Age assurance refers to the combination of measures we apply to establish, with an appropriate level of confidence, that users of our platform meet the minimum age requirement. HoopFrog is a dating platform intended exclusively for adults aged 18 and over. We are committed to taking reasonable, proportionate steps to reduce the risk of access by minors and to protecting children from exposure to adult content and interactions.

No single measure is appropriate for every user in every country. We therefore apply age assurance proportionately: stronger, independent age checks where the law requires them or where risk signals suggest an account may belong to a minor, and self-declared date of birth combined with ongoing moderation signals elsewhere.

Age assurance obligations differ significantly between jurisdictions. Our approach is informed by, among others:

• United Kingdom: the Online Safety Act 2023 and Ofcom guidance on highly effective age assurance, and UK GDPR and the Age Appropriate Design Code, where applicable
• United States: state-level age-verification mandates where applicable
• Brazil: digital child-protection rules requiring platforms to take reasonable steps to keep minors away from adult services
• European Union: the Digital Services Act, where applicable to our service, and member-state rules such as France's SREN Act, Germany's youth-protection framework (JuSchG), and Italian AGCOM regulations
• Canada: PIPEDA, Alberta’s Personal Information Protection Act, and Quebec’s Law 25, which govern how any age assurance data is collected, used, and retained

Where a jurisdiction requires a specific standard of age verification, we apply a measure we have assessed as appropriate for that standard for users in that jurisdiction.

Our age assurance measures are layered:

• Date of birth at registration: users who register with an email address declare their date of birth, and registration is blocked for anyone under 18. Users who sign in with Google or Apple confirm that they meet our minimum age of 18 when they create their account.
• Independent age checks: where required by law, we ask users to complete an age check through our specialist age assurance provider, VerifyMy. Depending on the jurisdiction and method, this may be an email-based age estimation check or a documented age verification step.
• Ongoing moderation signals: our automated moderation systems watch for underage indicators after registration (for example, age disclosures in conversations). Accounts flagged as potentially underage are reviewed by our safety team and may be required to complete an age check or be removed.
• Profile authenticity check — this is separate from age assurance and does not by itself confirm a user is 18+: our profile verification flow uses a live selfie check that confirms a real person matches the profile photos. This check is about identity and authenticity, not age, and may involve biometric processing; see our Biometric Privacy page for details.

This means that not every user goes through the same steps. Users in jurisdictions with legal age-verification requirements, and users whose accounts raise risk signals, are asked to complete stronger checks.

For jurisdictions requiring highly effective age assurance, we use only methods we have assessed against that standard; lower-confidence methods such as email-based checks are not relied on where a higher legal standard applies.

We use VerifyMy, a specialist age and identity assurance provider, to carry out independent age checks where they are applied. VerifyMy states that it operates to recognised standards for age assurance, including the BSI PAS 1296 framework, and that it is a member of the Age Verification Providers Association (AVPA).

VerifyMy processes age checks independently. HoopFrog does not have access to, and does not receive, identity documents or biometric data submitted to our verification provider during a verification check. (Our separate in-house profile authenticity check, described above, may involve biometric processing; see our Biometric Privacy page.)

HoopFrog operates on a data-minimising model and receives only what is necessary to confirm a user is an adult. This means:

• We do not receive or store identity documents
• We do not receive a date of birth from the verification provider
• We do not receive or store selfie photographs submitted to the provider
• We do not receive or store any biometric data from the provider

The only information we receive from VerifyMy is:

• A verification status (pass or fail)
• A unique verification reference number
• A timestamp
• Depending on the check method, an age or age band (for example, an estimated age or an over/under-18 result), and the confidence threshold the provider applied

We retain this verification metadata only as long as needed for eligibility, safety, dispute handling, and legal/audit purposes, after which it is deleted or de-identified.

Where VerifyMy processes information on our behalf, we remain responsible for ensuring appropriate contractual, security, retention and privacy controls. VerifyMy’s handling of documents and images is governed by our agreement with it and its applicable privacy terms. We encourage you to review VerifyMy’s privacy policy for details on its data handling practices.

Age assurance data is processed in accordance with applicable data protection law, including PIPEDA and the Alberta Personal Information Protection Act in Canada, the EU GDPR, and the UK GDPR. Where an age check is legally required in your jurisdiction, our legal basis is compliance with a legal obligation; otherwise we rely on our legitimate interest in keeping minors off an adults-only platform.

You have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

• Right of access: you can request a copy of the verification data we hold about you.
• Right to rectification: if any data we hold is inaccurate, you can ask us to correct it.
• Right to erasure: you can request deletion of your verification data, subject to any legal retention requirements.
• Right to object: you can object to our processing of your data. However, where an age check is required for your account, objecting may result in account restrictions.
• Right to complain: you can complain to your data protection authority, including the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada, the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Alberta, the Commission d’accès à l’information du Québec (CAI) for Quebec residents, or, for UK users, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk.

For full details of how we handle your personal data, please see our Privacy Policy.

If an age check is unsuccessful, this may be because:

• The information provided could not be confirmed by the provider
• A document was unclear, expired, or could not be read
• The check indicates that the user may be under 18 years of age
• A technical error occurred during the check

If your check fails, you may:

• Retry the process: you can attempt the check again, or with a different verification method where one is offered.
• Contact our support team: if you believe the result is inaccurate, you can appeal by contacting us at privacy@hoopfrog.com. Please include your account email address and a description of the issue. We aim to review your case promptly; complex cases may take longer.

We are committed to keeping our age assurance process fair and accurate. If an error has occurred, we will work with you and our verification provider to resolve it.

We are committed to making our age assurance process accessible to all users. If you experience difficulty completing a check due to a disability or accessibility barrier, please contact us at privacy@hoopfrog.com and we will work with you to find an appropriate solution.

We may update this Age Assurance Statement from time to time to reflect changes in our measures, legal requirements, or regulatory guidance. The effective date at the top of this page indicates when this statement was last revised. We encourage you to review this statement periodically.

If you have questions about our age assurance practices, your privacy rights, or wish to appeal a verification decision, please contact us:

• Email: privacy@hoopfrog.com
• Postal address: HoopFrog Inc., 3-11 Bellerose Drive, Suite 312, St. Albert, AB T8N 5C9, Canada

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact your local data protection authority. UK users can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.