Privacy Policy

GraceKnot is intended for individuals 18 years of age or older who are seeking marriage within a Christian community context. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18. If we become aware that an account belongs to someone under 18, we will suspend and remove it.

a) Information you provide directly

• Account information: name, email address, password (stored in encrypted/hashed form, never in plain text), and language preference.
• Profile information: the details you choose to add to your matrimonial profile - for example date of birth, location, church and denomination, education, occupation, family details, lifestyle preferences, testimony, photos, and partner preferences. Many of these fields are optional, and you control who can see each one (see Section 5).
• Contact details you choose to add (mobile number, WhatsApp, social media handles) - these are never shown to anyone by default; see Section 5.
• Verification documents you choose to submit (such as a membership ID or church ID card) for the purpose of church/identity verification.
• Communications you send us (support requests, reports, feedback).
• Payment information when you make a purchase or contribution - we do not ourselves store your card, UPI, or bank account details. Payments are processed by a PCI-DSS-compliant third-party payment processor, and we receive only limited information needed to confirm your payment (such as the amount, status, and a transaction reference).

b) Information collected automatically

• Usage information: pages viewed, actions taken (such as searches, interest sent/received), approximate activity timestamps, and device/browser type.
• Log and diagnostic information used to keep the Service secure and reliable.
• Cookies and similar technologies used to keep you signed in, remember your language preference, and understand basic usage of the Service. We do not use these to sell your information or to serve third-party advertising.

c) Information from others

• If a verified church confirms your membership, that confirmation (and any verification status) becomes part of your profile.
• If another member reports your profile or account for a policy violation, we receive the content of that report.

We use the information we collect to:

• Create and operate your profile and account.
• Show your profile to other members according to your own privacy settings (see Section 5) - never more broadly than you've chosen.
• Operate search, the interest/match process, and the contact-reveal process.
• Verify churches and, where applicable, member identity/membership.
• Process payments for optional paid features and voluntary contributions.
• Communicate with you about your account, security, policy updates, and (where relevant) your requests.
• Detect and prevent fraud, fake profiles, abuse, and violations of our Terms.
• Maintain the security, stability, and integrity of the Service.
• Comply with legal obligations.

We do not sell your personal information to third parties, and we do not use your profile data to serve third-party advertising.

• With other members, strictly according to the visibility level you choose for each field (see Section 5) - anonymous visitors, other signed-in members, members of your own church, or nobody but you, depending on the field and setting.
• With a verified church's administrator, limited to what is needed to confirm membership of members who have named that church on their profile.
• With our own moderation/administration team, for safety, verification, and handling reports - never for purposes outside operating and protecting the Service.
• With service providers who help us run the Service - for example cloud hosting and database providers, email delivery providers, image storage providers, and payment processors - bound by confidentiality and only for the purpose of providing their service to us.
• For legal reasons, if required by law, legal process, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of GraceKnot, our members, or the public.
• In a business transfer, if GraceKnot is ever involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, subject to this Policy (or a materially similar one) continuing to apply.

We never publish your hidden fields for any visitor to see based on their own side of an interaction - every cross-profile view is filtered on our servers according to your own privacy choices before it is ever sent anywhere.

Your profile is built field by field, and (with a small number of exceptions that the platform locks for safety reasons, such as contact details and verification documents) you choose one of four visibility levels for each field:

• Public - visible to any signed-in member browsing profiles.
• After we connect - visible only once both people have accepted an interest in each other.
• Same church - visible only to verified members/admins of your own church.
• Private - visible only to you.

A visitor who has not created an account never sees the full "Public" tier - only a small, fixed set of basic details (such as name, age range, general location, church, and denomination), regardless of your own settings.

Contact details (mobile number, WhatsApp, social handles) require a second, independent step beyond a mutual match: both people must separately choose to reveal contact information before either sees the other's. One person choosing to share does not unlock it for both.

Verification documents (membership ID, church ID card) are visible only to you and to authorized verification staff - never to other members, not even from your own church.

We retain your information for as long as your account is active. You may request deletion of your account at any time (see Section 8). Once you do, your profile is hidden from other members immediately, and your account and associated profile data, including photos, messages, and verification documents, are permanently deleted within 30 days of your confirmed request. Some limited records, such as transaction records required for tax or legal purposes, or reports made against an account for safety and fraud-prevention purposes, may be retained for longer as required by applicable law, even after account deletion.

We use reasonable technical and organizational measures designed to protect your information, including encryption of data in transit, access controls, and server-side enforcement of privacy settings (your hidden fields are never sent to anyone not entitled to see them). No method of transmission or storage is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you.
• Correct inaccurate information (you can update most profile fields yourself at any time).
• Request deletion of your account and associated data.
• Object to or restrict certain processing.
• Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent, without affecting processing that occurred before withdrawal.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details in Section 12. We will respond within a reasonable time and in accordance with applicable law. Residents of the European Economic Area, the UK, and other jurisdictions with their own data protection laws (for example India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act) may have additional statutory rights under those laws, which we will honor to the extent they apply to our processing of your information.

GraceKnot is intended primarily for the Christian community in India and the global Christian diaspora. If you use the Service from outside India, your information may be transferred to and processed in India (and by service providers located elsewhere) as part of operating the Service. By using the Service, you consent to this transfer and processing.

The Service may contain links to third-party sites (for example, a church's own website). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third parties, and this Policy does not apply to them.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will provide reasonable notice (such as an in-app notice or an update to the "Last updated" date above) before the changes take effect. Continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Policy.

In accordance with applicable Indian law, including the Information Technology Act, 2000 and rules made thereunder, the Grievance Officer for GraceKnot is:

Grievance Officer: [Grievance Officer Name]
Email: [Grievance Officer Email]
Address: [Registered Business Address]

For any privacy questions, requests, or complaints, you may also write to us at [Support Email]. We aim to acknowledge grievances within 24 hours and resolve them within the timeframe required by applicable law.

This Policy is governed by the laws of India. Any disputes arising under this Policy shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of [City], [State], India.