Privacy Policy

Effective 15 September 2026

This policy explains what information ResearchSwipe ("we", "us") collects when you use the ResearchSwipe website (https://researchswipe.online), how it is used, who can see it, and how to delete it. ResearchSwipe is founded and operated by Princy Rastogi, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India. Contact us at myresearchmate1@gmail.com with any question or request.

1. Information you give us

• Account: your email address and a password. Passwords are stored only as a salted scrypt hash; nobody, including us, can read them.
• Profile: your name, position, field, title, department, institution, place (as text you type), headline, about text, research interests, what you are looking for and can offer, publications (previous and ongoing), certifications and awards, links, self-reported citation metrics and any open positions you list.
• Messages you send to people you have connected with.
• Reports you submit about other accounts, including the reason and any details you write.

2. Information created as you use the app

• Swipes (pass, connect, save) and saved profiles and publications. These are private to you.
• Invitations. If you join through a member's invite link, we record which member invited you. That member only sees how many people joined through their link, not who they are.
• Connection requests. When you tap Connect, the person you connected with can see that request.
• Connections (when both people connect), read status of conversations, and blocks you make.
• Technical data. To keep you signed in and protect the service, we use a single essential session cookie and process your IP address and browser type in server logs and for rate limiting.
• Waitlist. If sign-ups are ever paused and you join the waitlist, your email address and the role you select.

3. What we do not collect

We do not collect your precise or approximate device location, contacts, photos, files, microphone or camera data, payment information, or advertising identifiers. The site contains no advertising, no third-party analytics or tracking, and no third-party cookies. We do not sell your personal information.

4. How we use information

• To create and run your account, and to show your profile to other users.
• To suggest profiles. Match scores are calculated on your device from profile information.
• To deliver messages between connected users.
• To keep the community safe: reviewing reports, enforcing our Terms & Community Guidelines, and preventing spam and abuse.
• To send essential emails: address verification, password reset, and (if you joined the waitlist) an invitation when a place opens. We do not send marketing email.

5. Who can see your information

• Other signed-in users with a verified email can see your profile while "Show me in Discover" is on, and people you have connected with can always see it.
• Messages are visible only to the two people in the conversation.
• Swipes, saved items, and your email address are never shown to other users.
• Service providers: the website and database are hosted by Render Services, Inc., and transactional emails are delivered through our email provider, both acting on our behalf. Data may be processed in countries other than your own.
• Legal: we may disclose information if required by law or to protect the safety of users.

6. Security

All traffic is encrypted in transit (HTTPS/TLS). Every request is checked on our server, so accounts can only access data they are allowed to see. Passwords are hashed, sessions use secure http-only cookies, and sign-in attempts are rate limited.

7. Retention and deletion

We keep your information while your account exists. You can delete your account at any time in the app (Settings → Delete account) or as described on our account deletion page. Deleting your account immediately and permanently deletes your profile, swipes, saved items, connection requests, blocks you created, your connections, and all conversations you were part of (including the other person's copy), and then your login.

Reports submitted by or about an account are kept for up to 12 months after the report for safety and abuse-prevention purposes, then deleted. Deleted data may persist in our hosting provider's backups for a limited period before being overwritten.

8. Your choices and rights

• View and correct your information any time via Edit profile.
• Hide yourself from Discover with Settings → Show me in Discover.
• Block or report any account.
• Delete your account and data in the app, or email us.
• Depending on where you live (for example under the GDPR or India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act), you may have rights to access, correct, erase or port your data, to withdraw consent, and to complain to a data-protection authority. Email myresearchmate1@gmail.com to exercise them; we respond within 30 days.

9. Age requirement

ResearchSwipe is only for people aged 18 or older. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone younger. If you believe a minor has an account, contact us and we will delete it.

10. Changes

If we change this policy we will update the effective date above and, for significant changes, notify users in the app.

11. Contact

Privacy questions, requests and grievances: myresearchmate1@gmail.com