At Knowledge Bazaar Study Abroad ("we," "us," or "our"), operating from Kochi, Kerala, India, we are committed to guiding students like you towards their global educational aspirations. This Privacy Policy details how we collect, use, process, store, and disclose your personal information when you engage with our website [https://www.knowledgebazaar.co.in/] and utilise our comprehensive overseas education consulting services.

We understand the sensitive nature of the information you entrust to us during your study abroad journey. By accessing our services, you acknowledge and agree to the practices described in this policy.

To facilitate your study abroad application and provide tailored guidance, we collect various types of personal information, primarily directly from you

a. Information You Voluntarily Provide:

This includes, but is not limited to, data collected when you:

• Complete inquiry forms on our website or at our office.
• Register for counselling sessions or events.
• Initiate an application for overseas education through our platform.
• Subscribe to our newsletters, scholarship alerts, or other communications.
• Communicate with us via email, phone, in-person meetings, or social media.

The categories of personal information we may collect include:

• Identity & Contact Data: Full Name, Date of Birth, Gender, Nationality, Passport Number, Visa Information, Email Address, Phone Number, Mailing Address.
• Academic & Educational Data: Educational History (institutions, dates of attendance), Academic Transcripts, Degrees, Diplomas, Certificates, Standardised Test Scores (e.g., IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, GRE, GMAT, SAT), Research Papers, Project Details, Resume/CV.
• Application-Specific Data: Statement of Purpose (SOP), Letters of Recommendation (LORs), Essays, Portfolios (for design/art programs), and any other supporting documents required by universities.
• Financial Data: Proof of Funds (bank statements, loan sanction letters), Scholarship application details, sponsorship information (as required for admissions or visa applications).
• Health Data: Limited health information if specifically required for visa applications or university admissions (e.g., medical examination reports), processed with explicit consent.
• Preference Data: Your preferred study destinations, universities, courses, scholarship interests, and career aspirations
• Sensitive Personal Data: While generally minimised, certain application or visa requirements may necessitate the collection of sensitive personal data (e.g., biometric data for a visa, health records). Such data will only be collected and processed with your explicit consent and in strict adherence to legal requirements.

b. Information Collected Automatically:

When you visit our website, we may automatically collect data about your device and browsing activity to enhance your experience and improve our services. This includes:

• IP address, device type, browser type, and operating system.
• Pages visited, duration of visit, navigation paths, referring URLs.
• Usage data from cookies and similar tracking technologies

c. Information from Third Parties:

We may receive necessary information about you from:

• Educational Institutions: Updates on your application status or enrollment details.
• Test Preparation Centres: Relevant test scores with your consent
• Other Service Providers: For instance, payment processors or couriers involved in your application process.

We use your personal information primarily to facilitate your overseas education journey and provide a seamless service:

• To Provide Core Consultancy Services:
  • Evaluating your academic profile and recommending suitable universities/courses
  • Assisting with university application form completion, essay reviews, and document preparation
  • Managing application submissions to chosen educational institutions.
  • Providing guidance and support for scholarship applications.
  • Assisting with visa application processes and interview preparation.
  • Offering pre-departure briefings and post-arrival support.
• To Communicate with You:
  • Responding to your inquiries and providing updates on your application status.
  • Sending important notifications, alerts, and service-related announcements.
  • Sharing newsletters, informational guides, and relevant study abroad content.
• To Personalise Your Experience:
  • Customising university and course recommendations based on your profile and interests.
  • Tailoring our communication to your specific needs.
• For Marketing and Promotion:
  • Sending you information about new programs, exclusive scholarships, webinars, and events that align with your study abroad interests (you can opt out at any time).
  • Conducting market research and surveys to understand student preferences.
• For Internal Operations & Service Improvement:
  • Analysing service effectiveness, website traffic, and user engagement.
  • Conducting research and development to enhance our service offerings and operational efficiency
  • Training and quality assurance purposes.
• For Legal and Compliance Purposes:
  • Complying with applicable laws, regulations, and governmental requests (e.g., immigration laws, data protection laws in India and destination countries).
  • Detecting, preventing, and addressing fraud, security incidents, or other illegal activities
  • Protecting our rights, property, and safety, as well as those of our users and partners.

We may share your personal information with third parties, strictly for the purposes outlined below:

• Educational Institutions: Your comprehensive application data (including personal, academic, financial, and application-specific documents) is shared with the universities, colleges, and other educational institutions to which you apply through our services. This is fundamental to processing your admissions.
• Visa and Immigration Authorities: Relevant personal and financial data, passport details, and supporting documents are shared with high commissions, embassies, and visa processing centres as required for your visa application.
• Third-Party Service Providers We engage trusted third-party vendors (e.g., couriers for document delivery, payment gateway providers, IT support, cloud storage providers, medical examination centers, accommodation providers, travel agents) who assist us in delivering our services. These providers are obligated to protect your information and use it solely for the purposes for which we disclose it to them.
• Legal & Regulatory Compliance We may disclose your information to law enforcement, government bodies, or other third parties if required by law or a court order, or if we believe it's necessary to protect our legal rights, property, or safety.
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction.
• With Your Express Consent: For any other sharing not covered by the above, we will seek your explicit consent.

Please note: The sharing of your data with educational institutions and visa authorities often involves international data transfers, as these entities may be located outside India. By using our services, you acknowledge and consent to such necessary transfers for the purpose of your study abroad application. We strive to work with reputable institutions and ensure appropriate safeguards where possible.

We employ robust technical, administrative, and physical safeguards to protect your personal information from unauthorised access, loss, misuse, alteration, or disclosure. These measures include:

• Secure servers and encrypted storage.
• Access controls to limit internal access to personal data.
• Regular security assessments and updates.
• Employee training on data privacy and security protocols

While we strive for absolute security, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. Therefore, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

Subject to applicable laws (including India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, once fully implemented, and international regulations like GDPR), you may have the following rights concerning your personal data:

• Right to Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to Correction/Rectification:Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten): Request deletion of your personal data under certain circumstances (e.g., when it's no longer necessary for the purpose collected).
• Right to Restriction of Processing: Request that we limit how we process your data.
• Right to Data Portability:Receive your data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.
• Right to Object:Object to the processing of your data for specific purposes (e.g., direct marketing).
• Right to Withdraw Consent:Where we rely on your consent for processing, you can withdraw it at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of processing based on consent before its withdrawal.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Privacy Officer using the details provided in Section 11. We will respond to your request in accordance with applicable laws.

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, to provide our services, to comply with our legal and regulatory obligations, to resolve disputes, and to enforce our agreements. The retention period may vary depending on the type of data and its purpose.

We use cookies and similar technologies (e.g., pixels, web beacons) to improve your experience on our website, analyze site usage, and support our marketing efforts. You can manage your cookie preferences through your browser settings. Please note that disabling cookies may affect the functionality of our website.

Our website may contain links to external websites or services (e.g., university websites, visa application portals) that are not operated by us. We are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of these third-party sites. We strongly advise you to review their privacy policies before providing any personal information.

Our services are generally not directed at individuals under the age of 18 without parental or guardian consent. If you are a minor, please ensure you have the consent of your parent or legal guardian before providing any personal information to us. If we become aware that we have collected personal information from a child without verifiable parental consent, we will take steps to remove that information.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or applicable laws. We will notify you of any significant changes by posting the updated policy on our website and updating the "Effective Date" at the top. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.

For any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy, your personal information, or to exercise your rights, please contact our dedicated Officer at: