Who we are
Effdy is a food ordering and delivery service operated by Effdy Technologies Ltd, a company registered in The Gambia, with its registered office at 5 Mabajahu, Kairaba Avenue, Banjul, The Gambia.
For the purposes of data protection law, Effdy Technologies Ltd is the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. That means we decide what data is collected and why, and we are accountable for how it is handled.
This policy covers the Effdy customer app for Android and the accounts, orders, and deliveries made through it. Restaurants and delivery riders using our separate partner apps are covered by their own agreements with us.
What we collect
We only collect what the service actually needs to work. Everything below is either given by you, produced when you place an order, or generated automatically by the app.
| Data | Examples | How we get it |
|---|---|---|
| Account details | Name, phone number, email address, profile photo (if you sign in with Google) | You provide it when you register or edit your profile |
| Delivery details | Delivery address, address label, delivery instructions, precise map coordinates, Plus Code | You provide it, or pick it on the map |
| Precise location | Your device's GPS position while the app is open | From your device, only with your permission |
| Order data | Items ordered, restaurant, total price, tip, order and delivery status, pickup and drop-off codes, order history | Created when you place an order |
| Payment data | Payment method, payment status, Wave transaction reference | Returned to us by Wave. We never see or store your wallet PIN, card number, or Wave login |
| Delivery proof | Photo taken at handover and/or a signature captured on the rider's device | Captured by the rider at delivery, where that option is used |
| Support and feedback | Messages you send us, ratings you leave, cancellation reasons | You provide it |
| Device and technical data | Device model, operating system version, app version, language, notification token, anonymous app identifiers, integrity attestation | Collected automatically by the app |
| Diagnostics | Crash reports, error logs, basic performance data | Collected automatically when something goes wrong |
We do not collect special category data — no health data, biometrics, religious or political information — and we do not track you across other companies' apps or websites for advertising.
Why we use it
Each type of data is used for a specific, limited purpose:
| Purpose | Data used | Our legal basis |
|---|---|---|
| Create and secure your account | Name, phone, email, device identifiers, integrity attestation | Performance of our contract with you |
| Take payment for your order | Order total, payment status, Wave transaction reference | Performance of our contract with you |
| Send your order to the restaurant and get it delivered | Name, phone, order contents, delivery address and coordinates, delivery instructions, handover codes | Performance of our contract with you |
| Show you nearby restaurants and let you pick a delivery point | Precise location | Your consent (device permission) |
| Tell you what is happening with your order | Notification token, order status | Performance of our contract with you |
| Confirm a delivery actually happened and resolve disputes | Delivery proof photo, signature, handover codes | Our legitimate interest in preventing fraud and resolving complaints |
| Keep the app working and fix crashes | Diagnostics, device and technical data | Our legitimate interest in maintaining a reliable service |
| Prevent fraud and abuse of the platform | Device identifiers, integrity attestation, order patterns | Our legitimate interest in protecting the service |
| Answer your support requests | Account details, order history, your messages | Performance of our contract with you |
| Meet accounting, tax, and legal obligations | Order and payment records | Compliance with a legal obligation |
We do not sell your personal data, and we do not share it with third parties for their own marketing.
Location data
The app asks for precise location so it can show restaurants near you and let you drop an accurate pin for delivery — addresses in much of The Gambia are hard to describe in words, and a wrong pin means a late or failed delivery.
- Foreground only. We only read your location while the app is open and in use. Effdy does not track you in the background, and the app does not request background location permission.
- It is optional. You can decline the permission and still use Effdy — you will just need to enter your delivery address by hand.
- You can revoke it at any time in Android Settings → Apps → Effdy → Permissions.
- Saved coordinates. When you confirm a delivery point, those coordinates are saved with your address so you don't have to set it again, and are passed to the rider assigned to your order.
Maps and place data are provided by Google Maps Platform, whose use of data is governed by the Google Privacy Policy.
Payments
Orders on Effdy are paid through Wave Mobile Money. When you pay, the app hands you over to Wave's own secure checkout page. You enter your details there, with Wave — not with us.
- We never receive, see, or store your Wave PIN, wallet credentials, or card details.
- Wave sends us back only what we need to fulfil your order: whether the payment succeeded, the amount, and a transaction reference.
- We share the order amount and a reference with Wave so it can process the payment.
- Your payment is handled under Wave's own privacy policy and terms, which apply to you as their customer alongside this one.
If an order is cancelled or cannot be fulfilled, refunds are issued back through Wave to the account that paid.
Where your data is stored
Effdy runs on Google Firebase and Google Cloud Platform. This means your data is stored on servers outside The Gambia, in Google's data centres.
We rely on Google's data processing terms and their contractual and technical safeguards to protect your data in transit and at rest. Google acts as our processor — it handles data on our instructions and may not use it for its own purposes.
Where the law requires a specific safeguard for transferring personal data abroad, we rely on the contractual protections in our agreement with Google and on your consent to use a service we have told you is hosted internationally.
How long we keep it
| Data | Kept for |
|---|---|
| Account details and saved addresses | Until you delete your account |
| Order and payment records | 7 years after the end of the financial year in which the order was placed, to meet accounting and tax obligations |
| Delivery proof photos and signatures | 90 days, unless attached to an open dispute — then until the dispute closes |
| Precise location used for a delivery | Kept with that order's record; live positions are not retained after delivery |
| Crash and diagnostic data | Up to 90 days |
| Support messages | 2 years after the conversation closes |
When you delete your account, records we must keep for legal or accounting reasons are detached from your identity where possible, so what remains cannot be traced back to you.
Your rights
You have the right to:
- Access — ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Correct — fix anything inaccurate. Most of it you can edit yourself in the app under Profile.
- Delete — have your account and personal data erased (see the next section).
- Object or restrict — ask us to stop or limit processing based on our legitimate interests.
- Withdraw consent — turn off location or notification permissions at any time in your device settings, without affecting anything we did before you withdrew it.
- Portability — receive your data in a common, machine-readable format.
- Complain — raise a concern with the data protection authority in The Gambia if you believe we have mishandled your data.
To exercise any of these, email hello@effdy.gm. We will confirm your identity and respond within 30 days. There is no charge unless a request is clearly excessive or repetitive.
Deleting your account and data
You can delete your Effdy account and the personal data attached to it at any time. To request deletion, email hello@effdy.gm with the subject “Delete my account”, from the email address on your account or quoting the phone number you signed up with.
We will confirm it is really you before deleting anything — normally by replying to that address or sending a code to your registered phone number. You do not need to give a reason, and we will not try to talk you out of it.
Your account, gone in 30 days
Deleting removes your sign-in credentials, name, phone number, email, saved addresses and map pins, delivery instructions, favourites, cart, notification tokens, and the link between you and your past orders. Deletion completes within 30 days.
We keep anonymised order and payment records for 7 years where accounting and tax law requires it. These no longer identify you. An order that is still in progress must be completed or cancelled before the account can be removed.
Request account deletion →How we protect your data
- All traffic between the app and our servers is encrypted in transit (HTTPS/TLS), and data is encrypted at rest by Google Cloud.
- Order changes are written by our server, not by the app, so a tampered client cannot alter prices, statuses, or someone else's order.
- Access to customer data is restricted to staff who need it, and every request is checked against per-user security rules.
- App integrity checks (Google Play Integrity) block requests from modified or counterfeit copies of the app.
- Deliveries are confirmed with a handover code shared only between you and your rider.
No system is perfectly secure. If a breach occurs that puts your rights at risk, we will notify you and the relevant authority without undue delay.
Age limit
Effdy is intended for people aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us at hello@effdy.gm and we will delete it.
App permissions we ask for
| Permission | What it's for | Optional? |
|---|---|---|
| Location (precise & approximate) | Finding nearby restaurants and setting an accurate delivery pin | Yes — you can type your address instead |
| Notifications | Order confirmations and delivery updates | Yes — you'll just miss status updates |
| Internet / network access | Connecting to Effdy | No — required |
Effdy does not request access to your contacts, camera, microphone, photos, files, SMS messages, or call logs.
Changes to this policy
We update this policy when the app changes or the law does. The effective date at the top always tells you which version you are reading, and we keep the previous version available on request.
If a change materially affects how we use your data, we will tell you in the app or by email before it takes effect, and where the law requires it we will ask for your consent again.
Contact us
Questions about this policy, or about the data we hold on you:
- Email — hello@effdy.gm
- Post — Effdy Technologies Ltd, 5 Mabajahu, Kairaba Avenue, Banjul, The Gambia
If you are not satisfied with how we have handled your concern, you may lodge a complaint with the data protection authority in The Gambia.