Privacy policy | Bharosilo

Last updated: July 24, 2026

1. Introduction

Bharosilo respects your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and protect your personal information when you use the platform. We comply with the Constitution of Nepal 2015 (Article 28 — Right to Privacy), the Privacy Act 2075 (2018), the Data Act 2079 (2022), and the Electronic Transactions Act 2063 (2008).

This policy applies to all users of Bharosilo, including visitors, reviewers, business owners, and anyone who interacts with the platform.

2. Information we collect

We collect the following categories of information:

Account information

Name, email address, username, password (hashed), profile picture, and any other information you provide during registration or account settings.

Review and content information

Reviews, ratings, photos, replies to reviews, saved places, reports, contact messages, listing submissions, owner claim details, staff invitations, and other content you post.

Communication information

Messages sent through our contact forms, support requests, and any correspondence with our team.

Device and usage information

IP address, browser type, device fingerprints, operating system, referring URLs, pages visited, and timestamps. We use this information for abuse prevention, analytics, and platform security as permitted under the Privacy Act 2075.

Verification information

When a business owner claims a listing, we may ask for evidence that helps verify the connection to the establishment. That evidence is used for review and is not meant to be shown on the public listing.

3. Legal basis for processing

Under the Privacy Act 2075 and the Data Act 2079, we process your personal data on the following legal bases:

Consent: When you create an account, submit content, or accept cookies.
Contractual necessity: Processing needed to provide the platform services you request.
Legal obligation: Processing required to comply with laws of Nepal, including record-keeping and reporting.
Legitimate interest: Processing for abuse prevention, platform security, moderation, and service improvement, where our interests do not override your privacy rights.

4. How we use information

We use information to:

Operate and maintain Bharosilo, including showing public reviews and listings.
Prevent abuse, fraud, spam, and prohibited content.
Verify owner claims and manage business listings.
Respond to support requests and communications.
Improve search, recommendations, and platform features.
Comply with legal obligations under the laws of Nepal.
Send service-related communications (not marketing) when necessary.

5. Cookies and tracking

Bharosilo uses cookies and similar tracking technologies for essential platform functions, security, and analytics. For full details, see our Cookie Policy.

We use:

Essential cookies: Required for platform operation and security.
Functional cookies: Remember your preferences and settings.
Analytics cookies: Help us understand how the platform is used.
Security cookies: Used for abuse prevention and rate limiting.

We may share your information with trusted service providers who help us operate the platform. These include:

Infrastructure providers (hosting, database, CDN).
Email delivery services.
File storage and content delivery.
Caching and rate limiting.
Analytics and error tracking.
AI moderation services.
Search engine optimization tools.

These providers process information only as needed to support the service and under contractual obligations consistent with this policy and Nepal's privacy laws.

We do not sell your personal information to third parties. We may disclose information if required by law, court order, or government authority in Nepal.

7. Data retention

We retain your personal data only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy:

Account information: Retained until you delete your account.
Reviews and public content: Retained as long as your account is active. After deletion, content may be anonymized and kept for platform integrity.
IP addresses: Stored only in encrypted security-event records. The encrypted raw IP value is removed after 30 days. Related hashes and counters are retained for audit and correlation.
Device fingerprints: Used for abuse prevention and rate limiting. Retained for a limited period and not used for public display.
Communication records: Retained for as long as needed to handle your request and for record-keeping.
Audit logs: Retained as required by applicable laws of Nepal.

8. Your rights

Under the Privacy Act 2075 and the Data Act 2079, 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 deletion: Request deletion of your personal data, subject to legal obligations for retention.
Right to object: Object to processing of your data for certain purposes.
Right to data portability: Request transfer of your data to another service provider, where technically feasible.
Right to withdraw consent: Withdraw consent at any time where processing is based on consent.

To exercise these rights, visit your account settings or contact us through the contact page. We will respond within the timeframe required by Nepal's Privacy Act 2075. See our Data Deletion page for details on deleting your data.

9. Children

Bharosilo is not intended for children under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 18 without parental consent, as required by the Privacy Act 2075. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, contact us and we will take steps to delete it.

10. Data security and breach notification

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal data, including encryption at rest and in transit, access controls, and regular security audits, as required under the Data Act 2079 and Electronic Transactions Act 2063.

In the event of a data breach that affects your personal data, we will notify you and the relevant authorities in Nepal as required by applicable law.

11. International data transfers

Your data may be stored and processed outside of Nepal by our service providers. We ensure that any cross-border data transfers are conducted in compliance with the Data Act 2079 and with appropriate safeguards, including contractual agreements.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If changes are material, we will notify you through the platform. Continued use after changes take effect constitutes acceptance.

13. Contact

If you have questions about this policy, wish to exercise your rights, or need to report a privacy concern, contact us through the contact page or at [email protected]. Include enough detail for us to find the relevant account, listing, review, or claim.