Privacy Policy

Depending on how you use LodgeNest, we may collect your name, email address, phone number, password credentials handled through our authentication provider, student ID number, university, campus, gender, academic level, account role, and onboarding information. Managers may also provide hostel and property information such as the hostel name, address, city, region, phone number, hostel type, university and campus, room and bed information, facilities, policies, and property photos.

When a student applies for accommodation, we may process information such as the selected hostel and room type, application type, group size, application status, student information, accommodation assignment, reservation information, check-in and check-out information, and related timestamps. For group applications, we may also process the information required to identify invited group members and track their responses.

Student ID numbers, university information, and campus information may be used to support account onboarding, student identification, university and campus matching, hostel discovery, and accommodation applications. Where a student uses the student ID lookup feature for a group application, the system may return limited information needed to identify the matching student, such as the student's name and student ID number.

LodgeNest does not collect or continuously track your device's live location. We use stored latitude and longitude coordinates for universities, campuses, and hostels to estimate the distance between a selected campus and hostel and provide an approximate walking-time estimate. These estimates are informational and are not generated from live GPS tracking or live navigation data.

Managers may upload hostel and property photos and other listing information. Property photos are stored and delivered using Cloudinary. Because published property images may be delivered through public CDN URLs, anyone who has access to a direct image URL may be able to view that image.

We use personal information to create and manage accounts, authenticate users, provide student and manager features, support university and campus matching, publish and manage hostel listings, process applications and reservations, manage rooms and beds, support group applications, provide accommodation information, send in-app service notifications, respond to support requests, maintain security, prevent misuse, troubleshoot problems, and improve the reliability of LodgeNest.

LodgeNest uses Supabase Auth to provide account authentication and password management. Users may sign up and sign in using supported email and password authentication, and Google sign-in may be available where enabled. Password recovery allows users to verify their account and update their password. We do not receive or store your Google account password.

We do not sell personal information. Information may be processed by service providers that help us operate LodgeNest, including Supabase for authentication, database and application infrastructure; Google for supported Google authentication; Cloudinary for hostel property images; and Expo/EAS for application build and deployment infrastructure. We may also disclose information where reasonably necessary to provide the service, comply with law, protect users or the service, investigate misuse, or respond to valid legal requests.

Some information must be visible to other LodgeNest users to make the service work. Published hostel information can be viewed by students using the marketplace. Managers may receive information about students who apply to or are assigned to their hostel where that information is necessary to manage applications and accommodation. Students may receive accommodation information relating to their own reservations and group applications.

LodgeNest may provide in-app notifications about applications, reservations, accommodation assignments, announcements, and other service activity. Supabase Auth may also send account-related emails such as email verification and password recovery messages. LodgeNest does not currently operate a separate marketing newsletter or advertising email program.

We retain personal information for as long as reasonably necessary to operate LodgeNest, maintain account and accommodation records, provide security, resolve disputes, comply with legal obligations, and protect our rights. We do not promise a fixed deletion period for every category of information. Certain application, reservation, accommodation, security, and transaction-related records may need to be retained after an account is no longer active.

You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of personal information associated with your account. Some information may need to be retained where required for legal, security, fraud-prevention, dispute-resolution, or legitimate operational purposes. Self-service account deletion is being implemented separately from this website's legal information, so the availability of an in-app deletion control may depend on the current LodgeNest release.

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures designed to protect information, including authenticated access controls, database row-level security, role-based restrictions, encrypted network connections, and secure authentication infrastructure. No internet-connected service can guarantee absolute security, so please use a strong password and keep your account credentials private.

LodgeNest does not currently use live device location tracking, continuous GPS monitoring, Google Maps or live routing services, payment processors within the LodgeNest application, advertising trackers, or a dedicated third-party analytics and crash-reporting SDK. The service therefore does not collect these categories merely because you use the application.

LodgeNest depends on third-party infrastructure and services to operate. These providers may process information according to their own privacy policies and contractual arrangements with us. LodgeNest does not control how an independent third party operates its own services, so users should review the applicable third-party privacy information where appropriate.

Some service providers used by LodgeNest may process or store information outside Ghana. Where this occurs, we take reasonable steps to use appropriate service providers and safeguards for the processing of personal information.

Please provide accurate information, keep your login credentials confidential, and avoid submitting another person's personal information unless you are authorized to do so. If information in your LodgeNest account changes, you should update it where the service allows you to do so.

Depending on applicable law, you may have rights concerning access to, correction of, deletion of, or objection to certain processing of your personal information. LodgeNest will consider valid privacy requests and respond in accordance with applicable requirements. Some requests may require identity verification before information is disclosed or changed.

Questions, privacy requests, or concerns about how LodgeNest handles personal information can be sent to privacy@lodgenest.app.

We may update this Privacy Policy when the service, technology, legal requirements, or our data practices change. The updated version will be published on this website with a new effective or updated date. Where appropriate, material changes may also be communicated through the service.