PassHai Household Alerts – WhatsApp Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how PassHai (“we”, “us”, “our”) collects, uses, and protects information when you interact with our PassHai WhatsApp experience (the “Service”) as a household / consumer who wants alerts when nearby vendors are in range.

This policy applies only to people using our Service via WhatsApp (for example, by scanning a QR code, messaging our WhatsApp number, or joining via a link). It does not cover the PassHai Vendor Android app or other websites/services.

Questions? Contact us at:
Email: [email protected]

1. What the WhatsApp Service does

The PassHai WhatsApp Service lets households:

• Opt in to receive alerts when nearby street vendors / carts are in range
• Share a location where they want to receive alerts (for example, home or building gate)
• Choose cart categories they care about (vegetables, fruits, household items)
• Control alerts (turn on/off, pause, mute, change preferences)

To do this, the Service needs to process:

• Your WhatsApp phone number (to identify your chat and deliver alerts)
• Your location (to know where you want alerts)
• Your alert preferences (categories, language, timing controls)

2. Information we collect

2.1 WhatsApp account details

When you start a conversation with our WhatsApp number, we receive and process:

• Your WhatsApp phone number (E.164 format) (for example: +917XXXXXXXXX)
• Your display name (if provided by WhatsApp)
• Message metadata such as message IDs, timestamps, and delivery status

In our backend (for example, Firebase / Firestore), we may store your phone number as the identifier for your user record so we can send you WhatsApp alerts. Where practical, we may also use masked forms (for example, +91XXXXXX1234) in internal views for support.

We do not sell your phone number or share it with unrelated third parties.

Note: WhatsApp (Meta) & Twilio (WhatsApp API aggregator used by passhai whatsapp) processes your data under their own terms and privacy policy, which are separate from this policy.

2.2 Location data

The Service is location-based, so we need to know where to send you vendor alerts.

When you use the WhatsApp chat, we may collect:

• Locations you send using WhatsApp’s Send location feature (pinned or current location)
• The coordinates (latitude, longitude) associated with that location
• A derived geohash or similar representation used in our matching system
• The time when you shared or updated that location

We use this to:

• Save your alert location(s)
• Match you to nearby vendors when their carts are in range
• Decide who should get an alert when a vendor passes near your saved location

We do not constantly track your live GPS outside WhatsApp. We only receive the location you choose to share in the chat (and any later updates you send).

2.3 Preferences and settings

Through menus, quick replies, and simple commands, we may store:

• Your preferred language (Hindi or English)
• Your cart categories of interest (vegetables, fruits, household items)
• Whether you currently want alerts on or off
• Optional controls such as pause/mute and timing windows (if offered in the chat flow)

These preferences are stored so we can personalize alerts for you.

2.4 Message content and logs

We primarily rely on structured responses (menus, quick replies, simple commands). We may also:

• Log certain service events (for example, location set, categories changed, alerts paused) for reliability and support
• Keep limited debug logs of webhook/provider events to resolve delivery issues

We do not use chat content to build advertising profiles.

Please do not send sensitive personal information (passwords, bank details, medical data, Aadhaar, etc.) in the chat. This Service is only meant for basic vendor alerts.

2.5 Technical & diagnostic data (limited)

To keep the Service running smoothly, we may process:

• Timestamps of messages and alerts
• Delivery information from WhatsApp or our messaging provider
• Internal identifiers for users, messages, and alerts
• Error logs for failed deliveries or system issues

This is mainly for debugging, reliability, and security.

3. How we use your information

We use the information above to:

1. Provide the Service
   • Recognize your number as a household using PassHai
   • Store your location(s) and preferences
   • Match you with nearby vendors and send relevant alerts over WhatsApp
2. Customize your experience
   • Send alerts only for cart types you opted into
   • Respect your language and notification controls
   • Avoid sending alerts when you have muted/paused them
3. Operate and improve the system
   • Monitor deliverability and reliability of alerts
   • Debug cases like “I didn’t receive an alert even though a cart passed nearby”
   • Improve matching logic (for example, radius tuning and movement handling)
4. Security, abuse prevention, and legal
   • Detect and prevent misuse or spam
   • Protect our service, vendors, and households from abuse
   • Comply with legal obligations and lawful requests where required

We do not sell your data, and we do not use your information for general advertising or tracking across other apps.

4. Legal basis

Although PassHai is primarily India-focused, we align with common privacy principles:

• Consent
  You choose to start a WhatsApp conversation and provide your location and preferences. You can stop using the Service or block our number at any time.
• Service delivery
  We need your phone number, location, and preferences to deliver alerts when nearby vendors are in range.
• Legitimate interests
  We process limited logs and diagnostics to keep the Service secure, reliable, and to improve it over time.

5. Third-party services

We rely on third parties to run the Service:

1. WhatsApp / Meta
   • You interact with PassHai through WhatsApp.
   • WhatsApp processes your messages under its own terms and privacy policy.
   • We receive your messages through WhatsApp’s Business API via approved providers.
2. WhatsApp Business Solution Providers (BSPs)
   • We may use providers to deliver and receive WhatsApp messages on our behalf.
   • They may process your phone number, message content, and metadata to provide the messaging infrastructure.
3. Google Firebase / Google Cloud
   • Firestore for storing user profiles, locations, preferences, and alert logs
   • Cloud Functions and related services to run matching and alerts logic

We do not share your data with advertisers or unrelated third parties.

6. Data retention

We keep your data only for as long as needed for the purposes described in this policy.

• Household profile (phone number, preferences, saved locations)
  • Kept while you actively use the Service.
  • If you ask us to delete your data, we will take reasonable steps to remove or anonymize it, subject to legal requirements.
• Alert logs and technical logs
  • Kept for a limited period to debug issues and understand basic usage patterns.
  • May be aggregated or anonymized for longer-term insights without directly identifying you.

To request deletion or support, contact us by email (see Section 11).

7. Your choices and controls

As a household user, you have options:

1. Stop alerts / opt out
   • Use the stop/unsubscribe option shown in the chat (if available), or
   • Block our WhatsApp number from your WhatsApp settings.
2. Change location or preferences
   • Update your location by sending a new location through WhatsApp.
   • Update categories, language, and other settings through menu options/commands provided in the chat.
3. Access, update, or delete
   • Email us to request what basic information we store (for example, saved location(s) and preferences).
   • Request correction or deletion, subject to legal and operational limits.

8. Children’s privacy

PassHai’s WhatsApp Service is designed for adults managing household purchases. We do not knowingly target children or collect personal information from children. If you believe a child is using the Service, contact us and we will review and, where appropriate, delete the data.

9. Security

We take reasonable measures to protect your information, including:

• Using HTTPS and secure APIs between our systems and providers
• Restricting access through Firebase Security Rules and internal access controls
• Limiting who within PassHai can access dashboards and logs

However, no system can be fully secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as the Service changes.

• We will update the “Last updated” date at the top.
• For significant changes, we may share a brief notice in the WhatsApp chat or via another appropriate channel.

11. Contact us

If you have questions or requests related to this policy or your data, contact:

PassHai – Support (Households)
Email: [email protected]