SampleHound

Overview

SampleHound ("we," "our," or "us") operates a product sampling platform that connects consumers with free product samples at participating retail stores. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you use our services.

By using SampleHound, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.

Information We Collect

Information You Provide

Phone Number: Required to verify your identity and send you confirmation messages about your sample redemptions.
Name: Optional, used to personalize your experience.
Email Address: Optional, if you choose to provide it for account recovery or updates.

Information Collected Automatically

Redemption History: Records of samples you've claimed, including date, time, store location, and product selected.
Device Information: If you add a pass to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, we store a device token to send you pass updates.
Usage Data: Basic analytics about how you interact with our service to improve the user experience.

How We Use Your Information

To verify your identity and prevent fraud or abuse of promotions
To send you SMS confirmations when you redeem samples
To update your digital wallet passes with redemption status
To allow stores to fulfill your sample requests
To provide aggregated, anonymized analytics to brands about promotion performance
To improve our services and develop new features
To comply with legal obligations

Information Sharing

We do not sell your personal information.

We may share information with:

Participating Stores: Store staff can see your name and the samples you've selected so they can fulfill your order.
Brand Partners: Brands receive aggregated, anonymized data about promotion performance (e.g., "50 samples were redeemed at Store X"). They do not receive your personal contact information.
Service Providers: We use third-party services for SMS delivery (Twilio), hosting (Vercel), and database services (Supabase). These providers are contractually obligated to protect your data.
Legal Requirements: We may disclose information if required by law or to protect our rights and safety.

Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our services and fulfill the purposes described in this policy. Specifically:

Phone numbers and redemption history are retained for up to 2 years from your last activity
You can request deletion of your data at any time through our Privacy Center
Some anonymized, aggregated data may be retained indefinitely for analytics purposes

Your Rights

You have the following rights regarding your personal information:

Access: Request a copy of all personal data we have about you
Deletion: Request permanent deletion of your personal information
Opt-Out: Unsubscribe from promotional SMS messages at any time by replying STOP
Correction: Request correction of inaccurate information

To exercise these rights, visit our Privacy Center or contact us at privacy@samplehound.com.

California Privacy Rights (CCPA)

If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):

Right to know what personal information we collect and how it's used
Right to delete your personal information
Right to opt-out of the sale of personal information (we do not sell your data)
Right to non-discrimination for exercising your privacy rights

Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information, including encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS), secure database storage, and access controls. However, no method of transmission over the Internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Children's Privacy

SampleHound is not intended for children under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us immediately.

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 policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us:

Email: privacy@samplehound.com
Support: samplehound.com/support