Privacy Policy

Last Updated: October 2026 • Compliant with Data Privacy Act of 2012 (RA 10173)

1. Our Zero-PII Privacy Commitment

NearMatch operates on a strict Privacy-by-Design architecture. We believe peer community communication should not require surrendering personal data. We do not collect, process, or store personally identifiable information (PII) such as your real name, email address, physical residence, or telephone number.

2. What Information We Process

We process only the absolute minimum technical data required to deliver peer matchmaking and maintain platform safety:

Pseudonymous Username: The public display name you choose during registration.
Selected Camp Zone: Your chosen camp tag (e.g. Main Camp, Labo Camp) used solely to route peer discovery in "Same Camp" or "Any Camp" mode.
Salted Cryptographic Passcode: Your 6-digit numeric passcode is immediately hashed using an irreversible SHA-256 algorithm with a unique cryptographic salt. We cannot read or reverse your passcode.
Temporary Chat Transcripts: Ephemeral message streams to support the continuous NearGroup timeline for active participants.

3. How We Protect Your Identity (Mutual Reveal)

Profile avatars default to a heavily blurred filter generated on the server using Jimp image processing. Your avatar image is never delivered in unblurred resolution to other participants until both users explicitly trigger the mutual "Reveal Profile" button.

4. Cookies & Web Advertising (Google AdSense)

NearMatch may partner with Google AdSense and third-party advertising partners to display non-intrusive advertisements on public pages:

Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on prior visits to this website or other websites.
Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your visit to our sites and/or other sites on the Internet.
Users may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings or through aboutads.info.

5. Your Rights Under Philippine Data Privacy Act (RA 10173)

Under the Data Privacy Act of 2012, individuals possess the right to be informed, access, correct, and delete personal data. Because NearMatch stores zero personally identifying information, your account handle and associated data can be purged upon request by submitting an account deletion notice to our support desk.

6. Contact Us

For questions or data privacy inquiries, please contact our Data Protection Officer at privacy@nearfriend.me.