option to cancel before the new price takes effect.
Stripe's own privacy policy governs how they handle your payment data: stripe.com/privacy.
12. Cookies and analytics
What this means
We use minimal analytics. PostHog (EU-hosted) tracks anonymised usage events. No advertising cookies. No tracking pixels. No cross-app tracking. You will not see a cookie consent banner on our website because we do not use cookies that require consent.
12.1 Website (lovetick.com)
Our website uses PostHog for analytics. PostHog is hosted in the EU (Frankfurt) and collects anonymised usage data. It may set a first-party cookie to distinguish unique visitors, but this cookie contains no personal information and is not used for cross-site tracking.
We do not use:
Google Analytics or any Google tracking
Facebook Pixel or any social media tracking
Advertising cookies of any kind
Third-party cookies
Fingerprinting techniques
12.2 Mobile app
The mobile app does not use cookies. Analytics events sent to PostHog use an opaque UUID (not linked to your name, email, or phone number) and contain only non-PII event properties such as event type, duration, and content type. We do not collect IDFA (Apple), GAID (Google), or any advertising identifiers. We do not request App Tracking Transparency permission because we do not track.
13. Security
What this means
We take security seriously. Here is how we protect your data at every level.
All data encrypted in transit using TLS 1.2 or higher
All data encrypted at rest using AES-256
Role-based access controls (RBAC) with multi-factor authentication for all internal access
Automated safety scanning with human review for edge cases
Regular security audits and code reviews
Strict data minimisation: we collect only what we need and delete it when we no longer need it
Pseudonymisation of personal data before it is sent to third-party processors
Government ID documents are compared and immediately deleted, never stored
In the event of a personal data breach that poses a risk to your rights, we will notify the ICO within 72 hours as required by Article 33 of UK GDPR. If the breach poses a high risk to you personally, we will also notify you directly without undue delay.
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this privacy policy from time to time. When we do:
We will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page.
For material changes (new data collection, new processors, changes to how AI uses your data), we will notify you via push notification or email at least 14 days before the change takes effect.
For minor changes (clarifications, formatting, correcting typos), we may update without notification.
If a change requires renewed consent under GDPR, we will obtain it before processing under the new terms.
We encourage you to review this policy periodically. Your continued use of Lovetick after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated policy, except where renewed consent is required.
15. Contact us
What this means
If you have a question about your data, want to exercise a right, or just want to understand something in this policy better, email us. A real person will read it and reply.
Privacy enquiries: privacy@lovetick.com
Safety concerns: safety@lovetick.com
General support: support@lovetick.com
Supervisory authority: Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint
This privacy policy was last updated on 20 March 2026. It applies to version 1.0 of the Lovetick application and the lovetick.com website.
Data controller: EKO8 Ltd, trading as Lovetick. ICO registration: [pending]. Company registration: [pending].
See also our Terms of Service.
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