1. Who we are
FarmFlow is an agricultural marketplace app for the Caribbean, operated by Civil Digital ("we", "us"). We are the data controller for personal data processed through FarmFlow. You can reach us at info@civildigital.co.uk.
2. What we collect
| Data | When | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Name, email address, and sign-in identifier (email or a third-party sign-in provider) | When you create an account | To create and secure your account |
| Profile town (island and town name) | When you set your profile location | To show you nearby listings and show buyers roughly where sellers are |
| Approximate device location (coarse, one-time) | Only if you grant location permission | To suggest your nearest town from an area-level estimate, not precise GPS tracking. We do not store your coordinates or track your movements — only the town you confirm is saved |
| Listings, photos, and messages | When you list items or chat with other users | To operate the marketplace and keep it safe. Section 3 explains how photos are processed and how long they are kept |
| Marketing consent records | If you opt in to marketing emails | To prove your consent, including the wording you agreed to and when |
| Purchase records (donations) | If you make an optional donation through our app store's billing system | To confirm and record your purchase. We never see your card details |
| Verification documents | If you apply to the Verified Seller Programme | To confirm your identity and regulatory compliance for restricted categories |
| Push notification token | Automatically, if you allow notifications | To send you alerts about your listings, messages, and account. You can turn notifications off in your device settings at any time |
| Usage analytics (screens viewed, listing views, button taps) | Automatically | To understand how features are used and improve the app, using third-party analytics tools |
| Device and diagnostic data | Automatically | To fix crashes, prevent abuse, and keep the service reliable |
3. Photos and images
What we store. When you add a profile photo or a photo to a listing, the image is stored with our cloud storage provider on our behalf. We store only a processed version of your photo — not the original file from your device.
Photos are compressed and a preview is generated automatically. Before upload, your photo is resized and re-encoded on your own device so a smaller file is sent than your camera produced. We also generate a small preview image, used in search results, listing cards and seller pages; the full-size photo is only downloaded when you open a listing itself. No separate action is needed from you for this.
Unnecessary image metadata is removed. Photo files often carry hidden information such as the date and time, device details, and — where recorded — the GPS coordinates of where a picture was taken. Because we re-encode your photo, none of that information is carried into the file we store; only the picture itself, correctly oriented, is kept.
Why we process images this way. Compression and thumbnails make FarmFlow faster to use and reduce the mobile data and storage the app uses. Removing metadata means hidden details in your photos are not published alongside your listing.
Deletion. Deleting one of your listings permanently deletes its photo and thumbnail straight away. If a listing expires and is not renewed, we keep its images for up to 90 days so you can renew the listing, after which they are permanently deleted, along with any other images no longer attached to a listing or account. Uploading a new profile photo permanently replaces the previous one — we do not keep a history of past photos.
Photos from social sign-in. If you sign in with a third-party account and we show your profile picture from that account, that image is served by the provider and is not copied into our storage. It is governed by that provider's own privacy policy. Removing it is done through your account with that provider, or by uploading your own photo to FarmFlow instead.
4. Advertising
FarmFlow shows advertising provided by a third-party advertising network. When ads are shown, our advertising provider may process your device's advertising ID to serve and measure ads. You can reset or delete your advertising ID in your device settings.
If you are in the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA), we ask for your consent before showing personalised ads, using a consent management prompt. You can change or withdraw your choice at any time from the app's Settings → Manage ad consent option, which re-opens the same consent form.
5. Marketing emails
We only send marketing emails to people who have opted in. Marketing is never on by default — you choose to receive it. If you opt in, you can withdraw your consent and unsubscribe at any time, either from the link in any marketing email or by emailing info@civildigital.co.uk. Transactional messages that are part of the service (for example, a listing being approved) are not marketing and are always sent while your account is active.
6. What we never do
- We do not sell your personal data.
- We do not track your precise or continuous location.
- We do not read your messages except where required for moderation of reported content or by law.
- We do not send marketing emails without your opt-in consent.
7. Payments
Buyer–seller transactions take place directly between users, outside the app; we do not process or hold those payments. Optional donations are processed through our app store's billing system. Fees for boosts and the Verified Seller Programme are arranged directly with us and processed by a third-party payment processor, governed by that processor's own privacy policy.
8. Who we share data with
- Service providers — our trusted cloud hosting and infrastructure providers (covering account sign-in, backend and hosting, analytics, push notifications, in-app purchases, and advertising), our payment processor, and our email delivery provider, each processing data only on our instructions.
- Other users — your display name, profile town, and listings are visible to other users; your email address is not.
- Messaging apps — FarmFlow includes contact buttons that open a messaging or SMS app on your device to connect buyers and sellers directly. Using one passes the relevant contact number to that app; anything you then send is handled under that app's own privacy policy or terms, not this one.
- Authorities — where required by law or to protect users from serious harm.
9. How long we keep data
We keep your data while your account is active. When you delete your account, personal data is deleted or anonymised promptly, except records we must keep longer for legal, security, or accounting reasons (for example, purchase ledgers and consent logs). Details of what is removed are on our Account & Data Deletion page. Photos and images have their own retention rules, set out in section 3 above.
10. Your rights
Under the Data Protection Act, 2020 (Jamaica) and the Data Protection Act, Chap. 22:04 (Trinidad & Tobago), you have rights to access, correct, and delete your personal data, and to withdraw consent (such as marketing consent) at any time. To exercise any right, email info@civildigital.co.uk. You may also complain to your local data protection authority: the Office of the Information Commissioner (Jamaica) or the Office of the Information Commissioner (Trinidad & Tobago).
11. Children
FarmFlow is for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 18; if we learn we have, we will delete it.
12. Changes to this policy
If we change this policy materially, we'll notify you in the app before the change takes effect. Each version is dated and numbered at the top of this page.