Privacy Policy
How BrowseBuddy handles your data
Last updated: July 6, 2026
Introduction
BrowseBuddy (“we”, “our”, or “us”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have regarding your personal data when you use the BrowseBuddy app.
By creating an account or using BrowseBuddy, you acknowledge that your information will be handled as described in this Privacy Policy.
Information We Collect
Account Information
When you create an account, we collect:
- Your email address
- A securely hashed password (managed through our platform)
Your email address is used to create and manage your account, authenticate you, and communicate important information about your account when necessary.
Device Information
We collect your device’s language or locale settings so that BrowseBuddy can automatically display the app in your preferred language.
Photos
When you use the plant identification feature, the photo you take or select is temporarily uploaded to enable identification. The photo is then securely transmitted to Pl@ntNet for analysis.
BrowseBuddy does not use your photos for advertising or any purpose unrelated to providing the identification service.
How We Use Your Information
We use your information to:
- Create and manage your account.
- Authenticate your access to the app.
- Provide plant identification services.
- Display the app in your preferred language.
- Improve the reliability, security, and performance of BrowseBuddy.
- Respond to customer support requests.
We do not sell or rent your personal information. We do not share your personal information for advertising purposes.
Legal Basis for Processing
If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), we process your personal data under the following legal bases:
- Performance of a contract – to create and manage your account, authenticate your access, and provide the services you request, including plant identification.
- Legitimate interests – to maintain the security, reliability, and performance of BrowseBuddy, and to improve the quality of our services.
- Legal obligations – where we are required to process or retain certain information to comply with applicable laws.
Third-Party Services
BrowseBuddy uses trusted third-party service providers to operate the app, including:
- Bubble – application hosting, database, account management, and infrastructure.
- Pl@ntNet – plant identification services.
- Apple App Store and Google Play – subscription and payment processing, where applicable.
These providers may process your information only as necessary to provide their services and in accordance with their own privacy policies.
Data Retention
We retain your account information for as long as your account remains active.
Photos uploaded for plant identification are stored only temporarily while the identification process is completed. Once processing has finished, the photos are deleted from our servers.
If you request that your personal data be deleted, we will delete or anonymize your information unless we are required by law to retain certain data.
To request deletion of your account or personal data, please contact us at info@browsebuddy.org.
International Data Transfers
Some of the third-party services we use may process personal information outside the European Economic Area (EEA). Where this occurs, those providers are responsible for ensuring appropriate safeguards are in place in accordance with applicable data protection laws.
Data Security
We take reasonable technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, loss, misuse, or disclosure.
Although no online service can guarantee absolute security, we continuously work to keep your information secure.
Your Rights
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:
- Access your personal data.
- Correct inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
- Request deletion of your personal data.
- Restrict or object to certain processing of your data.
- Request a copy of your personal data where applicable.
- Withdraw your consent where processing is based on consent.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@browsebuddy.org.
If you believe your personal data has been processed unlawfully, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority. If you are located in the Netherlands, you may contact the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens).
Children’s Privacy
BrowseBuddy is intended for users who are 13 years of age or older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under the age of 13. If you believe that a child has provided personal information through the app, please contact us so we can remove the information.
Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes to our services or legal requirements. When we do, we will update the “Last updated” date at the top of this Privacy Policy. Your continued use of BrowseBuddy after any changes become effective constitutes your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.
Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information, please contact us:
BrowseBuddy
The Netherlands
Email: info@browsebuddy.org