1. Overview
Propspedia ("we", "our", "us") operates propspedia.com, a residential property search and discovery platform serving South India. This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, disclose and protect personal information provided by visitors, buyers, builders, brokers and other users ("you") of our website and services.
This Policy complies with India's Information Technology (Reasonable Security Practices and Procedures and Sensitive Personal Data or Information) Rules, 2011 under the IT Act 2000 ("SPDI Rules"), and is being updated in alignment with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDPA) as its provisions come into force.
By using Propspedia, you consent to the collection and use of your information as described in this Policy.
2. Information We Collect
We collect the following categories of information:
2.1 Information you provide directly
- Contact details: name, email address, phone number (when submitting a property enquiry, registering an account, or filling a contact form)
- Property preferences: city, BHK requirement, budget range, locality preferences
- Account information: email, password (stored as a hashed value — we never store plain-text passwords), account type (buyer, builder, broker)
- Listing information: property details, images, pricing, RERA number (if you list a property on Propspedia)
2.2 Information collected automatically
- Device and browser information: browser type, operating system, device type, IP address
- Usage data: pages viewed, search queries entered, listings clicked, session duration, referral source
- Cookies and similar technologies: see Section 7 for full cookie details
2.3 Information from third parties
- If you sign in via Google OAuth, we receive your name, email and profile picture from Google, subject to your Google account privacy settings.
- Property images may be stored on Cloudinary (our CDN provider) — see Section 5.
3. How We Use Your Information
We use your personal data for the following purposes:
Core service delivery:
- Processing your property enquiries and forwarding them to the relevant builder, developer or broker
- Displaying search results matching your preferences
- Creating and managing your Propspedia account
Platform improvement:
- Analysing aggregated usage patterns to improve search relevance and listing quality
- Calculating PropScore™ signals and improving our RERA verification process
- Debugging technical issues
Communication:
- Responding to your enquiries, support requests or feedback
- Sending transactional emails (enquiry confirmation, account notifications) — not marketing unless you have explicitly opted in
- Notifying you of new listings matching your saved search criteria (only if you have set up saved searches)
Legal and compliance:
- Fulfilling our obligations under RERA, FEMA, PMLA and other applicable laws
- Responding to lawful government or court requests
5. Data Retention
- Enquiry data (name, phone, email submitted via property enquiry forms): retained for 24 months, then anonymised
- Account data: retained for as long as your account is active. Deleted within 30 days of an account deletion request
- Usage logs and analytics: retained for 12 months in aggregate form
- Property listing data: retained for the duration of the listing plus 6 months. Deleted on request by the listing owner
- Backup data: retained for 30 days in encrypted backups before permanent deletion
If you submit a Right to Erasure request, we will delete your personal data within 30 days, except where retention is required by law (e.g., financial records under the Companies Act, or RERA-mandated builder transaction records).
6. Data Security
We implement the following security measures, consistent with SPDI Rules 2011 and DPDPA 2023 requirements:
- Encryption in transit: All data transmitted between your browser and propspedia.com is encrypted via TLS 1.3 (HTTPS). HTTP connections are automatically redirected to HTTPS.
- Encryption at rest: Database data is encrypted at rest by our hosting provider (Neon Technologies) using AES-256 encryption.
- Access controls: Personal data is accessible only to Propspedia employees and contractors who need it to perform their job functions. Access is controlled via role-based permissions.
- Password storage: Passwords are hashed using bcrypt with a minimum cost factor of 12. We never store plain-text passwords.
- No credit card storage: Propspedia does not process or store payment card information. Any payment processing is handled by PCI-DSS compliant third-party providers.
No method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. While we implement appropriate safeguards, we cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.
8. Your Rights
Under the DPDPA 2023 and SPDI Rules, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right to access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- Right to correction: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
- Right to erasure: Request deletion of your personal data (subject to legal retention obligations)
- Right to withdraw consent: Withdraw consent for data processing at any time. This will not affect processing carried out before withdrawal.
- Right to nominate: Under DPDPA 2023, you may nominate another individual to exercise your rights in the event of death or incapacity
- Right to grievance redressal: File a complaint with our Grievance Officer (see Section 10) or with the Data Protection Board of India once constituted
To exercise any right, email us at: support@propspedia.com. We will respond within 30 days.
9. Children's Privacy
Propspedia is not directed at individuals under 18 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal data from minors. If you believe a minor has provided us with personal data, please contact us at support@propspedia.com and we will delete it promptly.
10. Grievance Officer
In accordance with the IT Act 2000 and SPDI Rules 2011, we have designated a Grievance Officer for privacy-related complaints:
Grievance Officer, Propspedia
Email: support@propspedia.com
Address: 11-14, Thiru Vi Ka Industrial Estate, Saidapet, Chennai — 600015, Tamil Nadu, India
Response time: Within 30 days of receipt of complaint
If you are not satisfied with our response, you may file a complaint with the Data Protection Board of India (once operational) or approach the appropriate court.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be notified via a notice on the Propspedia homepage and/or via email to registered users at least 15 days before the change takes effect. The "Last Updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.
Continued use of Propspedia after a Privacy Policy update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.