Privacy Policy

Last updated: 28 June 2026

ALTShadi (altshadi.com), operated by ALTMatrimonial (“we”, “us”), is a guardian-led, privacy-first matrimonial service. Privacy is not an afterthought here — it is the core of how the product is built. This policy explains what information we collect, how we use and protect it, when it is shared, and the choices and rights you have.

1. Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to everyone who uses ALTShadi — candidates, and guardians (parents, elders, or trusted matchmakers) acting on a candidate’s behalf. You must be at least 18 years old to create an account; we do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 18.

2. Information we collect

Account information. Phone number and/or email address used to sign in, and authentication metadata.
Profile information. A self-chosen display name (not your legal name), age bracket, country and broad region, faith and community labels, photos, and any cultural or biographical fields you choose to add.
Sensitive details. Optional fields such as sect, community, or caste, and — only when you provide them — legal name, full date of birth, exact location, and contact details. These are private by default.
Identity verification. If you verify your identity, a third-party provider processes your document and selfie. We store only the verification result, document type, and a token — never the document image or selfie.
Usage and device data. Pseudonymous analytics about how features are used, plus standard technical data (such as IP address and request headers) needed to operate and secure the service.
Payment data. If you subscribe, our payment processor handles your payment details. We receive only the transaction amount, currency, a tokenized reference, and region.

3. How we use your information

To create and operate your account and profile.
To surface relevant matches and facilitate consent-based introductions.
To enforce safety, prevent abuse, and verify identity where requested.
To process subscriptions and payments.
To improve the service using privacy-preserving, pseudonymous analytics.
To meet legal, tax, and regulatory obligations.

4. Privacy by design — how we protect you

Minimum disclosure by default. A new profile shows only a display name, age bracket, country/region, a blurred photo, and broad faith/community labels. Everything else is private until you choose to share it.
Staged, mutual consent. Information reveals in discrete stages — photos, identity, contact details, meeting — and each stage requires explicit agreement from both parties. Neither side can advance a stage alone, and every consent is recorded.
Blurred photos. Photos are permanently blurred at upload. Original photos are stored encrypted and are only ever served briefly, after both parties consent to a photo reveal, via a watermarked, short-lived link.
No cold messaging. You can only message someone after a formal introduction has been accepted. There is no open inbox and no way to contact someone who has not agreed.
Contact details stay protected. Phone numbers, emails, and social handles are encrypted and withheld until a mutual contact reveal. Attempts to share contact information in chat before that stage are automatically redacted.

5. Guardians

You may delegate parts of your matchmaking to a guardian. That delegation is always bounded by a scope you set, recorded in an audit trail, visible to you, and revocable at any time. Your own consent decision always overrides a guardian’s action, and you are notified of guardian activity on your behalf.

6. How we share information

We do not sell your personal data. We share the minimum necessary with service providers who help us operate, including: hosting and database (Supabase), phone/email delivery (Twilio, Resend), payments (Stripe and regional processors), identity verification (such as Onfido and Digio), edge infrastructure and photo storage (Cloudflare), and pseudonymous analytics (PostHog). Each receives only what its specific function requires, under a data processing agreement. Our analytics never receive your name, phone, email, photos, or exact location.

7. Security

All traffic is encrypted in transit (TLS 1.3). Data is encrypted at rest, and direct identifiers such as legal name, date of birth, phone, email, address, and government ID are additionally encrypted at the field level with keys held in a secure vault. Access to sensitive data by staff is restricted and audit-logged.

8. Data retention

We keep your profile data while your account is active. Closed-case messages are removed after 90 days. Records we are legally required to keep — such as consent records, audit logs, and payment records — are retained for up to 7 years, with your identity in those records reduced to a non-reversible hash after deletion.

9. Your rights and choices

Access & portability. Request a machine-readable export of your data from Settings → Privacy → Export My Data; we deliver it within 72 hours.
Correction. Edit your profile fields at any time.
Deletion. Request deletion from Settings → Account → Delete. Your account enters a 30-day grace period (during which you can cancel), after which all personal data is permanently erased, save for the limited records noted in Section 8.
Withdraw consent. Reverse a consent decision or revoke a guardian’s scope at any time.

10. International data transfers

Your data is currently processed in the United States under appropriate contractual safeguards (including EU Standard Contractual Clauses where applicable). Our infrastructure is designed to add regional data residency as we expand.

11. Regional rights

Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under laws such as the EU GDPR, the India Digital Personal Data Protection Act, and the California CCPA/CPRA — including the right to know, access, correct, delete, and port your data, and to lodge a complaint with your regulator. We honor these rights for all users. We do not sell personal information.

12. Children

ALTShadi is strictly for adults aged 18 and over. Date of birth is checked at registration and accounts for anyone under 18 are not permitted.

13. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated in-app or by email, and the “last updated” date above will reflect the revision.

14. Contact us

For privacy questions or to exercise your rights, contact support@altshadi.com. For trust and safety concerns, contact trust@altshadi.com. See also our Terms of Service and Support page.