Privacy Policy

1. Parent-Authorized Guardian Consent & Minor Data

Parikshawala is an educational assessment platform specifically engineered for parents and legal guardians to monitor and enhance the academic growth of their children in Classes 6 through 10 (CBSE and ICSE curricula).

In compliance with India's Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023 and the Google Play Families Policy:

• Student profiles can only be registered and administered by a verified parent or legal guardian.
• Parental identity and verifiable consent are validated via multi-channel cryptographic One-Time Password (OTP) verification sent to the parent's mobile phone (SMS) or email address.
• No child can independently sign up, purchase subscriptions, or alter data privacy configurations without parental authentication.

2. Information We Collect

To provide accurate diagnostic evaluation and curriculum feedback, we collect only the minimum necessary information:

• Parent Contact Information: Full name, mobile phone number, email address, state, and city. Used exclusively for parent authentication, account administration, critical service notifications, and payment receipts.
• Student Academic Profile: Student first name or pseudonym, school name (optional), Board of Education (CBSE / ICSE), Grade level (Classes 6–10), and a privacy-preserving 6-character Bijective Student ID (e.g., 39B0WE).
• Handwritten Paper Scans: Images of handwritten worksheets, homework, and exam answer sheets uploaded by the parent or student for academic rubric evaluation, step-by-step marking, and teacher remarks.
• Technical & Session Data: Browser session information, IP address, device model, operating system version, and anonymous crash telemetry strictly for service stability, fraud prevention, and performance diagnostics.

3. Mobile App Device Permissions (Google Play Disclosure)

The Parikshawala Android mobile app requests minimal device permissions strictly tied to user-initiated academic paper submissions:

Permissions We Never Access: Parikshawala does NOT request or access device location (GPS), contact lists, microphones, SMS inbox, phone calls, or biometric hardware.

4. How We Use and Process Your Information

All information collected is processed exclusively for educational purposes:

• Step-by-Step Diagnostic Evaluation: Extracting handwritten responses to assess conceptual understanding, formula application, and marking rubric compliance against official CBSE/CISCE standards.
• Cognitive Gap Analysis: Generating comprehensive 8-axis syllabus mastery scorecards, strength/weakness charts, and personalized remedial practice recommendations.
• Cross-Platform Synchronization: Seamlessly synchronizing test records and evaluations between the web portal and the mobile companion app.
• Service Communications: Delivering OTPs, transactional service alerts, score notifications, and GST-compliant tax invoices.

5. Data Security, Encryption & Storage Standards

We maintain stringent, enterprise-grade physical, electronic, and managerial safeguards:

• Encryption In-Transit: All communication between user devices, our web portal, mobile app, and API gateways is encrypted with modern TLS 1.3 protocols.
• Encryption At-Rest: Database storage and uploaded worksheet images are secured in cloud storage containers utilizing AES-256 bit encryption.
• Strict Database Access Control: Supabase PostgreSQL databases enforce strict Row Level Security (RLS), guaranteeing that parents can only access records belonging to their own registered family account.

6. Third-Party Service Providers

We work exclusively with vetted, ISO/PCI-certified infrastructure partners to operate our platform:

• Cloud Infrastructure & CDN: Cloudflare Inc. and Google Cloud Platform (secure compute, API routing, and asset caching).
• Database & Authentication: Supabase Inc. (secure PostgreSQL database and cryptographic session management).
• Payment Gateway: Razorpay Software Private Limited (PCI-DSS compliant payment processing for UPI, Net Banking, and Cards). Parikshawala never handles or stores debit/credit card numbers or UPI PINs.
• Communication Gateways: Twilio Inc. (SMS OTPs) and Resend / Cloudflare Workers (transactional email verification and invoice delivery).

We do not partner with, embed SDKs from, or share data with third-party advertising networks (e.g., Google AdMob, Meta Audience Network, or data broker platforms).

7. Parent Rights & Account / Data Deletion (Google Play Compliance)

In full compliance with Google Play's Account Deletion and Data Safety Requirements and the DPDP Act 2023, parents retain absolute control over their family's personal data:

• Profile Editing & Removal: Parents can view, modify, or delete individual student profiles at any time directly through the dashboard interface. Deleting a student profile immediately purges all associated handwritten submissions and scorecards.
• Complete Account Deletion Request: Parents can request the complete and permanent deletion of their account and all associated family records at any time.
• How to Request Deletion:
  • Email our dedicated Data Protection Officer at: [email protected] with the subject line "Account Deletion Request" from your registered email address.
  • Or submit a deletion request via our in-app / dashboard support channel.
• Deletion Processing Timeline: All personal identifiers, student submissions, evaluation history, and authentication credentials will be permanently erased from active production databases within 7 calendar days. Transactional tax invoice records are retained solely for the statutory period mandated by Indian tax and accounting laws.

8. 100% Non-Addictive Student Space Guarantee

Parikshawala is intentionally designed to minimize student screen time. The mobile companion app serves solely as a camera scanner and feedback viewer—completely devoid of social feeds, gamified dopamine loops, or endless algorithmic scrolling. Students scan their physical paper, review teacher comments, and immediately return to pen-and-paper learning.

9. Updates to this Policy

We may periodically update this Privacy Policy to reflect enhancements in our practices or changes in applicable regulatory laws. Any modifications will be posted directly to this page with an updated "Effective Date". Continued use of the platform constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

10. Contact Us & Grievance Officer

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your data, please contact: