Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

We collect information you give us, information generated through your use of the Service, and limited technical information:

• Account details: your mobile number, your account email address (required at registration), and a securely hashed password (we never store your password in plain text);
• Profile information: name, gender, date of birth, marital status, height, religion, ethnicity, caste, education, profession, income range, district and city, and family details;
• Sensitive matrimonial details: horoscope information (birth time, birth place, rashi) and your photographs;
• Contact details: phone number, email address, and any address you provide;
• Partner preferences and the Interests you send and receive;
• Payment information: your plan purchases and, for bank transfers, your payment reference and uploaded receipt;
• Technical information: device, browser, IP address, and usage logs, used to secure and operate the Service.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• Create and manage your account and manually review your profile before it appears in search;
• Display your profile to other eligible members and power search and matching;
• Process Interests and, when you accept an Interest, share contact details between the connected members;
• Process payments and maintain financial and tax records;
• Send you service and transactional emails to your account email — for example welcome, profile-review, Interest, and payment updates (these are operational messages, not marketing);
• Keep the platform safe — detecting and preventing fraud, fake profiles, abuse, and misuse;
• Respond to your requests and provide support; and
• Comply with our legal obligations and enforce our Terms.

3. How We Protect Your Information

We apply technical and organisational safeguards designed to protect your data. Sensitive fields — including your contact number, email, address, birth time and place, and family details — are encrypted at rest using strong (AES-256) encryption, and are decrypted only for you or for a member whose Interest you have accepted. Staff access is restricted and logged. However, no method of transmission or storage is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

4. Visibility & Your Controls

Approved profiles are visible to other registered members, and we never reveal your encrypted contact details until you accept that member’s Interest. If your profile photo is public (you can make your photos private in settings), a limited preview of your profile — your photo, display name, age, profession, and city or district — may also appear in public areas of the site, such as the “Featured Profiles” section on our homepage, where it can be seen by visitors who are not signed in. Marking your profile photo and additional photos as private hides them from search and previews, shows them only to members you have connected with, and excludes your profile from the public Featured Profiles section; additional photos are never shown before a connection is made. Your profile itself still appears in member search — with your other details and a “Private profile” label — so you remain discoverable while your photos stay hidden. You control the information in your profile and can edit it at any time — material edits return your profile to review.

5. When We Share Information

We do not sell your personal data. We share information only as follows:

• With other members: as part of the matching flow described above — profile information with eligible members, and contact details only after you accept an Interest;
• With service providers: Amazon Web Services for secure hosting and storage; and email/SMS providers if and when such notifications are enabled. These providers act on our instructions and are bound to protect your data;
• For legal reasons: where required by law, court order, or a lawful request by an authority, or to protect the rights, safety, and property of Pathuma, our members, or the public;
• In a business transfer: in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, subject to this policy.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active and as needed to provide the Service. If you delete your account, we will delete or anonymise your personal data within a reasonable period, except where we are required to retain certain records — for example, payment and tax records, or information needed for fraud prevention, dispute resolution, or legal compliance.

7. Your Rights

Subject to applicable law, you may request access to the personal data we hold about you, ask us to correct or update it, or request its deletion. You can edit most information directly in your profile and can deactivate or delete your account from the Settings page. To exercise a right or raise a privacy concern, contact us using the details below; we may need to verify your identity before acting on a request.

8. Children

Pathuma is intended only for persons aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 18. If we learn that we have collected data from a minor, we will delete it.

9. Cookies & Analytics

We use essential cookies and similar technologies to keep you signed in, secure the Service, and understand usage so we can improve it. You can control cookies through your browser settings, though some features may not work without them.

10. Data Storage & Transfers

Our infrastructure is hosted with Amazon Web Services. Your data may be stored and processed on secure servers that may be located outside Sri Lanka; wherever it is processed, we require appropriate safeguards consistent with this policy.

11. Third-Party Links

The Service may link to third-party websites or services (for example, a WhatsApp chat). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those third parties; please review their policies.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The latest version will always be posted on this page with a revised "last updated" date, and significant changes will be highlighted where practicable.