AskBooks

Privacy Policy

Last updated: April 2026

1. Who We Are

AskBooks Technologies Pvt Ltd ("AskBooks", "we", "us", "our") is a private limited company incorporated in India with its registered office in Bengaluru, Karnataka. We operate the AskBooks accounting, GST, and tax-audit platform (the "Service"). This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard personal data in compliance with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 ("DPDPA") and other applicable Indian laws.

2. Information We Collect

  • Personal data: name, email address, phone number, password (stored hashed using Argon2id), profile photo, and government identifiers (PAN, Aadhaar where lawfully required).
  • Business data: financial transactions, invoices, ledgers, GST filings, payroll records, customer and vendor information, and any other content you enter into your AskBooks workspace.
  • Technical data: IP address, browser type and version, device identifiers, operating system, time zone, page interactions, referrer URLs, and cookies.
  • Communications: support tickets, chat transcripts, and email correspondence with our team.

3. Why We Collect It (Purpose of Processing)

  • To provide, maintain, and improve the Service.
  • To bill you for subscriptions and process payments.
  • To comply with statutory obligations under Indian tax, accounting, and KYC laws.
  • To provide customer support and respond to your enquiries.
  • To detect, investigate, and prevent fraud, abuse, and security incidents.
  • To send transactional notices and, with your consent, occasional product updates.

4. Lawful Basis Under DPDPA

We process personal data based on (a) your consent obtained at sign-up and through cookie banners; and (b) where applicable, the performance of the contract you enter into when you subscribe to the Service. For certain legal obligations (e.g. tax records), we rely on the legitimate uses permitted under Section 7 of the DPDPA.

5. Data Retention

  • Active accounts: retained for the lifetime of your account.
  • Deleted accounts: financial records are retained for 7 years from deletion to comply with the Income Tax Act, 1961 and the Companies Act, 2013.
  • Application logs: retained for 1 year, then purged.
  • Backups: rolling 35-day window of encrypted off-site backups.

6. Sharing & Sub-processors

We do not sell personal data. We share data only with:

  • Razorpay Software Pvt Ltd — payment processing (subscription billing).
  • Twilio SendGrid — transactional and marketing email delivery.
  • Amazon Web Services (AWS) — primary hosting and storage.
  • Government authorities — when compelled by valid legal process.

A complete sub-processor list is available in our Data Processing Agreement.

7. International Transfers

Your data is primarily hosted in AWS Mumbai (ap-south-1), India. A small subset of sub-processors (e.g. SendGrid) operate from the United States. Where data is transferred outside India, it is done in compliance with Section 16 of the DPDPA and applicable Standard Contractual Clauses.

8. Your Rights Under DPDPA

You have the following rights as a Data Principal:

  • Right to access — obtain a copy of the data we hold about you.
  • Right to correction — correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
  • Right to erasure — request deletion of data no longer required.
  • Right to data portability — receive your data in a machine-readable format.
  • Right to withdraw consent — withdraw any previously given consent.
  • Right of grievance redressal — contact our Grievance Officer.

You can exercise most of these rights directly from Settings → Privacy in your account, or by emailing privacy@askbooks.in. We will respond within 30 days.

9. Grievance Officer

Pursuant to Section 8(9) of the DPDPA:
Mr. Arjun Iyer, Grievance Officer
AskBooks Technologies Pvt Ltd
Email: grievance@askbooks.in

10. Children

The Service is not directed at minors. You must be at least 18 years old to use AskBooks without parental or guardian consent. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a child has provided us data, please contact privacy@askbooks.in and we will delete it.

11. Cookies

We use two categories of cookies: essential cookies required for authentication, security, and the operation of the Service; and analytics cookies used only with your consent to understand product usage. You can manage your preferences via the cookie banner or your browser settings.

12. Updates to This Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated by email and via in-product notice at least 14 days before they take effect.

13. Contact

Questions? Email privacy@askbooks.in.