Privacy Policy

Effective date: [DD Month YYYY] Last updated: [DD Month YYYY]

DRAFT — not yet legally reviewed. Items marked [CONFIRM] are factual claims I could not verify from the codebase. You must confirm each one is true before publishing. Publishing an unverified claim is worse than publishing no claim.


1. About this policy

Smaqq is a learning app for school students. Because many of our users are children, we have tried to write this policy in plain language so that both students and parents can understand it.

This policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, who we share it with, and the choices you and your parent or guardian have.

Smaqq is operated by [COMPANY LEGAL NAME], a company incorporated in India (CIN: [CIN]), with its registered office at [REGISTERED ADDRESS], India. In this policy, "we", "us" and "our" mean [COMPANY LEGAL NAME]. "You" means the person using Smaqq.

This policy applies to the Smaqq mobile application and the website at www.smaqq.in (together, the "Service").

We follow India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 ("DPDP Act"). Under that law we are a "Data Fiduciary" — the entity responsible for your personal data.


2. A note for parents and guardians

Smaqq is designed for school students, and many of our users are under 18.

Under the DPDP Act, anyone under the age of 18 is a child. This means:

  • We require the consent of a parent or legal guardian before a child's personal data is processed.
  • We do not show behavioural or targeted advertising to children.
  • We do not track or monitor a child's behaviour for advertising purposes.
  • We do not use a child's data to build marketing profiles.

A parent or guardian can, at any time, ask us to show them what data we hold about their child, correct it, or delete it. Section 12 explains how.


3. Information we collect

3.1 Information you give us when you sign up

WhatWhy we need it
First name and last nameTo create your profile and personalise the app
Mobile numberThis is your account identifier, and how we send you a one-time password (OTP) to sign in
Email address and Google account details, if you sign in with GoogleTo create and secure your account. Google gives us your name, email address, profile picture and Google account ID
Password, if you choose to sign in with oneTo secure your account. Passwords are stored in hashed form and cannot be read by us
Your school board and gradeTo show you learning content matched to your syllabus and year
Academic yearTo keep your progress organised by year
AvatarTo represent you in the app and on leaderboards
Referral code, if you have oneTo credit the person who referred you
Your answer to the onboarding questionTo understand how you found us and improve our onboarding

3.2 Parent or guardian details

Where a parent or guardian is linked to a student account, we collect the parent's name, relationship to the student, mobile number and email address. We use this to obtain and record consent, to contact the parent about the account, and to let the parent exercise their rights under Section 12.

3.3 Voice recordings and spoken answers

Some questions in Smaqq let you answer by speaking instead of typing.

This is always your choice. Voice questions can be answered another way, and the microphone is only used while you are actively answering a voice question. Your device will ask for microphone permission first, and you can refuse or withdraw it at any time in your device settings.

When you use this feature:

  • Your device records your spoken answer.
  • The recording is sent to a speech recognition service provided by Google on your device platform, which converts your speech into text.
  • We receive the text transcript, and use it to score your answer.
  • [CONFIRM] We do not store the raw audio recording on our servers. Only the text transcript is retained. (If you do store audio, this sentence must be rewritten to say so, and you must give a retention period.)

Google's handling of the audio is governed by Google's own privacy policy.

3.4 How your answers are scored

Some answers, including spoken answers, are scored automatically using an AI system that compares your answer against an expected rubric.

  • These scores affect your progress, points and leaderboard position within the app only.
  • They are not decisions that carry legal consequences, and they are not shared with your school as an assessment.
  • If you think a score is wrong, you can contact us using the details in Section 14 and a person will review it.
  • [CONFIRM] We do not use student answers to train third-party AI models. (Confirm this with whoever built the grading pipeline before publishing.)

3.5 Information collected automatically

When you use Smaqq, we collect:

  • Device information: device type, operating system, app version, and user agent
  • IP address
  • Usage data: which screens you open, games you play, questions attempted, scores, streaks, coins earned and time spent
  • Notification token: a device token from Firebase Cloud Messaging, so we can send you push notifications

We use this to run the app, keep your progress in sync, fix bugs, keep accounts secure, and understand which features are useful.

3.6 What we do NOT collect

To be clear, we do not collect:

  • Your precise location or GPS data
  • Your contacts, photos, files or messages
  • Your fingerprint or face data. If your device offers biometric unlock, that check happens entirely on your device and the biometric data never reaches us
  • Financial or payment card information

4. Storage on your device

Smaqq stores some information locally on your phone so the app works properly:

  • Login tokens, kept in your device's secure storage (Android Keystore), so you stay signed in
  • Preferences, such as sound and notification settings
  • Cached content, so the app loads faster and works during brief network drops

This information stays on your device. Uninstalling the app removes it.

Smaqq is a mobile app and does not use browser cookies. Our website www.smaqq.in uses only the cookies necessary to make the site work.


5. Why we process your data, and our legal basis

Under the DPDP Act we process personal data on the basis of consent, which you (or your parent, if you are under 18) give when you create an account and accept this policy. Certain limited processing happens on the basis of legitimate uses permitted by the Act, such as complying with a legal obligation or preventing fraud.

We process your data to:

  1. Create and manage your account
  2. Deliver learning content matched to your board and grade
  3. Score your answers and track your progress, streaks and rewards
  4. Operate leaderboards and the city-building game features
  5. Send you push notifications about your streaks, rewards and progress
  6. Keep the Service secure and prevent cheating, abuse and fraudulent accounts
  7. Fix problems and improve the app
  8. Respond to your questions and grievances
  9. Comply with Indian law

We do not sell your personal data. We do not share it with advertisers.


6. What other users can see

Smaqq includes leaderboards and shared game features. Other users of Smaqq can see:

  • Your display name
  • Your avatar
  • Your rank, score and city progress

That is all. Other users cannot see your mobile number, email address, parent's details, school, individual answers, or voice recordings.

If you or your parent would prefer you not to appear on leaderboards, contact us using the details in Section 14 and we will remove you.


7. Who we share data with

We share personal data only with service providers who help us run Smaqq, and only to the extent they need it. They are required to protect it and may not use it for their own purposes.

ProviderWhat they handlePurpose
Google FirebaseDevice tokens, app diagnosticsPush notifications and app infrastructure
Google Sign-InName, email, Google account IDOptional sign-in method
Google speech recognitionSpoken audioConverting speech to text
[CONFIRM] [SMS/OTP provider name]Mobile numberSending one-time passwords
[CONFIRM] [Cloud hosting provider name]All stored dataHosting our servers and database

We may also disclose personal data where we are legally required to do so — for example, in response to a valid order from a court, regulator or law enforcement agency — or where necessary to protect the safety of a user or the public.

If our business is ever merged, acquired or reorganised, personal data may transfer to the new entity. If that happens, we will notify you and the new entity will remain bound by this policy or a policy at least as protective.


8. Where your data is stored

[CONFIRM] Your data is stored on servers located in [REGION — e.g. India (Mumbai)].

Some of our service providers, including Google, may process data on servers outside India. Where that happens, we rely on those providers' contractual protections. The DPDP Act permits such transfers except to countries that the Government of India has specifically restricted, and we comply with any such restrictions.


9. How long we keep your data

DataRetention period
Account and profile dataUntil you delete your account, then up to [CONFIRM: e.g. 30] days in backups
Learning progress, scores, coinsUntil you delete your account
Voice transcripts[CONFIRM: e.g. 90 days], then deleted
Raw voice audioNot retained — [CONFIRM]
Device and usage logs[CONFIRM: e.g. 180 days]
Records we must keep by lawFor the period the law requires

When a retention period ends, we delete the data or irreversibly anonymise it so it can no longer identify you.


10. How we protect your data

We take security seriously, and we also want to be honest about what we do and do not claim.

What we do:

  • All data sent between the app and our servers is encrypted in transit using HTTPS/TLS
  • Login tokens are stored in your device's secure keystore, not in plain storage
  • Passwords are stored hashed, never in readable form
  • Access to production data is limited to team members who need it
  • Sessions expire and can be revoked

What we do not claim: no system is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, and we do not hold any formal security certification at this time. If we become aware of a personal data breach affecting you, we will notify you and the Data Protection Board of India as required by the DPDP Act.


11. Push notifications

We send push notifications about streaks, rewards, new content and account activity. You can turn these off at any time in your device settings, or in Preferences inside the app. Turning them off will not stop you from using Smaqq.


12. Your rights

Under the DPDP Act, you — or your parent or guardian if you are under 18 — have the right to:

  • Access a summary of the personal data we hold about you and how we process it
  • Correct data that is wrong, and complete data that is incomplete
  • Erase your personal data, unless we are legally required to keep it
  • Withdraw consent at any time. Withdrawing consent means we can no longer provide the Service, so this will result in your account being closed
  • Nominate another person to exercise these rights on your behalf if you die or become incapacitated
  • Raise a grievance with us, and escalate to the Data Protection Board of India if you are not satisfied with our response

Deleting your account

You can delete your account yourself: open Account Settings in the app and choose Delete Account.

You can also request deletion by emailing us at [GRIEVANCE EMAIL], or through the deletion request page at [CONFIRM: https://www.smaqq.in/delete-account].

When you delete your account, your profile, progress, coins and rewards are permanently removed. Coins and in-app rewards have no monetary value and cannot be refunded or transferred. We will complete deletion within [CONFIRM: e.g. 30] days, except for anything we must keep by law.

To exercise any other right, contact us using the details in Section 14. We will respond within [CONFIRM: e.g. 30] days.


13. Third-party links and services

Smaqq may link to websites or services we do not operate. We are not responsible for their content or privacy practices, and we encourage you to read their policies.

Smaqq is distributed through Google Play. Your use of Google Play is governed by Google's terms and privacy policy.


14. Contact us and Grievance Officer

For any question, request or complaint about your personal data, contact our Grievance Officer:

Grievance Officer: [NAME] Email: [GRIEVANCE EMAIL — use a role address such as privacy@smaqq.in, not a personal address] Address: [REGISTERED ADDRESS]

We will acknowledge your request and respond within [CONFIRM: e.g. 30] days.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may escalate your complaint to the Data Protection Board of India.


15. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as Smaqq changes or as the law requires.

If a change is material — for example, if we start collecting a new type of data or use your data for a new purpose — we will notify you in the app or by email before the change takes effect, and where the law requires it, we will ask for your consent again.

The "Last updated" date at the top of this policy always shows the current version. We encourage you to review it from time to time.


[COMPANY LEGAL NAME] — [REGISTERED ADDRESS], India