Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how PicklMate (“we”, “us”, “our”) collects, uses, stores, and protects your information when you use our services at picklmate.com and organize.picklmate.com. By creating an account, you agree to this policy.

1. Information we collect

Account information: name, email address, and password (stored as a salted hash) when you sign up. Phone number when you choose to provide it for account security or verification.

Organization information: when you create or join an organization, we collect the organization name, description, contact details, and any media you upload (such as a logo).

Tournament content: tournament names, dates, venues, categories, pricing, descriptions, and other details you provide when creating tournaments.

Usage data: pages visited, features used, errors encountered, device type, browser, IP address, and timestamps. We use this to keep the platform secure and to improve the product.

Communications: messages you send us (e.g., support requests) and our replies.

We do not currently process payments or collect financial KYC information directly. When payment features become available, we will update this policy with details of the regulated payment service provider used and the additional information involved.

2. How we use your information

• To operate your account (authentication, account recovery, security alerts)
• To run and display your tournaments on the platform
• To send transactional emails such as signup verification and account notifications
• To respond to support requests
• To improve the product through aggregated, anonymised analytics
• To comply with our legal obligations

We do not sell your data, share it with advertisers, or use it to train AI models for third parties.

3. Who we share with

We use a small set of trusted service providers (“data processors”) to operate the platform. Each is bound by contract to use your data only on our behalf for the purposes below:

• Cloud hosting and database infrastructure — to store your account, organization, and tournament data. Hosting is located in India (Mumbai region).
• Email delivery service — to send transactional emails (verification codes, password resets, account notifications).
• Analytics provider — to understand aggregated, anonymised product usage.

We may also disclose information when legally compelled (court orders, regulatory requests) or as necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of users.

4. Data location and retention

Your data is stored on cloud infrastructure located in India (Mumbai region).

• Active account data is retained while your account is active.
• Closed account data is deleted within 90 days of closure, except where retention is required by applicable law.
• Backups follow a rolling 30-day retention and are then deleted automatically.
• When financial or transactional records are generated in the future, we will retain them for the periods required by Indian tax and regulatory law (typically 7 years).

5. Your rights under the DPDP Act 2023

India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 gives you the following rights:

• Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Correction — correct inaccurate data, either from your account settings or by contacting us
• Erasure — request deletion of your personal data, subject to lawful retention requirements
• Withdraw consent — withdraw consent for processing by closing your account
• Nominate — appoint a representative to exercise these rights on your behalf in the event of death or incapacity
• Grievance redressal — raise complaints; we will acknowledge within 7 days and resolve within 30 days

To exercise any of these rights, email support@picklmate.com.

6. Data security

We protect your data through TLS encryption in transit, encryption at rest for sensitive fields, salted password hashing, role-based access control, and regular security reviews.

No system is perfectly secure. In the event of a personal data breach likely to result in significant harm, we will notify affected users and the Data Protection Board of India within 72 hours of detection, as required by law.

7. Cookies

We use essential cookies for user authentication, session management, and security (e.g., CSRF protection). We do not use third-party advertising cookies or cross-site tracking.

8. Children

PicklMate is intended for users 13 years and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we become aware that we have collected such information, we will delete it and the associated account.

9. Changes to this policy

We will notify users of material changes by updating the “Last updated” date above and, where significant, by email or in-app notice. Continued use of the platform after a change means you accept the updated policy.

10. Grievance officer & contact

For privacy questions, grievance redressal, or to exercise your rights, contact our Grievance Officer at support@picklmate.com. We will acknowledge your request within 7 days and resolve it within 30 days.