Privacy Policy
Last updated: 10 August 2026
This policy explains what personal data Around ("we", "us") collects and how we use it. Around is a coordination app that lets you share your availability with people you choose and meet up. A gathering is called a "Hang". Around is currently available in the Netherlands only, for people aged 16 and older.
To delete your account and the data attached to it, see Section 1.
1. Delete your account
You can delete your Around account and the personal data attached to it at any time, however you installed the app.
In the app. Open Around, go to Profile, tap Account, then tap Delete account and confirm. This takes effect immediately.
Without the app. If you have already uninstalled Around, or cannot sign in, email support@around.now and tell us the phone number you signed up with. You do not need to reinstall the app. We confirm every request and complete it within 30 days, and usually within a few days.
What is deleted. Your name, profile photo and phone number, your availability, your Hangs and connections, the locations you picked for a Hang, and your push notification token. Messages you sent in a Hang chat are no longer attributed to you.
What we keep. A minimal record that the account existed, containing no profile information, so that blocks and reports made by other users stay effective and old data is not silently merged if you sign up again with the same number. Where the law requires us to retain something, for example to handle a safety report or a legal claim, we keep only what is necessary and no longer than required. Any remaining copies in backups disappear within 30 days. Phone numbers from your contacts are never stored, so there is nothing to delete there.
Deleting the app from your phone is not the same as deleting your account.
2. Who is responsible
The controller of your personal data is Dusty van Steekelenburg. For any privacy question, or to exercise the rights in Section 8, email support@around.now. We respond within one month.
3. What we collect, why, and our legal basis
| Data | Why we use it | Legal basis (GDPR Art. 6) |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile phone number | Sign you in and secure your account | Performance of contract |
| Your name and profile photo | Show who you are to your friends | Performance of contract |
| Location (your device's location, and the location you pick for a Hang) | Match on time and distance, and show Hangs on a map | Consent, via your device's location permission |
| Phone numbers from your contacts | Check which of your contacts already use Around (see Section 4) | Consent, via your device's contacts permission |
| Your availability, Hangs, connections, messages, and details you enter (such as a postal code at signup) | Run the core features of the App | Performance of contract |
| Push notification token | Send you notifications | Consent, via your device's notifications permission |
| App usage and crash data | Keep the App working and improve it | Our legitimate interest in a working App |
| Reports and blocks | Keep the community safe | Our legitimate interest in a safe service |
We do not sell your data, and we do not collect special categories of data (such as health or ethnicity).
4. Data about your contacts
When you choose to find friends, your device sends the phone numbers from your address book to our servers to check which of them already use Around. We do not store those numbers, and we never contact anyone on your behalf. Your contacts' names never leave your device. You can use Around without granting contacts access.
5. Who we share data with
We share data only with the service providers that help us run Around, and only as needed. These include our hosting and database provider, the SMS provider that sends your login code, the push-notification services that deliver notifications, our crash-reporting provider (hosted in the EU), our map providers, and the provider that hosts our public share and invite pages.
Some providers are outside the European Economic Area, mainly in the United States. Those transfers are covered by the EU Standard Contractual Clauses.
6. Public content
Profile photos, Hang share links, and invite links can be viewed by anyone who has the link, without signing in. A Hang share page can show the Hang's location and the participants' names and photos. Only share these links with people you trust.
7. How long we keep your data
We keep your data for as long as your account exists. When you delete your account, your personal data is removed as described in Section 1. Phone numbers used to find contacts are not stored.
8. Your rights
You have the right to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to the use of your data, to receive a copy of it, and to withdraw consent at any time (for location, contacts, or notifications, use your device settings). To exercise any of these, email support@around.now. To delete your account and data, see Section 1.
You can also lodge a complaint with the Dutch data protection authority, the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens (autoriteitpersoonsgegevens.nl).
9. Changes
We may update this policy. When we make a material change, we update the date above. Your continued use of Around means you accept the updated policy.
Contact: support@around.now