Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Veldam ("we", "our", or "us") is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use the Veldam platform (website, mobile application, and related services).

By using our platform, you consent to the data practices described in this policy. If you do not agree with this policy, please do not use our services.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account Information: Full name, phone number, email address, date of birth, gender, profile photo, and bio.
• Identity Documents: Aadhaar card, driving license, and vehicle documents submitted for verification.
• Vehicle Information: Vehicle make, model, year, color, registration number, seating capacity, and vehicle images.
• Ride Information: Route details, pickup and drop points, ride preferences, pricing, and booking details.
• Communications: In-app chat messages, reviews, ratings, and complaint reports.
• Emergency Contacts: Names, phone numbers, and relationships of your designated emergency contacts.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Location Data: GPS and network-based location data when you search for rides, publish rides, or use safety features like SOS and ride sharing.
• Device Information: Device type, operating system, browser type, IP address, and unique device identifiers.
• Usage Data: Pages visited, features used, search queries, and interaction patterns within the platform.
• Cookies: We use essential cookies and similar technologies for authentication, security, and session management.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Create and manage your account.
• Facilitate ride searching, booking, and matching between drivers and riders.
• Verify driver identities, documents, and vehicle information.
• Enable safety features including SOS alerts, ride sharing with trusted contacts, and ride tracking.
• Process and facilitate payments and fare calculations.
• Provide customer support and respond to complaints and reports.
• Send service-related notifications, booking confirmations, and ride updates.
• Improve our platform, develop new features, and analyze usage patterns.
• Prevent fraud, enforce our Terms of Service, and ensure platform safety.

4. Information Sharing & Disclosure

We do not sell your personal information. We may share your information in the following circumstances:

• With Other Users: When you book or publish a ride, relevant profile information (name, photo, rating, vehicle details) is shared with the other party to facilitate the ride.
• Emergency Contacts: Your real-time location and ride details may be shared with your emergency contacts when you activate SOS or ride sharing features.
• Service Providers: Trusted third-party providers who assist us in operating the platform (hosting, maps, analytics) under strict confidentiality agreements.
• Legal Requirements: When required by law, court order, or government regulation, or to protect the rights, safety, and security of Veldam and its users.
• Business Transfers: In connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, with appropriate notice to users.

5. Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information, including:

• Encryption of data in transit (TLS/HTTPS) and at rest.
• Secure authentication with token-based sessions and automatic expiry.
• Regular security audits and vulnerability assessments.
• Access controls limiting employee access to personal data on a need-to-know basis.
• Secure storage of identity documents with encrypted file systems.

While we strive to protect your information, no method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide our services. Ride history and transaction records are retained for a minimum of 3 years for legal and regulatory compliance.

Upon account deletion, we will remove your personal information within 90 days, except where retention is required by law. Anonymized, aggregated data may be retained indefinitely for analytics purposes.

7. Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Update or correct inaccurate personal information via your profile settings.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your account and associated personal data.
• Portability: Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
• Withdraw Consent: Withdraw consent for optional data processing activities at any time.

To exercise these rights, contact us at admin@veldam.com.

8. Third-Party Services

Our platform integrates with third-party services including:

• MapmyIndia (Mappls): For location search, geocoding, and route mapping.
• Google/Facebook: For social login authentication (only if you choose to use these login methods).

These third-party services have their own privacy policies. We encourage you to review them.

9. Children's Privacy

Our platform is not intended for users under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors. If we discover that a child under 18 has provided us with personal information, we will delete it promptly.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes via email or in-app notification. Your continued use of the platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Contact Us

For privacy-related inquiries, data requests, or complaints, please contact us:

• Email: admin@veldam.com
• Platform: Report via the "Report an Issue" feature in the Support section.