Privacy Policy

Last updated: November 7, 2026

Sampada.net ("Sampada", "we", "us", "our") operates the website sampada.net and the Sampada mobile application (collectively, the "Platform"). This privacy policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you use our Platform.

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Account Information

When you create an account, we collect:

• Full name and display name
• Email address
• Password (stored in hashed/encrypted form)

1.2 Optional Profile Information

You may choose to provide:

• Profile picture
• Bio / about text
• Website URL
• Location
• Date of birth
• Phone number (for optional phone verification)

1.3 Content You Create

• Articles, posts, and short-form content (Ara Likatte)
• Comments on articles
• Featured images and media uploads

1.4 Usage and Interaction Data

• Likes, bookmarks, and follow relationships
• Article view counts
• Learning module progress and exercise submissions (Kannada Kali)

1.5 Technical Information

• IP address (stored with sessions and comments)
• Browser user agent string
• Session data (encrypted)
• Last login timestamp

1.6 Mobile App Specific

The Sampada mobile app additionally may access:

• Camera and photo library (only when you choose to upload a profile picture or image)
• Authentication tokens stored locally on your device
• Cached content for offline reading

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Provide, operate, and maintain the Platform
• Create and manage your account
• Publish and display your content to other users
• Send account-related notifications (approval, content moderation, etc.)
• Enable social features (following, liking, commenting)
• Track learning progress in Kannada Kali modules
• Improve the Platform and fix issues
• Prevent abuse and enforce our content policies

3. Information Sharing

We do not sell your personal information to third parties.

Your information may be shared in limited circumstances:

• Public content: Articles, comments, and profile information you make public are visible to all visitors
• Service providers: We may use third-party services for email delivery (e.g., SMTP/SES) and bot protection (Cloudflare Turnstile)
• Legal requirements: We may disclose information if required by law or to protect our legal rights

4. Third-Party Services

The Platform may integrate with:

• Google and Facebook: Optional social login (only if you choose to sign in with these services)
• Cloudflare Turnstile: Bot protection during registration
• MSG91: Phone OTP verification (optional)

We do not use third-party analytics or tracking services such as Google Analytics.

5. Data Storage and Security

• Your data is stored on servers located in secure data centres
• Passwords are hashed using industry-standard algorithms (bcrypt)
• Sessions are encrypted and expire after 2 hours of inactivity
• All communication is encrypted via HTTPS/TLS
• Mobile app authentication tokens are stored securely on your device

6. Cookies

We use essential cookies for:

• Session management: To keep you logged in
• CSRF protection: To prevent cross-site request forgery

We do not use advertising or third-party tracking cookies.

7. Your Rights

You have the right to:

• Access: View all your personal information via your profile settings
• Correction: Update your profile information at any time
• Deletion: Request account deletion through your profile settings. We will process deletion requests and remove your personal data, though published content may be retained in anonymised form
• Data portability: Contact us to request a copy of your data

8. Children's Privacy

The Platform is not intended for children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us and we will take steps to delete it.

9. Data Retention

• Account data is retained as long as your account is active
• Deleted accounts are soft-deleted initially and permanently purged upon review
• Session data expires automatically after 2 hours
• Pending file uploads are cleaned up after 24 hours

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. We will notify registered users of significant changes via email or platform notification. Continued use of the Platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Contact Us

If you have questions about this privacy policy or your personal data, contact us at:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: sampada.net