Privacy policy

Universal Aid Foundation, legally registered in India as [Legal name] with its office at [Registered address], operates this website. This policy explains what personal data we collect when you use our website, why we collect it, who can access it, how long we keep it, and how you can exercise your rights under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

What personal data we collect

We collect personal data only when you submit a form on our website, contact us directly, or send a donation. We collect the minimum information needed for each purpose.

Request Help form

When you ask for assistance for yourself or for someone else, we collect:

• Your name, or the name of the adult representative submitting the request.
• A safe phone number or email address where our coordinator can reach you.
• Your city, town, or local area.
• The category of assistance you need, such as food support, healthcare, education, child care, elder care, or community welfare.
• A short description of your situation and the help you are requesting.
• Your confirmation that you have read this privacy policy and consent to our processing of your request.
• Your optional preference if you want to receive future updates or appeals from us.

We do not ask for medical diagnoses, clinical records, Aadhaar numbers, or copies of government identity documents on our website form. Please do not type medical diagnoses or identification numbers into the description box. If our coordinator needs supporting documents after reviewing your inquiry, we will collect them directly through a separate secure process.

Volunteer form

When you apply to volunteer, we collect:

• Your full name.
• Your phone number and email address.
• Your city, town, or local area.
• Your skills or areas of interest.
• Your availability.
• Your confirmation that you have read this privacy policy and consent to our processing of your application.
• Your optional preference for future updates or appeals.

Partner With Us form

When you propose a partnership or in-kind support, we collect:

• Your full name.
• Your organization name, if you represent an organization.
• Your email address or phone number.
• The type of partnership or in-kind support you propose.
• Your message.
• Your confirmation that you have read this privacy policy.
• Your optional preference for future updates or appeals.

Concept Interest form

When you register interest in one of our future concept projects, we collect:

• The future concept project you are inquiring about.
• Your full name.
• Your email address or phone number.
• How you want to participate, such as volunteering, partnering, or general support.
• Your message.
• Your confirmation that you have read this privacy policy.
• Your optional preference for future updates or appeals.

Donations and financial records

When you donate in Indian Rupees by bank transfer or UPI and share your payment reference with us, we collect:

• Your full name and contact details.
• The payment date, amount in INR, and selected donation purpose.
• The bank transfer or UPI transaction reference number.
• Our internal donation reference and receipt number.

We do not collect or store full debit or credit card numbers, CVV security codes, bank login credentials, or UPI PINs. When we add an approved online payment gateway in a later phase, the payment provider will process your payment credentials directly on its hosted page.

Why we collect and use your data

We use your personal data only for the specific purpose for which you gave it:

• Help requests. To review your inquiry, contact you safely, check eligibility and local service availability, and coordinate support where resources allow.
• Volunteer inquiries. To review your interest, contact you for our volunteer screening process, and schedule volunteer activities.
• Partnership and concept interest inquiries. To review your proposal, reply to your questions, and record interest in current or future projects.
• Donations. To match your transaction reference against our bank statement, send you a donation acknowledgement, reconcile our accounts, and meet Indian financial and audit requirements.
• Optional updates. To send you news or fundraising appeals only when you have ticked the separate optional consent box. Your access to help or participation never depends on agreeing to receive updates.

Who sees your data

We treat every form submission as a private record. We never publish help requests or personal inquiry details on our public website.

• Coordinators. A designated help coordinator or volunteer coordinator reviews Request Help and Volunteer submissions in a private administration dashboard.
• Management. Assigned management staff review Partner With Us and Concept Interest inquiries.
• Finance staff. Authorized finance staff and administrators access donation records and bank reconciliation files.
• Staff alert emails. When a new form submission arrives, our system sends a notification email to the responsible staff member. That email contains only basic alert information. The full contents of your inquiry stay inside the restricted dashboard.

When we share your data

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to anyone. We share personal data only in these limited cases:

• Authorized service providers. We use technical contractors for website hosting, database storage, and email delivery. These providers process data only on our instructions and under confidentiality and security commitments.
• Project partners. If fulfilling your help request requires coordination with a verified partner clinic, school, or service provider, our coordinator will explain this to you and ask for your consent before sharing your details.
• Legal and regulatory duties. We disclose financial or personal records when required by Indian law, court order, tax authorities, or statutory auditors.

How long we keep your data

We keep personal data only as long as necessary for the purpose we collected it or as required by Indian law:

• Website inquiries. We retain Request Help, Volunteer, Partner With Us, and Concept Interest records for [Retention period] after we close the inquiry, unless you ask us to delete your record earlier or ongoing support requires us to keep it.
• Donation and accounting records. We retain verified donation records, bank reconciliation records, and acknowledgements for [Retention period] to comply with Indian financial, audit, and tax laws.

When the retention period ends, we permanently delete or anonymize the data from our active systems and backups.

How we protect your data

We take technical and organizational steps to keep your personal data safe from unauthorized access, loss, or misuse:

• All pages and form submissions on our website use HTTPS encryption.
• Staff members access the administration dashboard through individual accounts protected by a password and a six-digit verification code sent by email.
• Role-based permissions limit staff members to the records their work requires.
• We block private records, inquiry exports, and consent files from public URLs and search engines.
• We run daily encrypted backups of our database.

Children's data and gallery photographs

Our website forms are for adults aged 18 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal data directly from children through our website. If a child needs assistance, a parent, legal guardian, or adult caregiver must submit the Request Help form on the child's behalf.

We publish photographs and videos in our website gallery only when we hold documented consent from the people shown. Before we publish any identifiable photograph or video of a child, we obtain verifiable written consent from the child's parent or legal guardian and complete an internal safeguarding check. Our system automatically strips GPS and location metadata from photographs when staff upload them.

If you appear in a photograph on our website, or if you are the parent or legal guardian of a child shown on our website, you can withdraw consent and ask us to remove the image at any time by contacting [Email address].

Cookies and analytics

We use only essential cookies needed to keep the website secure, limit automated spam on our forms, and manage sign-in sessions for authorized staff. We do not use advertising cookies or third-party behavioral tracking cookies.

We use basic website analytics to measure page traffic, loading speed, and broken links. Our analytics configuration never records the text you type into form fields, medical details, or payment information.

Your rights under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023

As an individual whose personal data we process, you have the following rights under Indian law:

• Right to access information. You can ask us for a summary of the personal data we hold about you, the processing activities we have carried out, and the identities of any other organizations with whom we have shared your data.
• Right to correction and erasure. You can ask us to correct inaccurate or misleading personal data, complete incomplete data, update your contact details, or erase personal data that is no longer needed for the purpose you gave it, unless Indian law requires us to keep it.
• Right to withdraw consent. Where you gave consent for us to process your personal data, you can withdraw your consent at any time. Withdrawing consent will stop future processing of your data, though it does not affect actions we took before you withdrew consent.
• Right to nominate. You can nominate another individual to exercise your rights under this policy on your behalf if you die or become unable to act due to incapacitation.
• Right to grievance redressal. You can file a complaint with our Grievance Officer if you believe we have not handled your personal data properly.

How to use your rights

To make a request under any of the rights above, email [Email address] or write to [Registered address]. Include your full name, the phone number or email address you used when contacting us, your inquiry reference number if you have one, and a clear description of what you want us to do. We will verify your identity and respond within [Response time].

When you submit a form to us, Indian law also requires that you provide accurate information and do not impersonate another person or file false requests.

Grievance officer and contact details

If you have any questions about this privacy policy or a complaint about how we handle your personal data or gallery media, please contact our Grievance Officer:

• Grievance officer: [Grievance officer name]
• Organization: [Legal name]
• Address: [Registered address]
• Email: [Email address]
• Phone: [Phone number]

We will acknowledge your grievance and work to resolve it within [Response time]. If we do not resolve your complaint within [Response time], or if you are not satisfied with our resolution, you have the right to escalate your complaint to the Data Protection Board of India.