Privacy Policy

Welcome to Niyyah Nikah. We are committed to helping single Muslims find a spouse in a manner that respects their privacy, modesty, and religious values. This Privacy Policy explains how Niyyah Nikah (“we”, “us”, “our”) collects, uses, shares, and protects your personal data when you use our website (niyyahnikah.com) and mobile applications (collectively, the “Service”).

This policy is designed to comply with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

1. Who We Are

For the purposes of data protection legislation, the data controller is Niyyah Nikah. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us at:

Email: support@niyyahnikah.com

2. Information We Collect

We collect information about you in three main ways: information you provide to us directly, information we collect automatically when you use our Service, and information from third parties.

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

When you register for an account, complete your profile, or communicate with us, we collect:

• Account Data: Your name, email address, hashed password, phone number, and date of birth.
• Profile Data: Your location, gender, profession, education, ethnicity, spoken languages, height, and a written biography.
• Special Category Data (Religious & Lifestyle): Given the nature of our Service as a Muslim matrimonial platform, we collect sensitive personal data concerning your religious beliefs and practices. This includes your sect, prayer frequency, religiosity level, adherence to Islamic dress (e.g., hijab/beard), dietary habits (halal diet), and marriage intentions. We only process this data with your explicit consent, which you provide when creating your profile.
• Guardian (Wali) Data: The name and email address of your Wali, should you choose to enable the Wali oversight feature. You confirm that you have obtained permission from your Wali before providing their details to us.
• User Content: Photos you upload, messages you send to other users, and any feedback or support requests you submit.
• Payment Data: If you purchase a premium subscription, payment details are collected and processed directly by our secure third-party payment processor (Stripe). We do not store your full credit card number or CVV.

2.2 Information We Collect Automatically

When you access our Service, we automatically collect certain technical and usage information:

• Usage Data: Information about how you interact with the Service, including profiles you view, likes, matches, timestamps of your messages, and your overall activity.
• Device and Technical Data: Your IP address, browser type, operating system, device identifiers, mobile network information, and crash logs.
• Location Data: We may collect your approximate location based on your IP address to suggest matches in your area.

3. How We Use Your Information and Lawful Bases

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a valid lawful basis to process your personal data. We use your information for the following purposes:

4. Photo Privacy and Control

Modesty and privacy are core to Niyyah Nikah. By default, any photos you upload remain blurred to all other users. Your photos will only be revealed to a specific user when:

1. You mutually match with them, or
2. You explicitly choose to reveal your photos to them.

You retain full control over your photo visibility and can revoke access or delete your photos at any time through your account settings.

4.1 Impersonation and non-consensual imagery

Protecting your image and identity is a priority for us. You may only upload photos of yourself, and you must not create a profile for, or impersonate, any other person. Uploading, sharing, or threatening to share intimate, sexual, or private images of any person without their explicit consent (including so-called “revenge” imagery), or sharing another person’s private information or images without their consent, is strictly prohibited.

To reduce the risk of misuse, profile photos are blurred by default and are only revealed on mutual consent (Section 4), and members must complete identity verification before they can message others. If you believe your image or identity is being used on the Service without your consent, please contact us immediately at support@niyyahnikah.com. We will investigate promptly, remove offending content, and suspend or permanently ban the responsible account, cooperating with law enforcement where appropriate.

5. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal data. We only share your information in the following limited circumstances:

• With Other Users: Your profile information (excluding your email address, password, and exact location) is visible to other users of the Service to facilitate matchmaking. Your photos are only visible subject to the privacy controls described in Section 4.
• With Your Wali: If you activate the Wali oversight feature, your designated Wali will have read-only access to your matches and messages.
• With Service Providers: We use trusted third-party vendors to help operate our Service, including Stripe (payment processing), cloud hosting providers (secure data storage and server infrastructure), analytics providers, and email service providers. These providers are bound by strict data processing agreements and are only permitted to use your data as instructed by us.
• For Legal Reasons: We may disclose your information if required to do so by law, court order, or governmental request, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of Niyyah Nikah, our users, or the public.
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your personal data may be transferred to the acquiring entity. We will notify you before your data is transferred and becomes subject to a different privacy policy.

6. International Data Transfers

Niyyah Nikah is based in the United Kingdom. However, some of our service providers may be located outside the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA). If we transfer your data outside the UK or EEA, we ensure it receives an equivalent level of protection by implementing at least one of the following safeguards:

• Transferring data only to countries deemed to provide an adequate level of protection by the UK government.
• Using specific contracts approved for use in the UK, such as the International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA) or the EU Standard Contractual Clauses with the UK Addendum, which give personal data the same protection it has in the UK.

7. Data Security

We implement robust technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, loss, destruction, or alteration. This includes encryption of data in transit and at rest, securely hashed passwords, and strict access controls for our staff. However, no internet transmission is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee the absolute security of your data. We encourage you to use a strong, unique password and to contact us immediately if you suspect any unauthorised access to your account.

8. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

• Active Accounts: We keep your data for as long as your account remains active.
• Account Deletion: If you choose to delete your account, your profile, photos, matches, and messages will be permanently deleted from our active databases within 30 days of your request.
• Banned Accounts: If your account is banned for violating our Terms of Service, we may retain basic account identifiers (such as your email address or device identifier) to prevent you from creating a new account and to maintain platform safety.

9. Identity Verification (optional)

Niyyah Nikah offers an optional identity verification feature to build trust and keep the platform safe. If you choose to verify, the check is performed by our third-party processor Stripe (via Stripe Identity). You will be asked to submit a government-issued identity document and a live selfie. This involves the processing of special-category (biometric) data for the sole purpose of confirming your identity and age.

• Explicit consent: We only process this data if you actively choose to start verification. It is entirely optional and you can use the core features of the Service without it.
• Data minimisation: Your identity document and biometric (selfie) data are collected and processed by Stripe on our behalf. We do not store your identity documents or biometric images. We only receive and store the outcome — a “verified” status, the date of verification, and your confirmed age.
• Purpose: Confirming that you are a real person aged 18 or over, awarding a “Verified” badge, and reducing fake or fraudulent accounts.
• Your control: You may withdraw consent and request deletion of your verification status at any time by contacting us.

Stripe processes this data as an independent controller/processor in accordance with its own privacy policy, available at https://stripe.com/privacy.

10. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

Under the UK GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of Access: You can request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to Rectification: You can ask us to correct any inaccurate or incomplete data. Most profile information can be updated directly within your account settings.
• Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten): You can request that we delete your personal data by deleting your account from the Settings menu, or by contacting us directly.
• Right to Restrict Processing: You can ask us to suspend the processing of your personal data in certain circumstances, for example if you want us to establish its accuracy.
• Right to Data Portability: You can request the transfer of your personal data to you or a third party in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.
• Right to Object: You can object to our processing of your personal data where we are relying on a legitimate interest as the lawful basis.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Where we rely on your explicit consent to process your special category (religious and lifestyle) data, you can withdraw that consent at any time. Please note that withdrawing consent for this data will require the deletion of your account, as this information is fundamental to the operation of our matchmaking service.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at support@niyyahnikah.com. We will respond to your request within one month. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

11. Complaints

If you have concerns about how we handle your personal data, please contact us in the first instance at support@niyyahnikah.com and we will do our best to resolve the matter.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at any time:

• Website: https://www.ico.org.uk
• Helpline: 0303 123 1113

12. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable law. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the updated policy on this page and updating the “Last updated” date at the top of this document. Where changes are significant, we will also notify you by email or through an in-app notification.