Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Kukku is a homemade food marketplace operated by Kukku LLC, a limited liability company registered in North Carolina, USA. We connect consumers with home cooks in their local community so people can discover, order, and enjoy authentic home-cooked food.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you use the Kukku app or website (kukkuapp.com).

2. What Information We Collect

Information you give us

• Account information: your name, email address, and password when you create an account.
• Profile information: your profile photo, bio, and location (city or neighborhood).
• Cook profile: if you apply to become a cook, we collect your kitchen address, cuisine specialties, availability, a bio, and a kitchen photo.
• Listings: if you're a cook, we collect the food listings you create including dish names, descriptions, prices, photos, and pickup/delivery settings.
• Orders: information about orders you place or receive, including quantities, amounts, delivery preferences, and special instructions.
• Messages: messages you send to other users through our in-app chat.
• Reviews: ratings and written reviews you submit about cooks or dishes.
• Payment information: we use Stripe to handle payments. We do not store your full credit card number — Stripe handles that. We do store payment confirmation data, transaction IDs, and payout information.

Information we collect automatically

• Device information: device type, operating system, app version, and device identifiers.
• Usage data: features you use, pages you view, searches you perform, and actions you take in the app.
• Push notification tokens: your device's FCM token, used to send you order updates and messages.
• Log data: IP address, timestamps, and error reports.

Information from third parties

• Google Sign-In: if you sign in with Google, we receive your name, email, and profile photo from Google.
• Stripe: we receive confirmation of payment success or failure, and a Stripe account ID for cook payouts.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Create and manage your account
• Connect consumers with cooks and facilitate orders
• Process payments and cook payouts through Stripe
• Send you order confirmations, status updates, and messages via push notification and email
• Display cook profiles and food listings to consumers near you
• Calculate and display ratings and reviews
• Operate the admin dashboard to manage platform activity
• Detect fraud, abuse, and policy violations
• Improve the app through analytics and error reporting
• Communicate important updates about the platform, your account, or our policies
• Comply with legal obligations

We do not use your information to serve you advertisements. Kukku is ad-free.

4. How We Share Your Information

We share your information only in the following circumstances:

With other users (as needed for orders)

When you place or accept an order, we share the relevant information between the consumer and cook. For example, a consumer's name and order details are shared with the cook, and the cook's name and pickup location are shared with the consumer. We never share your exact home address unless you choose to provide it for delivery.

With service providers

• Stripe — for payment processing and cook payouts
• Firebase (Google) — for authentication, database, storage, and push notifications
• Apple / Google — for app distribution and in-app purchases if applicable

These providers are bound by their own privacy policies and are only permitted to use your data to provide services to Kukku.

For legal reasons

We may disclose your information if required by law, court order, or government authority, or to protect the rights, safety, or property of Kukku, our users, or others.

In a business transfer

If Kukku is acquired or merges with another company, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you before your information is subject to a different privacy policy.

5. Payments and Stripe

All payment processing in the US is handled by Stripe. When you enter payment information, it goes directly to Stripe — Kukku never sees or stores your full credit card number.

Cook payouts are processed through Stripe Connect. When cooks onboard to receive payments, they complete Stripe's identity verification process directly with Stripe. Stripe's Privacy Policy governs how Stripe handles that information: stripe.com/privacy.

For markets where we use manual payment methods (Zelle in Venezuela), payment confirmation details may be stored in our system to verify orders.

6. Cookies and Analytics

The Kukku app itself does not use browser cookies. Our website (kukkuapp.com) may use cookies for basic analytics to understand how visitors use the site.

We use Firebase Analytics to understand app usage patterns. This data is aggregated and anonymized — we use it to improve the app, not to identify individual users.

You can opt out of analytics tracking in your device settings (iOS: Settings > Privacy > Tracking; Android: Settings > Google > Ads).

7. Data Retention

We retain your information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide our services. Specifically:

• Active accounts: we keep your data while your account is open.
• Order records: we retain order history for at least 3 years for financial record-keeping purposes.
• Messages: in-app messages are retained for 12 months after the associated order is completed.
• Deleted accounts: when you delete your account, we remove your personal profile within 30 days. Order records may be retained in anonymized form for accounting purposes.

8. Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Access: request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: update or correct inaccurate information in your profile directly in the app, or by contacting us.
• Deletion: request that we delete your account and personal data. We will do so within 30 days, subject to legal retention requirements for financial records.
• Portability: request an export of your data in a machine-readable format.
• Objection: object to certain types of data processing.

To exercise any of these rights, email us at support@kukkuapp.com from the email address associated with your account. We'll respond within 30 days.

9. Children's Privacy

Kukku is not intended for children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are under 13, please do not use the app or provide any personal information.

To become a cook on Kukku, you must be at least 18 years old, as cooks engage in commercial food sales.

If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will delete it promptly. If you believe we may have collected such information, please contact us at support@kukkuapp.com.

10. International Users (Venezuela & Chile)

Kukku operates in the United States, Venezuela, and Chile. If you are located outside the US, your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country.

By using Kukku, you consent to this transfer. We apply the same privacy protections to your data regardless of where you are located.

Users in the European Economic Area or countries with GDPR-equivalent laws have additional rights including the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.

11. California Residents (CCPA)

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

• Right to Know: you can request disclosure of the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you.
• Right to Delete: you can request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions.
• Right to Opt-Out: we do not sell personal information, so there is nothing to opt out of.
• Right to Non-Discrimination: we will not discriminate against you for exercising any of your CCPA rights.

To submit a CCPA request, email support@kukkuapp.com with "CCPA Request" in the subject line.

12. Security

We take security seriously. Kukku uses:

• Firebase Authentication for secure account access
• Encrypted data transmission (HTTPS/TLS) for all communications
• Server-side security rules (Firestore Security Rules) to enforce access controls
• Firebase App Check to prevent unauthorized API access
• Stripe's PCI-compliant infrastructure for all payment data

No system is completely secure. If you discover a security vulnerability, please report it responsibly to support@kukkuapp.com.

13. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make significant changes, we will notify you through the app or by email. The "Last updated" date at the top of this policy will always reflect the most recent revision.

Continued use of Kukku after a policy update means you accept the updated policy.

14. Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or requests related to this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us:

Kukku LLC
North Carolina, USA
Email: support@kukkuapp.com
Website: kukkuapp.com

We aim to respond to all privacy-related inquiries within 30 days.