Privacy Policy

1. Scope, Data Fiduciary & Applicability

This Privacy Policy applies to personal data processed through:

the Mera Samaj mobile apps (including Android package app.merasamaj.mobile);
community web portals and the website at merasamaj.co.in;
customer support, notifications, billing, and administrative tools connected to the Platform.

For users in India, we process personal data in accordance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 ("DPDPA") and related rules, to the extent in force. Where other laws apply (for example GDPR for visitors from the EEA), we honour applicable rights as required by law.

Data fiduciary: For Platform account data, billing, infrastructure logs, and core service operations, Seon Consulting Services acts as the data fiduciary (or "data controller" under other laws).

Community context: Community Administrators may determine certain community-specific policies, moderate content, export permitted reports, and configure privacy defaults for their Community. They are responsible for using member data lawfully within their role and Community Rules.

2. Definitions

"Personal data" means data about an identifiable individual.
"Processing" means any operation performed on personal data, including collection, storage, use, disclosure, deletion, or anonymisation.
"Community Administrator" means a user with elevated permissions to manage a Community, including admins, sub-admins, heads, moderators, and leaders.
"User-Generated Content" means content uploaded, edited, posted, shared, broadcast, or deleted by users or Community Administrators through the Platform.

3. Personal Data We Collect

We collect personal data you provide, data generated through your use of the Platform, and data from your device or browser as described below. Not every user will use every feature; only relevant categories apply to you.

3.1 Account & profile

Mobile phone number (OTP sign-in), optional email address
Display name, username, avatar, bio, language preference
Community membership, role, family/household links, onboarding details
Privacy settings, blocked-user lists, consent ledger entries

3.2 User-generated content & communications

Posts, comments, reactions, polls, stories, news submissions, and feed metadata
Direct messages, group chats, matrimony chat, voice-room activity, read receipts, typing indicators (where enabled)
Photos, videos, audio, documents, and link previews attached to Content
Matrimony profiles, preferences, photos, interests, and visitor/view logs
Marketplace listings, job applications, business listings, microstore products and orders
Event RSVPs, bookings, fundraising campaigns, donations, ad creatives
Tuition tutor profiles, game activity, townhall participation

Note on E2EE: When end-to-end encryption is enabled for a chat, message bodies are encrypted on your device. We process delivery metadata and ciphertext; we do not hold keys to decrypt E2EE message content.

3.3 Jobs & applicant data

When you apply for jobs posted on the Platform, we process application data you submit—such as résumé/CV files, cover letters, work history, education, skills, contact details, and optional portfolio links. Employers and Community Administrators who posted the job may view applicant data through Platform tools. We do not guarantee employer handling of your application data; employers are responsible for their own compliance when they download, forward, or store applications outside the Platform.

3.4 Marketplace, microstores & buyer-seller data

When you buy, sell, or enquire about marketplace listings or microstore products, we may share transactional contact and order details between parties as needed to complete the interaction—for example buyer name, phone number (where you choose to share), pickup address text, order notes, and listing metadata. Payment card data is processed by payment gateways where checkout is enabled; we do not store full card numbers on our servers when tokenisation is used. Disputes about data shared between buyers and sellers are primarily between those parties.

3.5 Location & emergency (SOS)

City, region, or location text in your profile or preferences
Precise latitude/longitude when you trigger SOS or explicitly share location in chat or marketplace pickup flows
Emergency contact names and phone numbers you save for SOS

3.6 Financial & transactional

Subscription plan, payment history, invoices, donation receipts, ad billing records
Payment method tokens or references processed by third-party payment gateways (we do not store full card numbers on our servers where tokenisation is used)

3.7 Technical, device & usage data

Device type, operating system, app version, push notification tokens
IP address, request timestamps, session identifiers, crash reports (if enabled)
Feature usage, rate-limit counters, moderation scores, and security audit events
Analytics or diagnostics only where you have opted in or where necessary for security and operations

3.8 Data from others

Reports or complaints about your Content or conduct
Information Community Administrators upload about members (for example roster imports)
Information other users include when tagging, messaging, or reporting you

3.9 What we do not do

We do not sell your personal data. We do not use personal data for cross-app behavioural advertising profiling unless we introduce such features and update this Policy with required consent.

4. Device Permissions

The mobile app may request OS permissions to enable features. You can revoke permissions in device settings; some features may not work without them.

Permission	Purpose	Required?
Camera	Profile photos, posts, matrimony photos, QR scan, live video, document capture	Optional (feature-dependent)
Microphone	Voice messages, voice rooms, townhalls, live audio	Optional
Location	SOS alerts, nearby members, marketplace pickup, event check-in	Optional
Contacts	Invite friends, emergency contacts, directory sync where enabled	Optional
Notifications	Chat, community posts, job alerts, matrimony interest, security alerts	Optional (recommended)
Storage / photos	Upload media, save exports, offline cache	Optional

5. How We Collect Data

Directly from you when you register, create profiles, post Content, change settings, make payments, or contact support
Automatically when you use the Platform (logs, cookies or similar technologies on web, device identifiers for push delivery)
From Community Administrators when they configure communities, approve members, or export permitted reports
From service providers such as payment gateways, SMS/OTP providers, cloud hosts, and moderation vendors

6. How We Use Personal Data

We process personal data for the following purposes:

Provide the Platform: authenticate you, deliver feeds, chats, notifications, search, and feature modules you enable
Community administration: enable role-based access, leader dashboards, exports, moderation queues, and official channel publishing
Safety & integrity: spam prevention, rate limits, fraud detection, abuse investigation, content moderation tooling, and legal compliance
Payments & billing: process subscriptions, donations, and receipts
Support: respond to requests, deletion/export jobs, and grievances
Improvement: aggregated analytics, performance monitoring, and product development
Legal: comply with court orders, tax law, regulatory requests, and enforce our Terms
Communications: service announcements, security alerts, and—where permitted—product updates; marketing only with consent where required

7. Legal Bases (Including DPDPA)

Depending on context, we rely on one or more of the following:

Consent: for optional features such as precise location sharing, cloud AI processing, marketing messages, analytics opt-in, or visible matrimony profiles where consent is required
Legitimate uses / legitimate interests: to secure the Platform, prevent abuse, process payments, and provide core functionality, balanced against your rights
Legal obligation: tax, accounting, regulatory retention, and lawful requests
Employment of Platform features at your direction: when you post Content or join a Community

You may withdraw consent for optional processing through in-app privacy controls or by contacting us. Withdrawal does not affect prior lawful processing and may limit certain features.

7.1 SMS, WhatsApp & push communications

Channel	Examples	Legal basis
SMS / OTP	Login OTP, deletion confirmation, security alerts	Contract / legitimate use (authentication, security)
WhatsApp	Support replies, onboarding help when you initiate contact	Consent or legitimate use at your request
Push notifications	Chat, posts, job/matrimony alerts you enable	Consent / settings-based legitimate use
Email	Export ready, policy updates, billing receipts	Contract, legal obligation, or consent for marketing

Promotional SMS or WhatsApp campaigns require consent where mandated by telecom and data-protection rules. You may opt out via in-app notification settings or by replying STOP where supported.

8. Community Administrators & Shared Control

This section is important for understanding who can see and manage data in a Community.

Community Administrators may access member profiles, posts, reports, and configuration data as permitted by their role and Platform tools, including moderation queues, member directories, export functions, and feature toggles.
Community Administrators may edit, delete, promote, or restrict User-Generated Content within their Community. Those actions are performed under Community Rules and their own legal obligations—not as employees of Mera Samaj.
Privacy defaults for new members may be set by Community Administrators (for example visibility of phone numbers or directory listing), subject to your ability to change settings where the Platform allows.
Disputes about Community-level visibility or moderation should first be raised with the Community Administrator, without prejudice to your rights under this Policy or applicable law.

Mera Samaj provides infrastructure only. We are not responsible for Community Administrators' independent processing choices that exceed Platform permissions or violate law, though we may intervene where required for Platform-wide safety or legal compliance.

9. Sensitive & Special-Category Data

Certain features involve heightened sensitivity. Please share such data only if you choose to use those features and understand the visibility rules.

Matrimony: may include religion, caste/community, marital history, photos, partner preferences, income, and health-related attributes you voluntarily provide. Treat this as sensitive personal data.
Family & household modules: may reveal relationships and dependents.
SOS / location: precise location during emergencies.
Health-adjacent or biometric data: only if you voluntarily include it in Content; we do not require it for core use.

9.1 Matrimony sensitive data schedule

Data type	Typical visibility	Retention while profile active
Photos & biodata	Matrimony viewers per your settings; admins may moderate	Until profile deleted or account deleted
Caste, religion, gotra	Community/matrimony audience as configured	Same
Marital history, children	Matrimony viewers	Same
Contact details (phone)	Often restricted until mutual interest—check settings	Same
Visitor / interest logs	You and admins for safety	Up to 3 years or until deletion

Where DPDPA or other law requires explicit consent for certain sensitive processing, we seek it through onboarding, feature gates, or privacy toggles.

10. Public & Semi-Public Content Warning

What you post may be visible to your community, Community Administrators, and other members depending on privacy settings and feature context. Content in public feeds, official community channels, comments, matrimony listings (where enabled), marketplace posts, job listings, event pages, and group chats may be seen, copied, screenshotted, or forwarded by others—even if you later delete it from the Platform. Semi-public directories may expose your name, photo, city, or role to community members.

Think before you share phone numbers, home addresses, children's photos, financial details, or matrimony-sensitive attributes. Mera Samaj is not responsible for other users' misuse of information you choose to make visible. See our Terms of Service for content liability limitations.

11. Live Sessions & Recordings

Townhalls, voice rooms, live video, and similar features may be recorded, stored, or transcribed by hosts, Community Administrators, or the Platform where recording is enabled and announced. Recordings may include your voice, image, screen shares, and chat contributions. Hosts are responsible for informing participants and obtaining consent where required by law. We may retain recording metadata and safety logs. You can decline to join live sessions if you do not consent to being recorded where announcement is provided.

12. AI & Automated Decision-Making

Some features use automated processing, including:

on-device AI (for example captions, beautify, or local assistants) that does not send content to our servers when disabled;
cloud AI features only when you opt in via Privacy & data → Cloud AI or equivalent controls;
automated moderation scoring, spam detection, keyword filters, and safety classifiers that may flag Content for review by systems or Community Administrators.

Automated decisions may affect whether Content is published, queued for review, rate-limited, or accounts temporarily restricted. You have the right to request human review of materially significant automated decisions where applicable under DPDPA and other law—contact us or use in-app appeals where available. We do not make solely automated decisions with legal or similarly significant effects without human oversight where law requires it.

13. Cookies, Analytics & Do Not Track

Our website and web app may use cookies, local storage, or similar technologies for authentication, session management, preferences, and security. You can control cookies through browser settings; disabling them may limit functionality.

We honour Do Not Track (DNT) and similar browser signals where technically feasible by limiting non-essential analytics on web. Mobile analytics and crash reporting follow in-app opt-in or opt-out controls where available. We do not respond to every third-party tracker on linked external sites.

14.1 Within the Platform

Personal data and Content are shared with other users according to your privacy settings, Community membership, and feature context (for example chat participants, matrimony viewers, marketplace buyers, or job employers).

14.2 Service providers

We use trusted processors to operate the Platform, such as:

Cloud hosting & database (for example Supabase, Postgres, object storage, Edge compute)
SMS / OTP and email delivery providers
Payment gateways for subscriptions and donations
Push notification services (Apple Push Notification service, Firebase Cloud Messaging, or equivalents)
Content delivery networks for media caching
Crash reporting or analytics vendors only if enabled in your build and disclosed in app store data safety forms

Processors are bound by contractual confidentiality and security obligations and may process data only on our instructions, except where law requires otherwise.

14.3 Law enforcement & legal requests

We may disclose personal data when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to: comply with applicable law, regulation, legal process, or enforceable government or court request; respond to valid legal process from law enforcement or regulatory authorities in India or other jurisdictions with proper authority; protect the safety, rights, or property of users, the public, or Mera Samaj; investigate fraud, security incidents, or abuse; or enforce our Terms. Where legally permitted, we may notify affected users before disclosure. We challenge overbroad or unlawful requests when appropriate.

14.4 Business transfers

If we merge, acquire, or sell assets, personal data may transfer subject to this Policy or notice of a successor policy.

15. Third-Party Links & Services

The Platform may contain links to third-party websites, payment pages, maps, social networks, job boards, or seller storefronts. We are not responsible for the privacy practices, content, security, or availability of third-party sites or services. Your interactions with third parties are governed by their policies. Review their terms before providing personal data.

16. International Data Transfers

Our primary processing is intended to occur in India or regions supported by our cloud providers. Where personal data is transferred outside India, we implement safeguards required by applicable law—including contractual clauses with subprocessors, transfer impact assessments where required, and vendor security reviews. You may contact us for information about transfer safeguards relevant to your data.

17. Data Retention

We retain personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this Policy, unless a longer period is required by law.

Data category	Typical retention
Active account & profile	While account is active
Posts, comments, UGC	While account/content active; deleted on account deletion subject to exceptions
Chat messages (server-side)	Up to 3 years unless deleted earlier or disappearing timers apply
Matrimony profiles	While profile active; deleted with account or profile deletion
Job applications	While post active + reasonable employer access; applicant may delete application where supported
Marketplace / order metadata	While listing active + dispute window; tax records longer if payment involved
CDN media cache	Up to 6 months unless underlying Content remains active
Payment & tax records	Up to 7 years under Indian tax/accounting law
Security & audit logs	As needed for investigations; identifiers minimised over time
Export downloads	14 days after generation
Backups	Generally within 30 days after permanent deletion from active systems
Live session recordings (if stored)	Per host/admin settings or Platform safety retention—typically up to 1 year unless deleted sooner

18. Security & Data Breach Notification

We implement administrative, technical, and organisational measures designed to protect personal data, including:

encryption in transit (TLS 1.2+) and encryption at rest for stored data (for example AES-256 where supported by infrastructure)
role-based access controls, authentication, and audit logging for administrative actions
rate limiting, monitoring, and incident response procedures
optional end-to-end encryption for supported chats

No method of transmission or storage is completely secure. You are responsible for safeguarding your device, OTP codes, and account credentials. Promptly notify us if you suspect unauthorised access.

18.1 Data breach commitment

If we become aware of a personal data breach that is likely to affect your rights, we will investigate promptly, take reasonable steps to mitigate harm, and notify you and relevant authorities as required by applicable law (including DPDPA requirements once fully operational). Notifications will describe the nature of the breach, likely consequences, and measures we are taking, without undue delay where practicable.

19. Your Rights (Including DPDPA)

Subject to applicable law (including the DPDPA), you may have the right to:

Access personal data we hold about you
Correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
Erasure of personal data, subject to legal exceptions
Withdraw consent for optional processing
Export a portable copy of your data
Nominate a representative to exercise rights on your behalf where permitted
Grieve to our Grievance Officer regarding processing concerns
Human review of certain automated decisions (see Section 12)

To exercise rights, use in-app Privacy & data tools (see Sections 20–21) or contact us at support@merasamaj.co.in. We may verify your identity before responding. We aim to respond within thirty (30) days, or sooner where law requires.

19.1 Data Protection Board & complaints

If you are unsatisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Board of India or other competent authority once operational under the DPDPA, and you retain any rights available under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 or other mandatory law that cannot be waived by contract.

20. Delete Your Mera Samaj Account

This section explains how to request permanent deletion of your Mera Samaj account and associated personal data. These steps satisfy Google Play's account-deletion requirements for the Mera Samaj app (app.merasamaj.mobile).

20.1 Who can use this process

Any person who created a Mera Samaj account using their mobile phone number (OTP sign-in) may request deletion. You must be signed in to use the in-app method, or you may contact us if you no longer have access to the app.

20.2 How to delete your account in the Mera Samaj app (recommended)

Open the Mera Samaj app on your Android or iOS device and sign in with your registered phone number.
Go to More → Profile → Privacy & security, or open Privacy & data from the More tab.
Open the Deletion tab, then tap Review deletion controls (or go to Settings → Data export & deletion).
Review what will be deleted and what may be retained (see Section 20.4).
Tap Request account deletion and confirm by typing your username, display name, or user ID exactly as shown.
Your account enters a grace period (typically 7 days). During this window your profile is hidden and deletion is scheduled; you may cancel deletion from the same screen if you change your mind.
After the grace period ends, we permanently erase your account and associated personal data according to our deletion pipeline (typically completed within 30 days of permanent deletion).

20.3 How to delete your account on the web

Sign in at your community's Mera Samaj web URL.
Open Settings → Privacy & data.
Select the Delete account tab.
Follow the prompts to schedule deletion. The same grace period and cancellation rules apply as in the mobile app.

20.4 What we delete when you delete your account

When deletion is completed, we delete or anonymise personal data linked to your identity, including where applicable:

Account credentials and profile (name, phone number, email if provided, avatar, bio, community membership)
Family and household links tied to your user ID
Posts, comments, reactions, polls, and other feed content you authored
Direct messages, group chat participation, and matrimony chat tied to your account
Matrimony profile, photos, interests, and related activity
Marketplace listings, job posts, event RSVPs, and bookings you created
Business or ad listings associated with your account
Uploaded photos and videos stored on our servers for your content
Push notification tokens and device session records
Privacy settings, consent history, and blocked-user lists
Emergency (SOS) contacts you saved and SOS alerts you triggered (location included)
Discoverability in member directory and nearby members

20.5 What we may keep (and why)

Some data may be retained after account deletion where required by law, for fraud prevention, or for legitimate business records:

Payment and billing records — retained up to seven (7) years as required for tax and accounting law in India, typically in anonymised or minimised form where the account no longer exists.
Audit and security logs (admin actions, moderation decisions, abuse reports involving your account) — retained as needed for safety investigations and legal compliance; personal identifiers are minimised or anonymised where possible.
Aggregated or de-identified analytics that cannot reasonably be used to identify you.
Content you posted that others rely on (for example, replies in a thread) may be anonymised ("Deleted user") rather than fully removed, where removing it would harm other members' conversations.
Backups — encrypted backups may retain copies until the next backup rotation cycle (generally within 30 days after permanent deletion).

We do not sell your personal data before or after deletion.

20.6 If you cannot access the app

Email or message us through our contact page or call 9100003300 from the phone number registered on your account. Include:

Your full name
Registered mobile phone number
Community name (if known)
Clear statement: "I request permanent deletion of my Mera Samaj account"

We may verify your identity (OTP to your registered number or other reasonable check) before processing the request. We will confirm by email or SMS when deletion is scheduled and when it is complete.

20.7 Timeline summary

Stage	What happens
Request submitted	Profile hidden; deletion scheduled; you receive in-app confirmation
Grace period (~7 days)	You may cancel deletion from the app or web
Permanent deletion	Automated erasure job removes personal data from active systems
Within ~30 days	Personal data removed from primary databases and backups (except legal retention items in Section 20.5)

21. Delete Specific Data Without Deleting Your Account

You do not need to delete your entire account to remove or control many types of personal data. Use the options below to delete specific data while keeping your Mera Samaj account active.

21.1 Export your data (access before deletion)

Mobile app: More → Privacy & data → Export tab → Open export center, or Settings → Data export & deletion. Request a JSON export of your profile, family, posts, media references, bookings, marketplace activity, and payments. Downloads are available for 14 days after the export is ready.

Web app: Settings → Privacy & data → Export → Request Data Export.

21.2 Delete or edit content you created

Posts and comments: open the item → menu (⋯) → Delete (or edit to remove personal information).
Photos and videos: delete from the post, profile, or matrimony section where uploaded; server copies are removed from active storage per our media retention rules.
Chat messages: delete for yourself or for everyone where the feature is available; use disappearing messages for automatic purge after a timer you choose.
Matrimony profile: deactivate or delete from the matrimony section of the app.
Marketplace / jobs / events: remove or close your listings and RSVPs from the relevant module.

Community Administrator actions: admins or moderators may also remove or edit Content you posted where permitted by Community Rules. Contact your Community Administrator for community-level removals.

21.3 Update or remove profile and privacy settings

Profile fields (name, bio, city, photo): edit in Profile → Edit profile.
Phone number: contact support if you need to change or remove your login number.
Directory visibility: Privacy & data → toggle off Show in nearby members or Profile discoverable in search.
Family details visibility: Privacy settings → control who can see family information.
Blocked users: Settings → Blocked users → unblock or manage list.
Read receipts and messaging privacy: Privacy & security → Messaging privacy.
Push notifications: disable in app Settings or your device OS settings; we stop sending pushes but may retain a token until you log out on all devices.
Crash reports (diagnostics): Privacy & data → adjust crash-reporting preference where available.
Cloud AI features: Privacy & data → Cloud AI tab → disable cloud processing; on-device features may still run locally without sending content to our servers.

21.4 Delete emergency (SOS) contacts and location preferences

Emergency contacts: open SOS in the app → edit or remove saved emergency contacts.
Location preferences: Privacy settings or SOS screen → clear saved location text; revoke location permission in Android/iOS settings to stop future precise location collection.
Past SOS alerts: contact us via contact if you need a specific SOS record removed before routine retention expires.

21.5 Request deletion of data you cannot remove in-app

If a feature does not yet offer self-service deletion, contact us at merasamaj.co.in/contact or 9100003300 with:

Your registered phone number and community name
Description of the data you want deleted (e.g., "matrimony photos", "payment history display", "specific chat thread")
Whether you want to keep your account active

We respond within a reasonable time (typically within 30 days) and delete or anonymise the data unless we must retain it for legal reasons (see Section 20.5).

21.6 What partial deletion does not do

Deleting individual posts or turning off visibility does not delete your account, payment records required for tax purposes, or security audit logs. For full removal of your identity from Mera Samaj, use Section 20.

22. Children's Privacy & Tuition

The Platform is intended for users aged 18 and above for general registration. Certain features (such as matrimony or contractual marketplace transactions) require adult capacity.

We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 18 without appropriate parental or guardian authority where a Community explicitly enrols minors as part of family features. Tuition listings involving minors require parental or guardian consent before a child's personal data (name, photo, class, location) is shared through the Platform; parents should review tutor profiles and Community Rules before enrolment.

If you believe we collected data from a child improperly, contact us and we will take appropriate steps to delete it.

23. Marketing & Communications

We may send service-related messages (OTP, security alerts, deletion confirmations, community notifications you enable) without separate marketing consent. Promotional messages are sent only where permitted by law and your preferences. You may opt out of non-essential marketing through in-app settings or unsubscribe links. See Section 7.1 for SMS, WhatsApp, and push legal bases.

24. User-Generated Content & Privacy

Content you publish may be visible to other members, Community Administrators, or the public depending on settings and feature context. You are responsible for what you share. Mera Samaj is not liable for other users' misuse of information you choose to make visible, or for Community Administrators' handling of Content within their lawful role. See our Terms of Service for content liability limitations.

25. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated through the Platform, email/SMS where appropriate, or by updating the "Last updated" date, with at least thirty (30) days notice where practicable for material reductions of your rights. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance unless law requires explicit consent for specific changes.

26. Contact, Grievance Officer & Data Protection Contact

For privacy questions, data rights, or account deletion:

Phone: 9100003300
Web: merasamaj.co.in/contact
Support email: support@merasamaj.co.in

Grievance Officer (IT Rules 2021 & DPDPA-related complaints):

Name: Grievance Officer, Seon Consulting Services
Email: grievance@merasamaj.co.in
Response timeline: acknowledgement within twenty-four (24) hours where practicable; resolution within fifteen (15) days, or as required by applicable law

Seon Consulting Services
105-3/2/7, Masab Tank, Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Brand: Mera Samaj

Account deletion: Section 20 · Partial data deletion: Section 21