Privacy Policy

1. What we collect

Identity and verification data

• Full name, date of birth, gender (where provided);
• Mobile number and email address, both OTP or link verified;
• Government-issued identity document type, document number and a scan or photograph of it (Aadhaar, passport, driving licence or voter ID);
• A live selfie captured for facial matching against the identity document;
• Verification status, verification timestamps and the outcome of any checks.

Financial data

• For Travellers: bank account details for payouts, held in your own name;
• Transaction records — amounts, timestamps, escrow status and payout history.

We do not store your full card number, CVV or UPI PIN. Card and UPI payments are processed directly by our payment partners.

Shipment and activity data

• Parcel declarations: description of contents, category, weight, dimensions and declared value;
• Pickup and delivery addresses, receiver name and contact number;
• Trip details published by Travellers — route, date and mode of travel;
• OTP entry events, pickup and delivery photographs, and associated timestamps;
• Location data during an active shipment, used for tracking;
• In-app messages between users, ratings, reviews, reports and dispute submissions.

Technical data

• Device identifiers, operating system and app version;
• IP address, approximate location derived from it, and access logs;
• Usage analytics — features used, screens viewed, errors encountered.

2. Why we collect it

We process personal data only for specified purposes:

• Verification and platform safety. To confirm you are a real, identifiable person before you can send or carry a parcel, and to prevent fraud, impersonation and repeat abuse.
• Providing the service. To match Senders with Travellers, enable communication, process bookings and deliver notifications.
• Payments. To process payments, operate escrow, release payouts, issue refunds and maintain financial records.
• Chain of custody and disputes. To record who handed what to whom, when and where, and to resolve claims of loss, damage or non-delivery on evidence.
• Legal compliance. To meet obligations under applicable law and to respond to lawful requests from authorities.
• Service improvement. To understand usage patterns, diagnose faults and improve the product, using aggregated or de-identified data wherever possible.
• Communications. To send transactional messages about your shipments, and — only with your consent — updates about the service.

3. What other users can see about you

Another user involved in a booking with you can see only:

• Your display name and profile photograph;
• Your verification badge — confirming you are verified, not how;
• Your trust score, star rating, completed-delivery count and cancellation rate;
• Approximate city and the route relevant to the booking;
• For an active booking only: the pickup or delivery address required to complete it, and a masked contact number that is unmasked at the point of handover.

4. Who we share data with

We do not sell your personal data. We share it only in these circumstances:

• Verification providers — to validate identity documents and perform facial matching;
• Payment partners — to process payments, hold escrow and settle payouts;
• Infrastructure and communication providers — cloud hosting, SMS, email and push notification services, under contractual confidentiality and security obligations;
• The other party to your booking — limited to the fields listed in section 3;
• Law enforcement and regulators — where we are required to disclose by law, or in response to a valid request made through lawful process. We assess each request and disclose only what is legally required;
• Professional advisers and insurers — where necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal claims, or to administer a protection claim;
• A successor entity — in connection with a merger, acquisition or restructuring, subject to this policy continuing to apply.

5. How we protect it

• Identity document images and identity numbers are encrypted at rest and stored separately from general profile data;
• All data in transit is protected with TLS;
• Access to verification data is restricted to named personnel with a specific operational need, and every access is logged;
• Identity documents are never stored in publicly accessible storage locations;
• Payment credentials are handled by PCI-compliant payment partners, not by us;
• We maintain audit logs of verification events, shipment events, payments and administrative access.

No system is perfectly secure. If a personal data breach occurs that is likely to affect you, we will notify you and the relevant authority as required by applicable law.

6. How long we keep it

When you close your account we delete or anonymise your data except where we must retain it to meet a legal obligation, to resolve an open dispute or claim, or to prevent fraud and abuse.

7. Your rights

Subject to applicable law and to our legal-retention obligations, you may:

• Access the personal data we hold about you and a summary of how it is processed;
• Correct data that is inaccurate, incomplete or out of date;
• Erase data we no longer have a lawful basis to keep;
• Withdraw consent for processing that relies on consent;
• Nominate another individual to exercise these rights on your behalf in the event of death or incapacity;
• Complain to our Grievance Officer and, if unsatisfied, to the relevant data protection authority.

Write to privacy@carrybuddies.com. We will verify your identity before acting and respond within the timeframe required by law.

8. Consent and its limits

We ask for consent at the point of collection, with a clear notice explaining the purpose. Consent for marketing is always optional and separate from consent required to operate your account.

9. Cookies and similar technologies

Our website uses cookies that are strictly necessary for the site to function, and — where you accept them — analytics cookies that help us understand how the site is used. You can control cookies through your browser settings. The mobile app uses device identifiers for authentication, security and analytics.

10. Children

CarryBuddies is not available to anyone under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If we learn that we have, we will delete it and close the account.

11. Contact and grievance redressal

For any privacy question, request or complaint:

Data Fiduciary: Driven Innovation Solutions Private Limited, which owns and operates the CarryBuddies platform. CIN U63112HR2026PTC147339 · GSTIN 06AAMCD8500B1Z0. Registered office: H. No. 5318, Ward No. 3, Kesar Nagar, Jagadhri Court, Jagadhri, Yamunanagar, Haryana 135001, India.

• Data protection enquiries: privacy@carrybuddies.com
• Grievance Officer: [Name to be appointed] — grievance@carrybuddies.com
• Postal: Grievance Officer, Driven Innovation Solutions Private Limited, H. No. 5318, Ward No. 3, Kesar Nagar, Jagadhri Court, Jagadhri, Yamunanagar, Haryana 135001, India

We will acknowledge grievances promptly and resolve them within the period prescribed by applicable law. If you remain dissatisfied, you may escalate to the relevant data protection authority in India.

We may update this policy as our practices or the law change. Material changes will be notified in-app or by email before they take effect.