Your privacy on Vonk
1. Who we are
Vonk is run by . We are the controller of your personal data under the GDPR (AVG).
Questions, requests or complaints: .
2. What we collect and why
| Data | Why | Legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Email address, password (stored encrypted by Google Firebase) or your Google sign-in | Your account, signing in, password reset | Contract |
| Display name, profile photo (if you upload one), bio, status, pronouns, interests, cover and frame, avatar emoji, Plaza avatar look, country (if you choose one). Social media usernames you add are only shown to your friends. | Shown to the people you match with | Contract |
| Coins, boosts, purchases, items, XP, level, badges, countries you talked to, streak | Running the shop and your profile | Contract |
| Friends, sparks and messages to friends | The friends feature you choose to use | Contract |
| Reports: who reported whom, the reason, a note and up to 4 still frames of the reported person's camera | Keeping Vonk safe, handling reports and bans | Legitimate interest (safety of users) |
| Bans: reason and how long | Enforcing the rules | Legitimate interest |
| Payment details | Handled by Stripe. We only receive the amount, the date and whether you paid, never your card or bank details. | Contract, legal duty (bookkeeping) |
| Technical data: IP address, browser, connection details | Making video connections work, preventing abuse | Legitimate interest |
Your filters (gender, countries, vibe, interests) are only used to find a match and are not stored on our servers. Settings like your theme are stored in your own browser.
3. Video, voice and chat
Video and voice go directly from browser to browser (WebRTC). We don't record or store calls. Chat messages with strangers pass through our server to reach your match and are not stored. Messages to friends are stored so they can read them later.
Vonk Plaza. In the Plaza, other people in the same room see your avatar, your name and level, where you walk and what you say there. Plaza messages pass through our server and are not stored.
With a direct connection, your match's browser can technically see your IP address. If Vonk uses a relay (TURN) server, your IP is hidden from your match.
Recording. Streamers must say they're live, and you decide whether to join. Recording or streaming someone without permission breaks our rules.
4. How long we keep it
- Account data, progress, friends and messages: until you delete your account.
- Profile photo: until you remove it, upload a new one or delete your account.
- Still frames from reports: automatically deleted after 30 days.
- Reports and bans: as long as needed to keep Vonk safe, at most 2 years after the last report.
- Payment records: 7 years, because Dutch tax law requires it.
You can delete your account yourself in Settings → Account → Delete my account. This removes your profile, coins, items and friendships right away.
5. Who we share it with
Only with services that help us run Vonk, under data processing agreements:
- Google Firebase (accounts and database, servers in the EU where possible)
- Stripe (payments)
- Our hosting provider (runs the website)
- A TURN relay provider, if used
Some of these companies are based in the US. Transfers are protected by the EU–US Data Privacy Framework or standard contractual clauses. We never sell your data and don't use advertising trackers.
If we see material that may involve child sexual abuse, we report it to the EOKM or the police, as the law requires.
6. Your rights
You can ask us to see, correct, delete or export your data, to limit how we use it, or object to it. Email and we'll answer within a month. You can also file a complaint with the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens).
7. Age
Vonk is only for people aged 18 and over. If we learn that an account belongs to someone younger, we delete it.
8. Browser storage
Vonk stores your settings (theme, filters, vibe) and your sign-in session in your browser's local storage. These are needed for the site to work. We don't use tracking or advertising cookies.
9. Changes
If we change this policy in an important way, we'll tell you on the site before it takes effect.