Privacy Policy — The Perfume Pulse
Effective date: 8 March 2026 Last updated: 10 October 2026
Data controller: The Perfume Pulse Ltd (company number 17445863) Contact: admin@theperfumepulse.com
This Privacy Policy explains how The Perfume Pulse ("the App", "we", "us") collects, uses, stores and protects your personal information when you use our mobile application. By creating an account or using the App, you agree to the practices described in this policy.
This policy applies to The Perfume Pulse iOS and Android applications, to our website, and to the beta programme sign-up form.
1. Who We Are
The Perfume Pulse is a fragrance discovery and collection app developed and operated by The Perfume Pulse Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales under company number 17445863, whose registered office is 66 Paul Street, London, England, EC2A 4NA.
For the purposes of UK and EU data protection law, The Perfume Pulse Ltd is the data controller.
If you have any questions or requests relating to your data, contact us at admin@theperfumepulse.com.
2. What Information We Collect
2.1 Information You Provide
| Data | Why it's collected |
|---|---|
| Username | To identify your account within the app and to friends |
| Email address | For account creation, login and important account communications |
| Password | Stored as a one-way hash — we cannot read your password |
| First name / last name (optional) | To personalise your in-app experience |
| Contact details (optional) | If you choose to add them to your profile |
| Skin profile (optional) | Your answers to the skin quiz (skin type, oiliness, hydration, sensitivity, skin pH tendency, climate zone and age bracket) and what your wear reports teach the App about how fragrance families last on you, used to personalise recommendations and to describe how a perfume may wear on your skin |
| Location (city/region, optional) | To suggest perfumes suited to your local weather and season |
2.2 Information Generated by Your Use of the App
| Data | Why it's collected |
|---|---|
| Your perfume collection | To display and manage the fragrances you own |
| Ratings and favourites | To personalise recommendations and show your preferences |
| To-sniff list and wishlist | To track perfumes you want to try or buy |
| Fragrance DNA / preference profile | An automatically generated profile based on your collection and ratings, used to power recommendations |
| Layering combinations | Combinations of fragrances you create and optionally share |
| Occasions linked to perfumes | Contextual data you choose to associate with perfumes |
| Friends list and friend requests | Social connections you initiate within the app |
| Scent of the Day entries | Perfumes you choose to log as your daily fragrance |
| Queries to Pulse AI and "Smell like…" | The text of queries you make to the Pulse AI assistant, and of what you ask the "Smell like…" search to find, together with the response and basic diagnostic information (which feature answered, how your request was understood, whether it succeeded, how long it took). Retained for 90 days and used to diagnose faults and improve the accuracy of both features. The audio of your voice is never sent to us or stored — speech is transcribed to text on your device. See §9 Data Retention. |
In-app feedback. If you use the Feedback option in the app menu, we collect the category and message you write, an optional screenshot you choose to attach, and — automatically — your app version, platform and device model. The technical details are collected so we can reproduce problems; without them a bug report is usually not actionable. Screenshots are only ever included when you attach one yourself.
Beta tester applications. If you apply to the beta programme through our sign-up form, we collect your name, email address, country, device model, operating system version (optional) and fragrance experience level in order to select and contact testers. We also record whether you agreed to receive marketing emails, and your acceptance of this policy. Both are kept as the record of your consent, and you can withdraw either at any time by emailing us.
2.3 Device Permissions
The App requests the following device permissions. Each is optional and can be revoked at any time in your device settings.
| Permission | Purpose | When requested |
|---|---|---|
| Camera | To scan perfume bottles and identify them using AI image recognition | When you use the bottle scan feature |
| Microphone | To capture voice queries directed at the Pulse AI assistant | When you use voice input |
| Speech Recognition | To transcribe your spoken queries into text | When you use voice input |
| Location (while in use) | To suggest fragrances suited to your local weather, climate and season | When you enable weather-based recommendations |
We do not request background location access beyond what is needed for in-app weather-based suggestions. We do not use location data for advertising.
2.4 Automatically Collected Technical Data
When you use the App, we may collect basic technical information such as:
- Device type and operating system version
- App version
- Crash reports and error logs (used solely for debugging)
We do not use third-party advertising SDKs or tracking pixels.
3. How We Use Your Information
We use your information for the following purposes:
- Providing the App's core features — collection management, recommendations, social features, Pulse AI
- Personalising your experience — fragrance recommendations based on your profile, skin type and collection
- Account security — authenticating your login via hashed passwords and refresh tokens
- Weather-based suggestions — pairing your location (if permitted) with seasonal fragrance recommendations
- Improving the App — anonymised crash reports and error logs help us fix bugs
- Communicating with you — essential account emails (e.g. password reset); we do not send marketing emails without your explicit consent
We do not sell your personal data to any third party. We do not use your data for advertising profiling.
4. Product Information — Source Disclosure
All fragrance product information displayed in The Perfume Pulse — including perfume names, ingredient notes, concentration details, release years, perfumer credits and collection names — is sourced directly from the official websites of the respective fragrance brands.
We do not source product data from third-party aggregators or unverified catalogues. Where AI tools are used to assist in formatting product descriptions, the underlying factual data is drawn entirely from official brand sources.
Product descriptions displayed in the App are original summaries written for the App and are not copied verbatim from brand websites.
5. Data Storage and Security
- Your account data is stored on secure servers hosted on Fly.io, within the European Economic Area (EEA)
- Passwords are never stored in plain text — they are hashed using industry-standard one-way hashing
- All data transmitted between the App and our servers is encrypted in transit using HTTPS/TLS
- Authentication uses short-lived access tokens and longer-lived refresh tokens, both stored securely
Despite these measures, no system is completely immune to security risks. If you believe your account has been compromised, contact us immediately at admin@theperfumepulse.com.
6. Data Sharing
We do not sell, rent or trade your personal data.
We share data only in the following limited circumstances:
| Recipient | Location | Reason | Data shared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fly.io | London, UK | Runs the App's backend servers | Any data passing through the API in the course of serving your requests |
| Neon | London, UK (eu-west-2) |
Hosts the PostgreSQL database | All account and collection data stored by the App |
| Cloudflare R2 | EU | Stores perfume and bottle images | Images you upload, and images the App serves |
| Groq | United States | Powers the voice assistant's natural-language answers and query generation | The text of your voice-assistant questions and the perfume context needed to answer them |
| OpenAI | United States | Describes how a perfume may wear on your skin when you ask Pulse AI (for example "how will this smell on me?"); understands a "Smell like…" request, or a Pulse AI request to smell like something, that the App's own word lists do not recognise; suggests names for a layering combination when you ask | For how a perfume may wear on you: your skin type, oiliness, hydration, sensitivity, climate zone and age bracket, what your wear reports have taught the App, and the perfume's description. For a "Smell like…" request: the text of that request. For combination names: the perfumes in the combination. Never your name, email address or account details |
| Google (Gemini API) | United States | Vision features — collection screenshot import and bottle scanning | The images you submit to those features |
| WeatherAPI | United States | Weather and climate context for suggestions | Your approximate location (city/region level) |
| Google (Forms / Sheets) | United States / EU | Beta programme applications, if you apply via our sign-up form | Only what you enter in that form |
| Expo / EAS | United States | Builds and distributes the iOS/Android app | App binary only — no user data |
| Apple App Store / Google Play | Global | Distributes the app | As required by platform policies |
| Law enforcement / regulators | — | Only if required by law | Minimum data necessary to comply |
OpenAI also helps us build and enrich our perfume catalogue. That work runs on public product information only and does not involve your personal data.
We use your data only for the purposes set out in this policy
We will not use or disclose your personal data for any purpose that is not described in section 3, or that is not compatible with the purpose it was collected for, unless the law requires us to or we ask for your consent first.
In particular:
- we do not sell, rent, trade or licence your personal data to anyone;
- we do not share it with advertisers, data brokers or ad networks, and we do not use it to build advertising or marketing profiles about you;
- the recipients in the table above are service providers acting on our instructions. They may process your data only to provide the service described in that row, are bound to keep it confidential, and may not use it for their own purposes — including training their own AI models on it;
- we do not transfer your personal data to anyone else as part of our own product research. Where we want to learn from how the App is used, we use aggregated and anonymised information that cannot identify you.
If we ever want to use your data for a genuinely new purpose, we will update this policy and tell you, and where the law requires it we will ask for your consent before we do.
If our business structure changes
The Perfume Pulse is operated by The Perfume Pulse Ltd (company number 17445863), the data controller named in section 1. The App was previously operated by Olufolarin Bajomo as a sole trader, and the company became the controller as of the "last updated" date at the top of this policy. The App may in future be sold, merged or reorganised.
If that happens:
- your personal data transfers to the new operator, who becomes the data controller in place of the current one;
- the purposes described in section 3 do not change as a result, and this policy continues to apply until it is replaced;
- your rights under section 8 are unaffected — you exercise them against the new controller instead, and any consent you gave stands unless you withdraw it;
- we will update this policy to name the new controller and, as section 14 requires, tell you.
If a new operator ever wanted to use your data for a purpose this policy does not describe, it would have to tell you and, where the law requires it, ask for your consent first. A change of ownership is not a route around anything promised above.
7. Social Features
The Perfume Pulse includes opt-in social features. You choose what to share:
- Username — visible to other users when you connect as friends or share layering combos publicly
- Collection and favourites — visible only to friends you have accepted, unless you choose to make content public
- Layering combinations — can be made public (visible to all users) or kept private; you control this setting per combo
You can block other users at any time. Blocked users cannot view your profile or send you friend requests.
8. Your Rights
Depending on your location, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
| Right | What it means |
|---|---|
| Access | Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you |
| Rectification | Ask us to correct inaccurate data |
| Erasure | Request deletion of your account and associated data |
| Restriction | Ask us to limit how we process your data in certain circumstances |
| Portability | Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format |
| Objection | Object to certain types of processing |
| Withdraw consent | Where processing is based on consent (e.g. location), you can withdraw at any time |
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at admin@theperfumepulse.com. We will respond within 30 days.
To delete your account, go to Preferences → Account → Delete my account within the App, or email us with the subject line "Account Deletion Request". Deletion is immediate and permanent: your collection, wear history, skin profile, layering combos, and any screenshots or feedback you have sent us are removed straight away, along with the files behind them.
9. Data Retention
| Data type | Retention period |
|---|---|
| Account data | Retained while your account is active; deleted within 30 days of account deletion request |
| Collection, ratings, preferences | Deleted with your account |
| Anonymised crash logs | Up to 90 days |
| Voice query audio | Not retained — speech is transcribed to text on your device and the audio is never transmitted to or stored by us |
| Pulse AI and "Smell like…" query text and responses | Up to 90 days, then automatically deleted. Deleted immediately with your account. |
| Refresh tokens | Expire after a set period or on logout; revoked immediately on account deletion |
| In-app feedback (message, optional screenshot, app version, device model) | Retained while we act on it, then reviewed annually. Deleted immediately with your account. |
| Beta tester applications (name, email, country, device model) | Retained for the duration of the beta programme and deleted within 12 months of it closing |
10. Children
The Perfume Pulse is not intended for users under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, contact us at admin@theperfumepulse.com and we will delete it promptly.
11. Third-Party Links and Services
The App may display links to brand websites (e.g. "Visit official website"). These are external sites governed by their own privacy policies. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites.
We do not embed third-party advertising networks, social media tracking pixels or analytics SDKs that share data with third parties.
12. Legal Basis for Processing (UK & EU Users)
For users in the United Kingdom and European Economic Area, we process your personal data under the following legal bases:
| Processing activity | Legal basis |
|---|---|
| Account creation and management | Contract (processing is necessary to provide the service you signed up for) |
| Core app features (collection, ratings, etc.) | Contract |
| Location-based suggestions | Consent (you grant permission explicitly via device prompt) |
| Camera / microphone / speech recognition | Consent (you grant permission explicitly via device prompt) |
| Crash logs and error reporting | Legitimate interests (to maintain a functional, secure app) |
| Beta programme applications | Consent (you choose to apply, and may withdraw at any time) |
| Marketing and product-update emails | Consent (opt-in only, and every email offers an unsubscribe link) |
| Responding to legal obligations | Legal obligation |
13. International Transfers
Our servers and database are hosted in London, United Kingdom (Fly.io's
lhr region and Neon's eu-west-2 region).
If you are in the United Kingdom, your data is processed in the UK.
If you are in the European Economic Area, your data is transferred to the UK. The European Commission has adopted an adequacy decision for the United Kingdom, which permits transfers of personal data from the EEA to the UK without additional safeguards.
Some of the service providers listed in section 6 — in particular Groq, Google, OpenAI and WeatherAPI — process data in the United States. Those transfers rely on the safeguards offered under those providers' data processing terms, such as the UK International Data Transfer Addendum, EU Standard Contractual Clauses, or certification under the EU–US and UK–US Data Privacy Framework.
14. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this document and, where changes are material, notify you via the App or by email.
Continued use of the App after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
15. Contact Us
For any privacy-related questions, data requests or complaints:
Email: admin@theperfumepulse.com Subject line: Privacy Request — [your username]
If you are based in the UK and are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.
If you are based in the EU, you may contact your local data protection authority.
The Perfume Pulse is developed and operated by The Perfume Pulse Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales (company number 17445863).