Privacy Policy

Effective Date: September 23, 2026 | Last Updated: September 23, 2026

PODY Technologies Private Limited ("PODY", "we", "our", or "us") respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, process, store, and protect your personal data when you use the PODY mobile application, website, and related services, in strict compliance with India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDP Act) and applicable global data protection standards.

      Core Commitment: We never sell your personal data. We only collect the minimum information required to facilitate peer-to-peer appliance transactions, maintain digital warranty passports, and connect households with verified neighborhood electricians.
    

1. Data We Collect

We collect the following categories of information:

Account & Identity Data: Mobile phone number (verified via Firebase SMS OTP), optional display name, profile avatar, and primary household locality.
Electrician KYC & Verification Data: For service professionals registering on the PODY Electrician Directory, we collect government identity proofs (such as Aadhaar card number, PAN card, or electrician certifications) strictly for background verification and scam prevention. Document files are encrypted and locked on private cloud storage.
Appliance & Digital Passport Data: Appliance brand, model, purchase year, condition photos, invoices, and serial numbers submitted to generate cryptographic Digital Passports.
Transaction & Communication Data: UPI Reference Numbers (UTR) submitted for lead token recharges or ad promotions, buyer-seller chat messages, and fraud reports.
Location Data: Approximate locality and GPS coordinates (with your permission) to compute proximity between buyers, sellers, and neighborhood service providers.

2. Lawful Purpose for Data Processing

We process your data exclusively for:

Authenticating user sessions securely via SMS OTP.
Matching appliance buyers with nearby verified sellers.
Enabling direct call and WhatsApp handshakes protected by Scam Shield.
Auditing electrician credibility and ensuring customer safety.
Detecting fraudulent listings, suspicious token orders, and duplicate accounts.

3. Data Protection & Security Controls

Your data is secured through:

Granular Firebase Security Rules restricting access to Aadhaar/PAN files exclusively to the document owner and verified administrators.
Transport Layer Security (TLS 1.3) encryption in transit and AES-256 encryption at rest.
Zero public storage buckets for private documents.
Automated container cleanup policies to prevent stale artifact retention.

4. Your Rights under the DPDP Act 2023

Under Section 11, 12, and 13 of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, you possess:

Right to Access: Review all personal data, appliance passports, and order histories associated with your account.
Right to Correction: Update inaccurate phone numbers, names, or addresses anytime from the Settings page.
Right to Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten"): Request complete deletion of your account and all associated data. You can trigger this directly in the app under Settings > Delete Account & Wipe Data, or via our public Account Deletion Page.
Right to Grievance Redressal: Contact our designated Data Protection Grievance Officer with any privacy concerns.

5. Third-Party Services

We interact with trusted infrastructure providers:

Google Cloud Platform & Firebase: Authentication, Firestore database, and Cloud Functions (hosted in India and US regions).
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) UPI: Deep-links for direct bank-to-bank UPI transfers without intermediary card storage.

6. Grievance Officer Contact

If you have any questions, feedback, or grievance regarding data processing under the DPDP Act 2023, contact:

Data Protection Grievance Officer
PODY Technologies Private Limited
Email: grievance@pody.in
Support: support@pody.in
Address: HSR Layout, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560102, India