Who we are
Bee Happy Hive is run by Apiary Records Ltd, a company registered in Northern Ireland under company number NI739315.
Apiary Records Ltd is the data controller for Bee Happy Hive. That means we decide how and why personal data is used in the Bee Happy Hive website and app.
Registered office: 10 Ballyclare Road, Doagh, BT39 0PE, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
Privacy contact: hello@beehappyhive.uk
We are based in the United Kingdom and comply with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. Where we offer Bee Happy Hive to users in the Republic of Ireland or other EU countries, we also comply with the EU GDPR.
We do not currently have a Data Protection Officer because we are not required to appoint one at this stage. All privacy questions should go to the email address above.
EU users and EU representative
Because Apiary Records Ltd is a UK company and Bee Happy Hive is offered to users in the Republic of Ireland and other EU countries, we are required to appoint an EU representative under Article 27 of the EU GDPR.
EU representative appointment is in progress. Until confirmed, EU users can contact us directly at hello@beehappyhive.uk and we will respond within 30 days.
This section will be updated with EU representative contact details as soon as the appointment is confirmed.
What data we collect
We only collect information needed to provide and improve Bee Happy Hive.
Account information
- Email address
- Login and authentication details
- Account settings and preferences
- Date account was created and account status
Beekeeping records (depending on what you choose to add):
- Apiary names, hive names or hive references
- Inspection records, treatment records, varroa counts, feeding records, queen records
- Notes, photos, voice notes
- GPS coordinates or location information if you choose to add them
- Dates and times of records
You choose what information to add. Please do not upload photos, voice notes or notes that identify other people without their permission.
Apiary location data can be sensitive because it may reveal where hives are kept. We treat exact location data carefully and do not share GPS coordinates as part of regional reports.
Technical and security data — our hosting providers may process:
- IP address, browser type, device type, operating system
- Pages or resources requested, date and time of access
- Error logs, security logs, login and authentication logs
We use this to keep the service secure, working and reliable.
Support messages — if you contact us: your email address, your name if you provide it, and the content of your message.
What we never do
We never sell your personal data to advertisers.
We never sell your individual beekeeping records.
We never share your individual records without your explicit consent.
We never lock your data behind a paywall. Export is always free.
We never use your data for third party advertising or behavioural profiling.
How we use your data and our lawful basis
We only use personal data where we have a lawful basis under UK GDPR and EU GDPR.
| Purpose | Data used | Lawful basis |
|---|---|---|
| Creating and managing your account | Email, login details, account settings | Contract |
| Providing the Bee Happy Hive app | Hive records, inspection logs, treatment records, photos, voice notes, GPS data if added | Contract |
| Offline app functionality | Records stored locally on your own device | Contract / strictly necessary |
| Customer support | Emails, messages, screenshots | Contract / legitimate interests |
| Security and fraud prevention | IP address, login logs, technical logs | Legitimate interests |
| Service maintenance and error fixing | Technical logs, error reports | Legitimate interests |
| Anonymous regional insights | Inspection and hive health data after removing identifiers and applying aggregation rules | Legitimate interests (you can object) |
| Identified research sharing | Data you actively opt in to share with named research partners | Consent (you can withdraw at any time) |
| Legal compliance | Records needed to deal with legal, tax, regulatory or data protection obligations | Legal obligation |
Where we rely on legitimate interests, we have assessed that it does not override your privacy rights. You have the right to object (see section 15).
Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw that consent at any time without affecting what has already been processed.
Your data is yours
Every inspection you log, every note you write, every varroa count you record belongs to you.
You can download everything as a CSV file at any time from the Settings screen in the app. Export will remain available even if your subscription status changes.
If you delete your account, your records are deleted within 30 days. Backup copies may remain for a short further period before being overwritten.
Anonymous regional insights
Bee Happy Hive may use beekeeping records to create anonymous and aggregated regional insights. For example, the percentage of hives in a broad region that showed signs of chalk brood in a particular month.
Before sharing or publishing any insight, we take steps to ensure it cannot identify a person, apiary or hive. This includes:
- Removing names, email addresses and hive IDs
- Removing exact GPS coordinates and grouping locations into wider areas
- Applying minimum group thresholds before reporting any pattern
- Excluding photos, voice notes and raw inspection records
We may share or license these regional patterns with research, conservation or government bodies such as universities, conservation groups, bee health organisations, NIHBS, DAERA or similar public bodies.
Creating anonymous insights involves processing personal data before it is anonymised. We rely on legitimate interests for this because it helps identify bee health patterns across the UK and Ireland. You can object to this processing by emailing hello@beehappyhive.uk.
Contributing to science (optional)
You may choose to share your identified data with named research partners. This is completely optional and off by default.
If this feature is offered, we will tell you who the research partner is, what data they want, why they want it, and how you can withdraw at any time.
You can change your mind at any time in Settings → Your data & privacy. Withdrawing consent does not make earlier sharing unlawful, but we will stop future sharing immediately.
Who we share data with
We only share data where needed to provide, secure or improve the service, or where you have actively chosen to share it.
Supabase — We use Supabase for authentication, database storage and file storage. The database is hosted in the EU / Ireland region, encrypted in transit and at rest. A copy is also kept on your device so the app works offline.
Cloudflare — We use Cloudflare Pages to host the marketing website and app. Cloudflare may process technical information such as IP addresses and request logs to deliver and secure the service.
Research partners — We only share identified records with named partners where you have opted in. Anonymous and aggregated regional insights may be shared as described in section 7.
Legal or regulatory sharing — We may share data if required by law, court order, regulator or law enforcement request, or to protect our legal rights.
We have processor agreements in place with our main suppliers covering how they handle your data.
International transfers
Our database is hosted through Supabase in the EU / Ireland region. We aim to keep app data within the UK or EEA where possible.
Some suppliers may have group companies, support teams or sub-processors outside the UK or EEA. Where personal data is transferred outside the UK or EEA, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as adequacy decisions, Standard Contractual Clauses, or the UK International Data Transfer Addendum.
Cookies, local storage and fonts
Marketing website: We do not use advertising cookies, analytics cookies or tracking pixels. If this changes, we will update this policy and ask for consent before setting any non-essential cookies.
Bee Happy Hive app: The app uses local storage on your own device so it can work offline. This is strictly necessary for the service. It is not used for advertising or tracking. You can remove locally stored app data by logging out, clearing your browser's site data, or deleting the app.
Fonts: We use locally hosted fonts (Lora and Nunito). Your browser does not contact Google Fonts or any third-party font server when loading our website or app.
How long we keep data
| Data type | Retention |
|---|---|
| Account data and beekeeping records | While your account exists |
| Photos and voice notes | While your account exists, unless you delete them earlier |
| Local device data | Until you delete it, clear app storage or delete the app |
| Support emails | Up to 24 months after the issue is resolved |
| Security and technical logs | Up to 90 days, unless needed longer for security or legal reasons |
| Backup copies | Deleted or overwritten within 30 days of account deletion |
| Anonymous regional insights | May be kept indefinitely. They no longer identify individuals. |
If you delete your account, your active records are deleted within 30 days. We recommend exporting your records before deletion, especially treatment records (see section 13).
Treatment records and your responsibilities
Under VMR 2013 and DAERA guidance, beekeepers are expected to keep veterinary medicine treatment records for at least 5 years. Bee Happy Hive can help you maintain these records, but if you delete your account your records are deleted with it.
We strongly recommend exporting your treatment records as CSV before deleting your account. Export is always free from the Settings screen.
Children and young beekeepers
Bee Happy Hive is intended for beekeepers aged 16 and over, or for younger beekeepers using an account managed by a parent, guardian, school, beekeeping club or responsible adult.
In the UK, children aged 13 or over may be able to provide their own consent for certain online services. In the Republic of Ireland and most EU countries, parental or guardian consent is required for children under 16 where consent is the lawful basis.
To keep things clear and consistent: users under 16 should use Bee Happy Hive through a parent, guardian or responsible adult, who is responsible for the information added to that account. Young users should not upload photos, voice notes or location details that identify other people without appropriate permission.
If we become aware that a child has created an account in a way that does not meet these rules, we may restrict or delete the account and contact the account holder.
Your rights
Under UK GDPR and EU GDPR you have the right to:
- Access — see the personal data we hold about you
- Correct — fix inaccurate data
- Delete — ask us to erase your data
- Restrict — limit how we process your data in certain circumstances
- Object — object to processing based on legitimate interests (including anonymous regional insights)
- Portability — receive a copy of your data in a usable format (CSV export is available in the app at any time)
- Withdraw consent — where we rely on consent, withdraw it at any time
- Complain — to a data protection regulator
To exercise any right, email hello@beehappyhive.uk. We will respond within 30 days. Complex requests may take up to 3 months. We will tell you if that applies.
Security, breaches and links
Security: We use encrypted connections, encrypted database storage, access controls and account authentication. No online service can be guaranteed completely secure. Please use a strong password and keep your email account safe.
Data breaches: If we become aware of a personal data breach we will assess the risk, notify the relevant regulator where required, and inform affected users where a breach is likely to create high risk to their rights and freedoms.
Links: Our website or app may link to other websites. We are not responsible for their privacy practices. Read their policies before sharing personal data with them.
Changes to this policy: We will show the updated version in the app or on the website. Where a change affects how we use your personal data, we may ask you to accept it before continuing. The version number at the top of this page shows what is currently in force.
Complaints
Please contact us first. We will do our best to sort it out. Email hello@beehappyhive.uk.
You also have the right to complain to a data protection regulator:
- United Kingdom: Information Commissioner's Office — ico.org.uk
- Republic of Ireland: Data Protection Commission — dataprotection.ie
- Other EU countries: the supervisory authority in your own country
Questions?
Email us at hello@beehappyhive.uk.
Apiary Records Ltd · NI739315 · Northern Ireland, United Kingdom