Privacy Policy
Last updated: January 21, 2026
AlgarveOfficial ("we", "our", or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other applicable data protection laws. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal data when you use our website and services.
1. Data Controller
AlgarveOfficial is the data controller responsible for your personal data. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us at:
Email: info@algarveofficial.com
Address: Algarve, District of Faro, Portugal
2. Data We Collect
2.1 Information You Provide
- Account Data: Name, email address, and password when you create an account
- Profile Data: Optional information such as phone number, bio, and profile picture
- Communication Data: Messages you send through our platform to listing owners
- Listing Data: Information provided by business owners for their listings
2.2 Automatically Collected Data
Only with your explicit consent, we may collect:
- Analytics Data: Page views, session duration, and interaction patterns
- Technical Data: Browser type, device type, and anonymized IP address (last two octets masked)
- Session Identifiers: Anonymous session IDs for view deduplication
Important: We do not collect any analytics data without your explicit consent. You can manage your preferences through our cookie consent banner at any time.
3. Legal Basis for Processing
We process your personal data based on the following legal grounds:
- Consent: For analytics and marketing communications (you can withdraw at any time)
- Contract: To provide our services when you create an account or use our platform
- Legitimate Interest: For security, fraud prevention, and service improvement
- Legal Obligation: To comply with applicable laws and regulations
4. How We Use Your Data
- To provide and maintain our services
- To process your account registration and manage your profile
- To facilitate communication between users and listing owners
- To improve our website and user experience (with consent)
- To send service-related notifications
- To detect and prevent fraud and security threats
- To comply with legal obligations
5. Data Retention
We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary:
| Data Type | Retention Period |
|---|---|
| Account Data | Until account deletion + 30 days |
| Analytics Events | 90 days (automatically purged) |
| View Tracking Data | 90 days (automatically purged) |
| Messages | Until conversation deletion |
| Security Audit Logs | 1 year (for security purposes) |
6. Your Rights Under GDPR
As a data subject, you have the following rights:
Right of Access
Request a copy of your personal data we hold
Right to Rectification
Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
Right to Erasure
Request deletion of your personal data ("right to be forgotten")
Right to Restrict Processing
Request limitation of how we use your data
Right to Data Portability
Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
Right to Object
Object to processing based on legitimate interests
Right to Withdraw Consent
Withdraw your consent at any time for consent-based processing (e.g., analytics)
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@algarveofficial.com
7. Data Security
We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your data:
- Encryption of data in transit (TLS/SSL) and at rest
- Row-Level Security (RLS) policies ensuring users can only access their own data
- Automatic IP address anonymization at the database level
- Regular security audits and access logging
- Strict access controls for administrative functions
8. Cookies and Tracking
We use the following types of cookies:
| Type | Purpose | Consent Required |
|---|---|---|
| Essential | Authentication, security, language preferences | No |
| Analytics | Page views, session tracking, usage patterns | Yes |
You can manage your cookie preferences at any time through the cookie consent banner or by clearing your browser's local storage.
9. Third-Party Services
We use the following third-party services that may process your data:
- Supabase: Database and authentication services (EU-based infrastructure available)
- Google: Optional OAuth authentication (if you choose to sign in with Google)
All third-party processors are bound by data processing agreements ensuring GDPR compliance.
10. International Data Transfers
Your data may be transferred to and processed in countries outside the European Economic Area (EEA). When this occurs, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as:
- Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission
- Adequacy decisions for countries with equivalent data protection
- Binding corporate rules for group companies
11. Contact Us
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, wish to exercise your rights, or have a complaint, please contact us:
Email: info@algarveofficial.com
Response Time: Within 30 days as required by GDPR
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority. In Portugal, this is the Comissão Nacional de Proteção de Dados (CNPD).
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any material changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically.