Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

Hostee is operated by Dreamloft Labs LLP, a limited liability partnership registered in India with offices in Bangalore (Karnataka) and Guwahati (Assam). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal information when you use the Hostee platform ("Platform").

This policy is aligned with India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDPA) and other applicable data protection laws.

2. Information We Collect

We collect the following categories of personal data:

• Account information: Your name, email address, and phone number when you register or sign in.
• Host information: Business name, business address, contact details, and venue information submitted during the listing process.
• Enquiry data: Event type, dates, guest count, and any messages submitted as part of a venue enquiry (Lead).
• Payment information: Subscription plan selections and payment references. We do not store full card details — payment processing is handled by our third-party payment provider (Razorpay).
• Usage data: Pages visited, search queries, features used, device type, browser, IP address, and referring URLs collected via server logs and analytics tools.
• Cookies: Session tokens and preference cookies used to keep you signed in and improve your experience. See Section 8 for details.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use your personal data to:

• Create and manage your account.
• Facilitate venue enquiries between Users and Hosts.
• Process Host subscription payments and manage plan status.
• Send transactional communications (booking confirmations, plan expiry reminders, account notices).
• Improve the Platform through analytics and usage insights.
• Prevent fraud, abuse, and violations of our Terms of Service.
• Comply with applicable legal obligations.

We do not use your personal data for automated profiling that produces significant legal effects, nor do we sell your data to third parties.

4. Lawful Basis for Processing

We process your personal data on the following lawful bases:

• Consent: When you register an account or submit a venue enquiry, you consent to the processing described in this policy.
• Contractual necessity: Processing required to fulfil subscription agreements with Hosts or facilitate enquiries between Users and Hosts.
• Legitimate interests: Improving platform performance, preventing fraud, and ensuring security.
• Legal obligation: Where we are required to retain or share data under Indian law.

5. Sharing of Information

We share your personal data only in the following circumstances:

• Between Users and Hosts: When a User submits an enquiry, their name, event details, and contact information are shared with the relevant Host to facilitate the booking.
• Service providers: We use trusted third-party providers (including Supabase for data infrastructure, Razorpay for payment processing, and Vercel for hosting). These providers process data solely on our behalf and under strict data processing agreements.
• Legal requirements: We may disclose your data if required by law, court order, or government authority in India.
• Business transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of Dreamloft Labs LLP, your data may be transferred as part of the transaction, subject to equivalent privacy protections.

We do not share your personal data with advertisers or data brokers.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide our services. Specifically:

• Account data is retained until you delete your account or request erasure.
• Lead and chat data is retained for up to 3 years to support dispute resolution.
• Subscription and payment records are retained for 7 years as required by Indian tax and financial laws.
• Usage and analytics data is retained in aggregated, anonymised form indefinitely.

7. Your Rights

Under the DPDPA and applicable law, you have the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data, subject to legal retention requirements.
• Withdrawal of consent: Withdraw consent at any time, which will not affect processing already undertaken.
• Grievance redressal: Lodge a complaint with our Data Protection Officer or the Data Protection Board of India.

To exercise any of these rights, please email support@hostee.co.in. We will respond within 30 days.

8. Cookies

Hostee uses cookies and similar technologies to operate the Platform:

• Essential cookies: Session tokens required for authentication and to keep you signed in. These cannot be disabled without affecting core functionality.
• Analytics cookies: Anonymised usage data to understand how the Platform is used and improve it.

You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies will prevent you from signing in or using authenticated features.

9. Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures including encryption in transit (TLS), row-level security on our database, and access controls restricted to authorised personnel. However, no system is completely secure and we cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.

In the event of a data breach that is likely to adversely affect you, we will notify you and the relevant authorities as required by applicable law.

10. Children's Privacy

The Platform is not intended for persons under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If we become aware that a minor has provided personal data, we will delete it promptly.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated via email or a notice on the Platform. The "Effective date" at the top of this page will be updated accordingly. Continued use of the Platform after changes are posted constitutes acceptance.

12. Contact & Grievance Officer

For privacy-related queries, requests, or grievances, please contact our Grievance Officer: