Privacy Policy

Effective Date: March 2, 2026

ISTA Foundation ("we", "us", or "our"), an NGO based in Durgapur, West Bengal, India, operates the ISTA Vidya app, ISTA Community app, istafoundation.in, and app.istafoundation.in (the "Services"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and particularly the privacy of children.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our Services.

1. Information We Collect

A. Information from Parents, Guardians, and General Users

For users of the ISTA Community app and adults managing accounts, we may collect a wide range of personal information necessary to provide the Services, facilitate moderation, community engagement, and process donations. This includes, but is not limited to, name, email address, contact information, profile data, and usage metrics.

B. Information from Children (Under 16)

We take children's privacy seriously. For users under the age of 16 utilizing the ISTA Vidya app, data collection is strictly limited and generally managed by the parent or guardian. Directly from the child-side interface, we only collect:

• First Name or Nickname
• Birthdate (to determine age-appropriate classification)
• Preferred Language

All broader data collection, settings configurations, and friend lists are handled through the parent-facing portal, though children may independently manage (add, remove, or block) their allowed contacts within the app. Parents have full access to view, control, and monitor their child's data and connections within the ISTA Community app.

C. Automatically Collected Information

We may automatically collect standard device information, IP addresses, log data, and usage patterns to maintain the security, performance, and basic functionality of our Services.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the collected information for various, generalized purposes, including:

• To provide, operate, and maintain our Services.
• To manage user accounts and parent-child linkages.
• To facilitate community features in a safe, moderated environment.
• To monitor and enforce safety via AI and Human Agents.
• To process voluntary donations supporting our NGO initiatives.
• To improve, personalize, and expand our educational and community features.

3. Third-Party Services

We may utilize third-party service providers and technology partners to facilitate our Services, including but not limited to:

• Authentication & User Management: (e.g., Clerk)
• Backend & Database Infrastructure: (e.g., Convex, Firebase)
• Analytics and Crash Reporting Tools

These third parties have access to your personal information only to perform tasks on our behalf and are obligated not to disclose or use it for any other unauthorized purpose.

4. Safety, Moderation, and Community

Data related to community interactions is actively monitored. We utilize a combination of AI tools and Human Agents to flag abusive behavior. We may use collected data to issue bans or take other appropriate measures to ensure platform safety. Children have the ability to manage their connections by removing or blocking users, but their overall interactions are restricted to connections and are fully accessible/moderated by the linked parent account via app blockers and supervision tools.

5. Data Retention and Account Deletion

We retain personal information only for as long as is generally necessary for the purposes set out in this Privacy Policy or as required by law.

Right to Deletion: Users have the right to request the deletion of their accounts and associated personal data. Upon receiving a valid deletion request, we will securely terminate the account and remove the data, subject to any legal or technical obligations to retain certain limited information.

6. Security of Your Information

We use administrative, technical, and physical security measures to help protect your personal information. While we have taken reasonable steps to secure the personal information you provide to us, please be aware that despite our efforts, no security measures are perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

7. International Data Transfers

Your information may be transferred to, and maintained on, technological infrastructure located outside of your state, province, country, or other governmental jurisdiction where the data protection laws may differ from those in your jurisdiction.

8. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Effective Date" at the top.

9. Contact Us

If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us via our main website: istafoundation.in or via our community applications.