Privacy policy

This policy explains what personal data Rukozi.com collects, why, who can see it and the choices you have. It follows India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the Information Technology Act, 2000.

1.In short

We collect only what we need to run bookings and listings.
We do not sell your data and we do not use advertising or tracking cookies.
Owners’ ID proofs, PAN cards and property documents are seen only by our verification team — never by guests.
Bank account numbers are stored encrypted.

2.What we collect

Everyone with an account

Name, email address, mobile number and password (stored only as a secure one-way hash).
Optional profile photo and “about me” text.
Email verification codes and password-reset links (short-lived).

Guests

Booking details: property, dates, number of adults, children and pets, meal plan, extras, special requests and messages.
Check-in, cancellation and no-show records, reviews, private suggestions to owners and feedback about Rukozi.com.
If you use “How far is it from you?” on a listing, your browser shares your location once to calculate the distance; we do not store it.

Property owners

KYC: legal name, PAN, GSTIN (if any), address, a copy of one ID proof (Aadhaar, passport, driving licence or voter ID) and a PAN card copy. We do not store your Aadhaar number — only the uploaded image.
Bank details for payouts and invoices: account holder, account number (encrypted), IFSC, bank name, a cancelled cheque copy and optional UPI ID.
Property details, photos, exact address and map pin, and ownership documents (sale deed, 7/12 extract, tax receipt, electricity bill, rent agreement or NOC).
The date, time and IP address when you accepted the partner agreement, invoices and payment references.

Automatically

Basic technical logs: IP address, browser, pages requested and errors — used to keep the site secure and working.

3.Why we use it

To create and secure your account and verify your email address.
To make, confirm, change and cancel bookings, and to send booking, check-in and review emails.
To verify owners and listings, prevent duplicate or fake listings and handle no-show disputes.
To invoice owners for commission and keep records required by tax law.
To answer support requests and improve Rukozi.com.
To meet legal obligations and respond to lawful requests from authorities.

We use your data on the basis of your consent when you sign up, book or list, and for the legitimate purposes allowed by law (such as fraud prevention and tax records).

Owners see the name, phone number, email address and booking details of guests who book or request their property, so they can respond and host you.
Guests see the owner’s first name, photo and listing. The exact address and the owner’s phone and email are shown only after a booking is confirmed.
Everyone can see published reviews with the reviewer’s first name and last-name initial.
Our team sees what it needs to verify owners, approve listings, handle disputes and give support.
Service providers that run the site for us: our hosting company in India (servers and email) and Google Maps (map display and distance calculation; Google’s own privacy policy applies to map requests).
Authorities when required by law.

We do not sell or rent personal data and do not share it for advertising.

5.How we protect it

The whole site uses HTTPS. Passwords are hashed, never stored in readable form.
Bank account numbers and stored mail passwords are encrypted.
KYC and property documents are kept in private storage that is not reachable from the public website; only signed-in verification staff can open them.
Access to admin tools is limited to authorised staff.

6.Cookies

We use only essential cookies: one that keeps you signed in, one that protects forms against misuse, and a short-lived one during email verification. We do not use analytics, advertising or social-media tracking cookies, so there is nothing to opt out of.

7.How long we keep it

Account data: while your account is open. When you ask us to delete it, we delete or anonymise it, except what we must keep by law.
Bookings, invoices and payment records: as long as Indian tax and accounting law requires (generally up to 8 years).
KYC and property documents: while the owner’s listings are active, and afterwards only as long as needed for legal or dispute purposes.
Technical logs: 30 days.
Unverified sign-ups that are never confirmed may be removed.

8.Your rights

You can:

See and correct most of your details yourself under My profile.
Ask for a summary of the personal data we hold about you.
Ask us to correct, complete or delete your data, or withdraw consent (this may mean we can no longer provide bookings or listings).
Nominate someone to exercise these rights for you in case of death or incapacity.

Write to support@rukozi.com from your account’s email address. We reply within 30 days.

9.Children

Accounts are for adults (18+). Guests may include children in a booking; we only record their number and age group, not their names.

10.Changes

We will update this policy when the way we use data changes (for example, when online payment is added). The date at the top shows the latest version; for important changes we will also email account holders.

11.Contact and grievances

For privacy questions, requests or complaints, write to our grievance desk at support@rukozi.com with the subject “Privacy”. We acknowledge complaints within 24 hours and aim to resolve them within 15 days. If you are not satisfied, you may approach the Data Protection Board of India.