Privacy Policy

01

About This Policy & Our Company

This Privacy Policy is published by ZW Technologies Private Limited ("Company", "we", "us", or "our"), a company incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013, and operating the SalonQ platform — India's first AI-powered salon queue management system.

This policy applies to:

The SalonQ mobile application (Android and iOS)
The SalonQ website at salonqapp.in
The SalonQ Business application for salon owners and staff
All APIs and services operated by ZW Technologies

Governing Laws: This Privacy Policy is governed by and compliant with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA), 2023, the Information Technology Act, 2000, the Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices and Procedures and Sensitive Personal Data or Information) Rules, 2011, and all other applicable Indian laws.

By using the SalonQ platform, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree, please discontinue use of our services.

02

Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal data from users of the SalonQ platform:

Category	Data Collected	Who Provides It	Purpose
Identity	Full name, gender	Customer at registration	Account creation, personalisation
Contact	Mobile phone number	All users at login	OTP authentication, notifications
Location	GPS coordinates	Customer (when app is open)	Find nearby salons on map
Device	Device ID, FCM token, OS, platform	Automatically on app install	Push notifications, security
Transactional	Queue history, services, salon visits	Generated by platform use	Service delivery, AI ETA training
Financial	Payment method (last 4 digits only)	Salon owner at billing	Subscription billing via Razorpay
Business	Salon name, address, GST number, photos	Salon owner at registration	Salon listing, GST invoicing
Staff	Name, phone, specializations, performance data	Salon owner adds staff	Queue management, AI ETA

Sensitive Personal Data: Under Indian IT Rules 2011, location data and financial information are classified as Sensitive Personal Data or Information (SPDI). We collect only what is strictly necessary and with your explicit consent.

What We Do NOT Collect

Aadhaar numbers, PAN numbers, or government IDs (except for company KYC purposes)
Biometric data (fingerprints, facial recognition)
Bank account numbers or full card details (Razorpay handles this with PCI DSS compliance)
Passwords (we use OTP-only authentication)
Email addresses (optional, only if provided)
Any data from users under 13 years of age

03

How We Use Your Information

We use the personal data we collect for the following specific purposes:

Account creation and authentication: Your phone number is used to create and verify your SalonQ account via OTP.
Queue management: Your name and token number are shared with the salon to manage your place in the queue.
AI-powered ETA predictions: Service history and staff performance data are used to calculate accurate wait time estimates.
Push notifications: Your FCM device token is used to send you free queue status alerts, ETA notifications, and service completion messages.
Map and location services: Your GPS coordinates are used to show nearby salons with live wait times on the map. We do not track your location in the background.
Billing and invoicing: Salon owner business details are used to generate GST-compliant invoices for subscription payments.
Customer support: Contact details are used to resolve complaints and provide assistance.
Platform safety: We use data to detect fraud, prevent abuse, and maintain platform security.
Analytics and improvement: Anonymised and aggregated usage data helps us improve the platform.

We do NOT use your data for: Targeted advertising, selling to third-party marketers, profiling for purposes unrelated to SalonQ, or any purpose not listed above.

04

Legal Basis for Processing

Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA) 2023, we process your personal data on the following legal bases:

Consent: You provide explicit consent at registration by agreeing to this Privacy Policy. You may withdraw consent at any time (see Section 8).
Contract performance: Processing necessary to provide the queue management services you have requested.
Legitimate interest: Platform security, fraud prevention, and service improvement.
Legal obligation: Compliance with Indian tax laws (GST), court orders, and regulatory requirements.

Consent at Registration: When you register on SalonQ, you are shown a clear consent notice and asked to agree to data processing. We maintain records of all consent given. You can withdraw consent at any time by contacting us or deleting your account.

05

Data Sharing & Third Parties

We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal data. We share data only with the following trusted service providers, strictly for the purposes described:

Service Provider	Purpose	Data Shared	Location
Razorpay	Payment processing & billing	Billing details only	India
Firebase (Google)	Push notifications (FCM)	Device FCM token	Google Cloud Mumbai
MSG91	OTP SMS delivery	Phone number only	India
Neon.tech (AWS)	Database hosting	All platform data	AWS Mumbai (ap-south-1)
Upstash (Redis)	OTP caching, queue state	Temporary OTP data	Cloud (TTL: 5 min max)
Salon Owners	Queue management	Name, token, services selected	India (salon premises)

We may also disclose your data when required by:

A court order, summons, or lawful government request
Prevention of fraud or criminal activity
Protection of rights or safety of SalonQ users
Compliance with applicable Indian laws

Cross-border Data Transfer: SalonQ primarily stores data in India. Firebase FCM may process device tokens through Google's global infrastructure. We ensure all third-party providers comply with applicable data protection standards.

06

Data Storage & Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your personal data from unauthorised access, loss, or disclosure:

Server location: All customer data is stored on servers in Mumbai, India (AWS ap-south-1 region) ensuring data localisation compliance with Indian laws.
Encryption in transit: All data transmitted between the app and our servers is encrypted using HTTPS/TLS 1.3.
Encryption at rest: Database storage is encrypted at rest on Neon.tech (AWS infrastructure).
Authentication: JWT-based authentication with 15-minute access tokens and 30-day refresh tokens. OTP-only login — no passwords stored.
Access control: Role-based access — customer data is only accessible to authorised staff of the relevant salon and our platform administrators.
Audit logging: All administrative actions are logged in an immutable audit trail.
Payment security: Card and payment data is handled exclusively by Razorpay (PCI DSS Level 1 certified). We never store full card numbers.

Security Incident: In the unlikely event of a data breach that may harm you, we will notify you and relevant authorities within 72 hours as required by applicable law.

07

Data Retention

We retain personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

Data Type	Retention Period	Reason
Customer account data	Until account deletion + 30 days	Account management
Queue and service history	2 years from date of service	AI model training, disputes
OTP data	5 minutes (auto-deleted)	Security — short TTL in Redis
FCM device tokens	Until replaced or account deleted	Push notification delivery
Billing and invoice records	7 years	GST compliance, Indian tax law
Audit logs	5 years	Legal compliance, security
Location data	Not stored — session only	Used only to show nearby salons

After the retention period, data is securely deleted or anonymised so it can no longer be linked to you personally.

08

Your Rights Under DPDPA 2023

Under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, you have the following rights as a Data Principal:

Right to Access (Section 11 DPDPA): You can request a summary of what personal data we hold about you and how it is being processed.
Right to Correction and Erasure (Section 12 DPDPA): You can request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data, and request deletion of data that is no longer necessary.
Right to Grievance Redressal (Section 13 DPDPA): You have the right to have your grievances addressed by our Grievance Officer within the timelines prescribed by law.
Right to Nominate (Section 14 DPDPA): You may nominate another individual to exercise your rights in the event of your death or incapacity.
Right to Withdraw Consent: You can withdraw your consent to data processing at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal. Withdrawing consent may limit your ability to use SalonQ services.

How to Exercise Your Rights: Email parameswaran@salonqapp.in with the subject line "Data Rights Request — [Your Name]". We will respond within 30 days as required under DPDPA 2023. For account deletion, you can also use the Delete Account option within the SalonQ app settings.

09

Push Notifications & FCM

SalonQ uses Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) by Google to send push notifications to your device. This is how we alert you when your turn is approaching, when your service is complete, and for other queue updates.

What we send: Queue position updates, ETA alerts, service completion notices, and booking confirmations.
Cost to you: Push notifications via FCM are completely free. We do not use WhatsApp Business API (which charges per message) for standard notifications.
SMS fallback: If push notifications are not acknowledged within 5 minutes (e.g., device is offline), we may send an SMS via MSG91 as a fallback for critical alerts. SMS is charged at ₹0.20 per message to us — not to you.
How to disable: You can disable notifications at any time through your phone's notification settings or through the SalonQ app settings screen.
FCM and Google: Firebase FCM is governed by Google's Privacy Policy. Device tokens processed by FCM are subject to Google's data practices in addition to ours.

10

Cookies & Tracking

The SalonQ mobile app does not use cookies. The SalonQ website (salonqapp.in) uses minimal cookies:

Essential cookies: Session management and security. These cannot be disabled as they are required for the website to function.
Analytics cookies: We may use anonymised analytics to understand how visitors use the website. No personal data is collected through analytics.

We do not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels, or any form of cross-site tracking. We do not display third-party advertisements on our platform.

11

Children's Privacy

SalonQ is not intended for children under the age of 13 years. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 13.

If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided personal data to SalonQ, please contact us immediately at parameswaran@salonqapp.in and we will delete such data promptly.

Users between 13 and 18 years of age should use SalonQ only with the consent and supervision of a parent or legal guardian.

12

Grievance Redressal

In accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, we have appointed a Grievance Officer to address your data-related concerns:

Grievance Officer

👤Parameswaran Sundaram — Founder & Grievance Officer

🏢ZW Technologies Private Limited, Tamil Nadu, India

✉️Email: parameswaran@salonqapp.in

🌐Website: salonqapp.in

⏱️Response time: Within 30 days of receipt of complaint

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may escalate your complaint to the Data Protection Board of India once it is constituted under DPDPA 2023, or approach appropriate courts in Tamil Nadu, India.

13

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons.

Minor changes: Updates to contact information, formatting, or clarifications will be made without prior notice.
Material changes: If we make significant changes to how we collect or use your personal data, we will notify you through the SalonQ app and/or via SMS at least 30 days before the changes take effect.
Continued use: Your continued use of SalonQ after the effective date of changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

We recommend reviewing this policy periodically. The "Last Updated" date at the top of this page will always reflect the most recent revision.

14

Contact Us

For any questions, concerns, or requests related to this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact:

ZW Technologies Private Limited

🏢Registered Name: ZW Technologies Private Limited

📍State: Tamil Nadu, India

🌐Platform: SalonQ — salonqapp.in

✉️Privacy Email: parameswaran@salonqapp.in

📋Subject line for data requests: "Privacy Request — [Your Name]"

Quick Actions: To delete your account and all associated data, go to SalonQ App → Settings → Account → Delete Account. For immediate data concerns, email parameswaran@salonqapp.in with the subject "Urgent Data Request".

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