Data Protection & Privacy Statement
Last updated: October 2026 | Effective Date: Immediate (Operational Testing Draft)
1. Introduction & Data Fiduciary Identity
Smart Educator ® ("we", "us", or "our"), headquartered in Pune, Maharashtra, operates the educational discovery and counseling platform available at https://smarteducator.in.
Under India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 ("DPDP Act"), Smart Educator acts as a Data Fiduciary in respect of the digital personal data collected from prospective students, working professionals, and visitors ("Data Principals") who interact with our counseling services, university comparisons, and inquiry forms.
2. Digital Personal Data We Collect
We adhere to the principle of data minimization. When you interact with our website or request admission counseling, we collect only the personal data strictly required to guide your university selection:
- Full Name: To address you respectfully and personalize your academic counseling records.
- Mobile Phone Number: Required to contact you via telephone call or SMS/WhatsApp with university brochures, fee schedules, and admission eligibility updates.
- Email Address: Optional; collected to transmit official program syllabus PDFs, university accreditations, and counseling summaries.
- City / Location: Collected to identify suitable examination centers, regional university centers, and state-specific admission opportunities.
- Academic Interest / Degree Program: The degree category (e.g. Online MBA, MCA, BBA, Data Science) you are exploring.
- Technical & Audit Metadata: Internet Protocol (IP) address, form submission timestamp, and explicit consent status, recorded for rate-limiting, cybersecurity protection, and statutory DPDP compliance audit trails.
3. Specified Purpose of Processing
In compliance with Section 4 and Section 5 of the DPDP Act 2023, your personal data is collected and processed exclusively for the following specified, legitimate purposes:
- Connecting you with a qualified academic advisor from our Pune counseling center to evaluate suitable UGC-DEB entitled degree programs.
- Delivering requested university brochures, comparative fee matrices, and 0% interest EMI options.
- Facilitating your admission application submission with partnered accredited universities upon your direct instruction.
- Preventing automated spam, abusive submissions, and ensuring platform security.
We do NOT sell, rent, trade, or commercially monetize your personal contact information to third-party marketing brokers.
4. Consent & Lawful Basis (Section 6, DPDP Act 2023)
Your personal data is processed solely on the basis of your free, specific, informed, unconditional, and unambiguous consent, provided through an affirmative action (checking the required consent box before submitting our counseling inquiry form).
The consent checkbox on our form is unchecked by default. You are never forced or pre-opted into any communication.
5. Data Retention Policy
We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the counseling purpose for which it was collected:
- Active Inquiries: Retained during the ongoing university admission cycle (up to 12 to 24 months from your last interaction) to answer follow-up queries and assist with admission rollouts.
- Archival & Erasure: When the specified counseling purpose is completed or when you request erasure, your personal data is permanently deleted from our primary operational databases, unless a longer retention period is mandated by Indian law or regulatory authorities.
6. Your Rights as a Data Principal (DPDP Act, 2023)
As an individual whose personal data is processed, you enjoy specific statutory rights under Chapter III of the DPDP Act 2023:
You have the right to request a summary of the personal data we hold about you and the processing activities undertaken.
You may request correction of inaccurate or misleading data, completion of incomplete data, or erasure of personal data that is no longer necessary.
You may withdraw your consent at any time as easily as giving it, without affecting the legality of prior processing.
You have the right to readily accessible grievance redressal mechanisms from our designated Grievance Officer.
You may nominate another individual to exercise your data rights in the event of death or incapacity.
7. How to Request Deletion or Withdraw Consent
Exercising your rights is straightforward. If you wish to withdraw counseling consent or request the complete deletion of your lead data from our records:
- Send an email from your registered email address or referencing your mobile number to: info@smarteducator.in.
- Include the subject line: "DPDP Data Erasure / Consent Withdrawal Request".
- State your full name, 10-digit mobile number submitted on our form, and specify whether you want (a) withdrawal of communication consent, or (b) complete erasure of your lead record.
Our Grievance Officer will acknowledge your request within 48 hours and execute the erasure within the statutory timeline prescribed under the DPDP Act and its implementing rules.
8. Grievance Officer & Contact Information
In accordance with Section 13 of the DPDP Act 2023, the designated Grievance Officer for data protection and privacy inquiries at Smart Educator is:
Office: Smart Educator ® Academic Counseling Center
Physical Address: Sneha Ganga Residence & Building, B-101, Shankar Sheth Rd, Swargate, Pune - 411037
Email: info@smarteducator.in
Helpline: +91 9090907026 / +91 9090907027
Working Hours: 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM (Monday – Saturday)
