Samsung account Privacy Notice

Effective [17 July 2024]

At Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (“Samsung”), we know how important privacy is to our customers. Samsung is the data controller, located in Korea, for Samsung account and its services and features, as listed below and described in this Privacy Notice (collectively, our “Services”). We created this Privacy Notice to make sure you understand how we collect and use your personal information.

Samsung account is your one-stop personal account used to access and enjoy some of our Samsung Services. These Services include:


Samsung account

Some Samsung apps and services (such as Samsung Cloud) require a Samsung account. With a Samsung account, you can enjoy many of these services and apps. In addition, certain third-party apps and services may allow you to link your Samsung account with that third-party account for easier login or enhanced features (please refer to the “Account and Service Linking” section below).


Sync and Backup Features:

• Sync and back up data : You can back up or sync your data on your mobile devices (using Samsung Cloud) and Smart TVs.
• Call & text on other devices : Enjoy seamless communication by syncing text messages in the Messages app and phone calls on your secondary mobile Galaxy devices when logged in to the same Samsung account.


Membership Benefits

• Save payment information : Save your credit card so you can enjoy easier checkout when making purchases across various Samsung services, apps and websites.
• Samsung Rewards : Accumulate Rewards points when making purchases of participating Samsung services and products. These points can be spent on Samsung.com, and earn you additional membership benefits based on your Samsung Rewards tier programme.
If you sign up for a Samsung account, you may be automatically enrolled into Samsung Rewards as part of your Samsung account benefits. To find out if Samsung Rewards is an automatic feature of your account (or for existing Samsung account holders, whether you have previously opted in to Rewards), whether Membership tiers are available in your country, and how to opt out, visit your Rewards page by: visiting your local Samsung.com > Sign into your Samsung account > Scroll down to the end of the page and click on Samsung Rewards under the “Account & Community” heading, and follow the instructions provided.
• Samsung Members App : You can connect and interact with other Samsung account users on our social media platforms, such as our Samsung Members Community. Here, you can communicate with other Samsung account users on our online forum and register your owned products, as well as contact us through our customer communication channel.
• Group Sharing and Quick Share : Easily share files with other Samsung account users.
• Samsung Visit-In : Receive location-based marketing promotions and offers from participating Samsung and third-party stores near you.


Security Services

• Samsung Pass : Store your login information and contact information for easier login or checkout.
• SmartThings Find/Samsung Find : Locate devices such as your phone, wearables, and tablet with the help of SmartThings Find/Samsung Find, as well as share the locations of your devices with other Samsung account users.
• Secure Wi-Fi : Protect transmitted data on public networks.
• Digital Key : Store participating keys (such as home or building entrance or car keys) on your phone.
• Knox Matrix : Securely store your keys used by some Samsung services based on a PIN, password or pattern set on your lock screen.


Advanced intelligence

Get intelligence features within certain apps or services. Check out the advanced intelligence section below for more details.


Voice Assistant

Once you create a Samsung account, you can easily control supported devices by voice command using Bixby Voice. Bixby Voice will be ready to control your device via voice command when you activate it, such as by pressing the Invoke button or saying “Hi, Bixby.” The status indicator on your device, such as an on-screen indicator or flashing LED, lets you know when Bixby Voice is activated. Please see the Voice Assistant section below to see the types of data Bixby Voice collects.


WHAT INFORMATION DO WE COLLECT?

When you create a Samsung account with us, we ask for information to help you get set up, such as your name, nickname, date of birth, gender, phone number, password and email address.

In addition, when you contact customer service about our Services, your communications, including any information you provide regarding your identity and the product or service you’re contacting us about, will be collected.

Once you set up your Samsung account and log in, you can use various convenient features on your devices, such as the Services mentioned above. You can see the features available to you in the Samsung account settings. When using Samsung account and the Services, we collect and maintain information about you as detailed below.

Information While Using Samsung account and our Services

In order for you to use our Services, certain information needs to be collected by us, as explained below.


Sync and Backup Features:

• Sync and back up data : You can sync, back up and restore your data on mobile devices and Smart TVs. For example, you can choose to back up or sync certain data to our cloud service (such as Samsung Cloud for your mobile devices). The data you choose to back up or sync will automatically be sent to and stored by Samsung. These data may include downloaded apps, Call and Text history, your Contacts list, appointment and alert settings you have saved (such as Calendar, Notes, Clock and Reminder entries), your Gallery and Bookmarks on Samsung Internet. For Smart TVs, these data may include postal code and broadcast information (such as service provider, channel information and antenna type), device, Smart TV (including PIN) and Samsung account profile information, settings and configurations. For Gallery sync, this feature is offered through Microsoft OneDrive. If you turn on syncing on one device where you are logged into your Samsung account, sync will automatically turn on in your other devices where you have logged into your Samsung account. You can manage your sync preferences in the Samsung account settings in any of your devices.
• Call and text on other devices : By enabling “Call & text on other devices”, we collect information such as Contacts and call and message logs so you can experience multi-device communication by allowing you to send or receive calls or messages on your secondary device(s). Your messages and calls will also need to be collected to sync that data to your secondary device(s).


Membership Benefits:

• Save payment information : When you register your credit card to your Samsung account for easier payment options, we collect information such as credit card number, name and expiration date. Also, when you save information like your address for faster checkout when you make purchases on your mobile device, Smart TV or Samsung websites, we collect the information you choose to submit.
• Samsung Rewards : By having a Samsung account, various coupons, discounts, and gift cards are available to you, when you choose to avail yourself of this feature. You are also eligible to receive Rewards points when purchasing various Samsung products and services on Samsung.com.
Information regarding your logged-in purchase history, as well as information regarding the rewards available to you, including points and how and where you spend or redeem them, are collected by us.
• Samsung Members App : Content you provide through or in the Samsung Members Community, such as your profile information, posts and comments (including media you upload) and information on the products you register (including warranty information), as well as communication (including information you submit) with our customer team and other Samsung Members Community members (including the content of personal messages) is collected.
• Group Sharing : Group Sharing allows you to easily send or share files and other information, such as contacts, profile information, notes, reminders, and calendar schedules to other Samsung account users, as well as displaying profile images in your contacts list and when you receive calls. We collect the media and information you choose to send, as well as your contacts and profile information (including profile information of your contacts). Other Samsung sharing features which are not a part of Samsung account will also use your contacts and profile information to allow you to share media and information through those features.
When you join a group and share media and files (such as when you join a group to share notes, reminders, calendar entries, or gallery media), these entries will be visible to all other members of the group. You can delete or edit gallery, calendar, and reminder entries at any time while you are a member of the group. For shared note entries, you may edit and delete entries if granted permission by the group leader. Other members may be able to edit or delete your shared entry.
If you leave or are removed from a group, your shared entries which have not been deleted will remain in the group for other members to see and edit.
• Quick Share : The Quick Share feature, available on certain Galaxy devices, enables you to quickly share photos, videos, and files. Quick Share can be used to share content between Galaxy devices in close proximity to each other via the device-to-device method. Quick Share can also be used to share content by sending a link that can be used to access the shared content using any internet-connected device. When using this method, we collect the content you share, which will remain available for 3 days before it is automatically deleted. You can also add extra protection, such as file encryption, by using the private sharing option, which allows you to set an expiration date and revoke access to your content. By using this feature, the content you share with a recipient will be deleted from our server immediately after the recipient receives and downloads it. Please note that content sent by private sharing will be held on an encrypted server for up to 7 days until either the recipient downloads the content, or the content expires in 7 days, whichever is earlier.
• Samsung Visit-In : When you are near participating Samsung or third-party stores offering benefits or coupons, information about the store offering benefits or coupons will be collected. With your separate consent, your device’s location information, such as the GPS signal or information about nearby Wi-Fi access points and mobile phone masts, is sent to us when you choose to enable this feature.


Security Services:

• Samsung Pass : When you save your information (e.g. name, phone number, email, postal or shipping address), you can easily fill in and use it for various participating Samsung or third-party apps, websites or services. Also, you can choose to back up user IDs and passwords, which enables you to log in using biometric authentication to those apps, websites or services without having to remember your ID or password. The number of successful and unsuccessful authentication attempts is also collected. Biometric information is only stored on your device and Samsung does not collect or have access to this information.
• SmartThings Find/Samsung Find : SmartThings Find/Samsung Find allows you to locate your devices when you consent to the processing of location information, including lost devices that are not connected to a network. When you request the location of any of your devices logged in to your Samsung account or other Samsung devices that connect to your Samsung account (such as your wearable device), and if the device is turned on and you have agreed to Samsung’s processing of your location information, the location of each device is sent to Samsung to show your device(s) on a map. In certain instances (such as when you want to share the location of your device with other users when using Samsung SmartThings), SmartThings Find/Samsung Find allows you to share your device’s location with other Samsung account users.

SmartThings Find/Samsung Find also has several optional features which you can turn on, as described below.

i. Send Last Location: Your device’s last location will be automatically sent to Samsung whenever your device’s battery reaches a critically low level (5% or lower) to help you find the device even after it’s turned off.
ii. Offline Finding : This feature will activate if your device remains disconnected from its mobile or Wi-Fi network after a certain period of time. You will be able to locate it using Bluetooth with the help of other nearby Samsung devices, which also have Offline Finding enabled. By enabling this feature, your device will also help others find their lost devices around you by using your device’s location. No information about you will be visible to others, nor will others’ information be visible to you. Your device, together with other enabled devices, will simply create a Bluetooth network to work together and locate the lost device.
iii. Lost Mode : If you turn on this feature, you can save your contact information and any messages so that if you lose your device, Samsung Find can show the information you provided to the person who finds your lost device. The information you provide directly when you set Lost Mode on your lost device is collected, which includes your email address, phone number, username and the messages that you want to show.
• SmartThings Find : SmartThings Find may require you to register for Samsung SmartThings. For more information about how Samsung SmartThings processes your information, please review the Samsung SmartThings Privacy Notice.
• Secure Wi-Fi : Data transmitted from your device when using a public network, for example at a coffee shop or airport terminal, will have an extra layer of security during its transit. Secure Wi-Fi offers various subscription plans depending on the amount of data you need protected. When you do subscribe to one of the Secure Wi-Fi subscription plans, information will be collected related to that subscription plan (such as which product is purchased and how and when the product was purchased).
• Digital Key : Information related to the keys are collected, such as the manufacturer, device information and key information.
• Knox Matrix : Store your keys used in some Samsung services securely on the server and make them accessible only on authenticated device(s). It extracts authentication information by processing the PIN, pattern or password set on the lock screen. This authentication information is collected and cannot infer the PIN, pattern or password.


Advanced intelligence

With advanced intelligence, certain apps or services will use your inputs to provide intelligence features. Some of the apps or services process your data solely within your device, while others require the collection of your data, such as your account information, device and app information, and your inputs (including text or media files), to produce results. For example, some of the apps or services may provide recommendations for you. You can check which apps and services offer advanced intelligence by going into your Samsung account settings and clicking the advanced intelligence tab.

Prior to using the advanced intelligence feature within an app or service that requires the collection of your data, you will be informed prior to your initial use of such feature.

For apps or services where advanced intelligence requires the collection of your data, some of those apps or services may provide the option to use advanced intelligence without your data being collected in its settings.


Voice Assistant

Bixby Voice will collect data needed to carry out your commands, such as voice inputs and information related to the apps or services that are affected by the command (e.g., your Calendar app if you ask Bixby to add a date to your calendar). Bixby Voice also offers various optional features that collect certain information when you use such features. To see more details about the types of data Bixby Voice collects and how that data is used, please see the Bixby Voice Privacy Notice.


Account and Service Linking:

Certain third-party apps or services may allow for the linking of your Samsung account to that third-party account, allowing for easy login. In addition, you may also have the option to link certain Samsung Services with third-party apps or services to access enhanced existing features or whole new features all together (for example, when you link Samsung Cloud with Microsoft OneDrive, you can begin backing up files to OneDrive). The information collected and how that information will be used will be shown to you prior to any account or service linking. Third-party websites, apps, services and features may operate independently from us and may have their own privacy notices or policies. We recommend that you review them to ensure that you understand how they process your information, as well as review this Privacy Notice to know how we process your information. To the extent that any such linked or shown website, app, service or other feature is not owned or controlled by us, we are not responsible for its content, use, or privacy practices.

In addition to the information above, Samsung collects the following information about your use of our Services through software on your devices and by other means as set out below in more detail:

• Device and Service Information:
i. Hardware information will be collected, such as hardware model, device name, device configuration and settings, connected devices, sales code, MCC (mobile country code), MNC (mobile network code) and when your device was first used or purchased.
ii. Software information will be collected, such as software versions and configurations and your operating system version.
iii. Identifiers will be collected, such as IMEI, IP address, serial number, MAC address and other unique device or service identifiers (such as Android ID, cookies, Smart TV identifiers, variable unique device ID and service ID).
• Log and Usage Information : Diagnostic, technical, error and usage information will be collected, such as the time and duration of your use of the Services or any of their features, traffic usage and touch interaction and other inputs. If you use Digital Key, your UWB (ultra-wideband), BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) and NFC (near-field communication) communications will also be collected (e.g. communication between devices like your mobile and earbuds and to enable communication for digital key between the mobile device and the lock mechanism).
• Location information : With your separate consent, your device’s location information, such as GPS signal or information about nearby Wi-Fi access points and mobile phone masts, will be sent to us when you use other location-based Services.


We also may collect other information about you, your devices and apps and your use of the Services in ways that we describe to you at the time of collection or otherwise with your consent.

We may use third-party analytics services, such as Google Analytics and Firebase Analytics. The information we obtain may be disclosed to or collected directly by these providers and other relevant third parties who use the information (for example, to evaluate use of the Services and to help improve the Services). This includes, for example, information on the features you use or click or how much of the Services you use and when you use them. To learn more about Google Analytics, please visit https://www.google.com/policies/privacy/partners/. To learn more about Firebase Analytics, please visit https://firebase.google.com/policies/analytics.


HOW DO WE USE YOUR INFORMATION?

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To identify and authenticate you so you may securely use our Services
• To provide you with our Services
• To improve and customise your experience with our Services, such as delivering content and responses tailored to you and the way you interact with our Services
• To link your Samsung account to connected third-party devices, apps, features or services when you request this
• To respond to your requests, inquiries and instructions made through or about our Services
• With your separate consent, to deliver advertising, including customised advertisements, sponsored content and promotional communications
• With your separate consent, your location may be used to notify you when you are near participating Samsung or third-party stores offering benefits or coupons
• To allow you to interact with and use participating Samsung and third-party apps and services
• To provide you with Samsung Rewards points, as well as tailor our offers to you and provide personalised rewards and benefits.
• To allocate you to a Rewards membership tier based on your accumulated Rewards points to offer you additional benefits.
• To operate, evaluate and improve our Services and our business (including developing new products and services; enhancing and improving our products and services; managing our communications; analysing our products, services and customer base; conducting market research; performing data analytics; and performing accounting, auditing and other internal functions)
• To protect against, identify and prevent fraud and other criminal activity, claims and other liabilities
• To comply with and enforce applicable legal requirements, relevant industry standards and our policies, including this Privacy Notice and the Global Privacy Policy found here: https://account.samsung.com/membership/terms/privacypolicy


Advertising

We will send you relevant advertising, with your consent. The information we use to personalise the advertising we send, and the type of advertising we send, depends on what you have consented to.

• If you have not consented to any of the optional advertising permissions described below, you may still see Samsung advertising on online platforms, which is not tailored to you. This is generic and may be shown to anyone.
• If you have consented to Get news and special offers, you will receive relevant news, special offers and other information about Samsung and its partners’ products and services through email, text messages, notifications and online platforms. The advertising and promotional materials you receive will be relevant to you based on Samsung account and device information we hold about you, including your name, date of birth, email address and products you have registered on Samsung Members or SmartThings, for example.
• If you have consented to Interest-Based Advertisements on your Samsung Smart Hub enabled devices, you will see relevant advertising based on your device information and usage on the Smart Hub enabled devices.
• If you have consented to personalised ads on your Samsung mobile device, you will see relevant advertising based on your device information and usage.
• If you have consented to Improve personalised advertising in addition to any of the above permissions, you will see relevant advertising based on Samsung account data and information we collect through the Customisation Service, if you use it, including app usage, search terms and/or internet browsing history and apps. If you have also consented to Use precise location data, the advertising you see will be relevant according to your precise location.
• If you have consented to advertising cookies being placed on your device or app, we will send you relevant advertising based on the data collected by cookies and similar technologies, for example the fact that you have viewed a page on our website.

You may choose to disable Get news and special offers, Improve personalised advertising, Customisation Service and/or Use precise location data on your mobile device at any time via Samsung account Settings > Security and Privacy menu in your Samsung account. You may opt out of Interest-Based Advertisements on Smart Hub enabled devices via Settings > Terms & Privacy or Settings > General & Privacy > Terms & Privacy.


We use and combine the information we collect about you from our Services with data from other services or features you use, your devices and other sources, such as when you use your Samsung account to log in to other Samsung apps, as well as information about your online activities on websites and connected devices over time and across third-party websites, devices, apps and other online features and services for the purposes above. In addition, when you have separately consented to receive marketing communications from us, we may combine information we collect about you from the Services with data from other Samsung services or features, including to provide you with customised advertisements.

Samsung processes personal information for the purposes described above. Samsung’s legal basis to process personal information is outlined below:



WHO DO WE SHARE YOUR INFORMATION WITH?

We will disclose your information internally within our business and to the following entities which may be located in a jurisdiction foreign to yours, but only for the purposes described above.

• Affiliates : Other Samsung Electronics Group companies (acting as data controllers or data processors) which we control or own.
• Business partners : Partners who we work with to provide our Services (acting as data controllers), such as when you link accounts or services with our business partners in order to provide you with new or improved features. These business partners control and manage your personal information.
• Service providers : Carefully selected companies that provide services for or on behalf of us (acting as data processors), such as cloud platform providers who maintain data on our behalf. These providers are also committed to protecting your information and must enter into legal agreements with Samsung before we share personal data with them.
• Other parties (acting as data controllers) when required by law or as necessary to protect the Services: For example, it may be necessary by law, legal process or court order from governmental authorities to disclose your information. They may also seek your information from us for the purposes of law enforcement, national security, anti-terrorism or other issues that are related to public security.
• Other parties in connection with corporate transactions : We may disclose your information to a third party as part of a merger or transfer, acquisition or sale, or in the event of bankruptcy to other data controllers.
• Other parties with your consent or at your direction : In addition to the disclosures described in this Privacy Notice, we may share information about you with third parties when you separately consent to or request such sharing.


HOW LONG DO WE RETAIN YOUR INFORMATION AND WHERE DOES IT GO?

How long your data will be retained depends on the legal basis relied upon to process your data. For example, data we process to perform our contract with you requires us to keep the data throughout the time you use our Services. As long as you are an active user of our Services, we will retain and process this data. Data such as your account information and device information and identifiers fall into this category.

Data we process in accordance with our legitimate interests, such as your usage of our Services, is only kept for as long as needed for the purposes for which it was collected. For example, this data may be collected to perform analytics so we can develop improvements to our Services, or we may process data to keep a record of inquiries you have made through or about our Services to improve your customer service experience.

In addition, we may also process your data based on your consent. If you withdraw your consent, we will stop processing the data that relies on that consent, but it will not impact the processing of data collected prior to your withdrawal until the purposes for which such data was collected have been achieved.

Please note that although we aim to retain your data for the time period described above, your data may be processed for longer pursuant to applicable law. For example, if a specific statute mandates we require a certain piece of data, we will comply and retain that data until the required retention period expires.

As long as your data is retained by us, your data will always be subject to appropriate safeguards.

Your use of our Services will involve the transfer, storage and processing of your personal information in other countries. Such countries include, without limitation, countries in the European Economic Area, the Republic of Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Singapore, India, Philippines, Poland and Argentina. All international data transfers are subject to legal requirements and appropriate measures to ensure that your personal information is processed safely and as you would expect. To request more information or to obtain a copy of the contractual agreements in place, please see the CONTACT US section of this Privacy Notice.


HOW DO WE KEEP YOUR INFORMATION SECURE?

We take data protection very seriously. We have put in place physical and technical safeguards to keep the information we collect secure. However, please note that although we take reasonable steps to protect your information, no website, internet transmission, computer system or wireless connection is completely secure.


WHAT ARE YOUR RIGHTS?

Your personal information belongs to you. You can ask us to provide details about what we have collected, and you can ask us to delete it or correct any inaccuracies. You can also ask us to restrict or limit the processing, sharing, or transfer of your personal information, as well as to provide you with the personal information that we have collected so you can use it for your own purposes. However, requesting the deletion of your personal information may also result in a loss of access to Services we provide. We will not delete data that we are required by law to retain.

To make a request concerning your rights or to make an inquiry, contact us using the methods outlined in the CONTACT US section.


CONTACT US

You can contact us to update your preferences, correct your information, submit a request or ask us questions.

You can also contact us at:

Data Controller
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
129, Samsung-ro, Yeongtong-gu,
Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do 16677, Republic of Korea

Samsung Electronics has offices across Europe, so we can ensure that your request or query will be handled by the data protection team based in your region.

The easiest way to contact us is through our Privacy Support Page at https://www.samsung.com/request-desk.

You can also contact us at:
European Data Protection Officer
Samsung Electronics (UK) Limited
Samsung House, 1000 Hillswood Drive, Chertsey, Surrey KT16 0PS

You can lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority if you believe that our processing of your personal information infringes applicable law. Contact details for all EU supervisory authorities can be found at https://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/article29/item-detail.cfm?item_id=612080.


UPDATES TO THIS PRIVACY NOTICE

This Privacy Notice may be updated to let you know about changes in how we collect and process your information in our Services or about changes in related laws. The date when the document was last updated is shown at the top of this Privacy Notice.