Privacy Policy:
1. Introduction
Welcome to Balmo! We connect users with skilled, semi-skilled, and day-labor blue-collar workers. Your privacy is important to us. This Privacy Policy outlines what data we collect, how we use and share it, and your rights. We value your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your data.
We value your privacy and are committed to protecting your personal information.
This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and your rights regarding your data.
2. Information We Collect:
We collect information to facilitate the connection of workers and provide efficient services. This includes:
This includes:
Personal Information:
Name, email, phone number, address (collected at signup or when you create/share a work post).
Work Details:
Work type, duration, location preferences, and any additional details you provide in your work post(s).
Authentication Data:
Email or Google account details used during signup and authentication.
Usage Data:
App interactions (pages visited, "Raise Hand" applications, in‑app messages, in-app notification preferences, timestamps).
3. How We Use Your Information:
We use your information to provide, improve, and develop our services, including:
Facilitate connections between workers and work posters (e.g., matching skilled plumbers to plumbing posts).
Power features like "Raise Hand," verified worker listings, Verified work providers, and real‑time work alerts.
Note: verification status, subscription entitlements, and other platform signals are used to surface profiles and enforce in-app limits; they do not guarantee a verified worker’s availability, acceptance of a job, or the outcome of any offline assignment. Balmo is not a party to the contract between workers and work posters.
Personalize your experience (custom work recommendations, push notifications).
Enable secure in‑app messaging between workers and work posters.
Analyze usage patterns to improve app functionality and performance.
Prevent fraud, enforce our Terms of Use, and comply with legal obligations.
Analyzing feedback and usage patterns to enhance app performance.
4. Subscriptions (Balmo Boost & Balmo Boost Worker) — What we collect & how we use it
This section explains the data we collect specifically to provide subscription benefits, why we collect it, how long we keep it, and how you can manage it.
Subscription benefits (what you get)
Balmo Boost (regular users/work posters):
Increase monthly work-post limit from 5 → 6 posts.
Increase each work post duration from 24 hours → 48 hours.
Other subscription-related visibility benefits described in-app.
Balmo Boost Worker (verified worker profiles):
Increase raise-hand allowance from 3 → 10 raise-hands per month (for responding to work posts).
Priority notifications & support features as described in-app.
Other subscription-related visibility benefits described in-app.
Messaging benefit (both subscription types while active):
Increase daily messaging character allowance from 150 → 400 characters per day.
Data we collect to manage subscriptions:
To purchase, validate, and manage subscriptions and to grant the above benefits, we collect and store the following information:
Account identifier
What: Your Balmo user ID (internal identifier), and when provided, your account email.
Why: Link subscription records and benefits to your account.
Retention: Kept while the account exists; removed per your account deletion request (see “Data retention & deletion”).
Subscription / transaction metadata
What: Provider subscription ID (orderId), purchase token (purchaseToken), product ID (e.g., balmo_boost_m, balmo_boost_y, balmo_boost_worker_m, balmo_boost_worker_y), price, currency, region, purchase timestamps, subscription start/end dates, subscription status (active/cancelled/expired), and plan type.
Why: Validate purchases, reconcile billing changes, receive Real-Time Developer Notifications (RTDN) from Google Play, and grant or revoke benefits reliably.
Retention: Stored while subscription is active and for audit/chargeback/financial reconciliation. We retain these records for up to 2 years after subscription expiry unless you request deletion sooner.
Notification tokens
What: Device push tokens (FCM tokens).
Why: Send subscription-related notifications (renewals, cancellations, expirations).
Retention: Kept while you use the app on that device; removed when you log out or uninstall (or if the token is rotated/invalid).
Subscription status & entitlement flags
What: Flags such as hasBoost, hasBoostWorker, subscriptionPlan, raiseHandCount, maxPostsPerMonth.
Why: Enforce the upgraded limits and UI in the app.
Retention: Kept until subscription expires/cancelled and may be removed or reset as described above.
How we validate subscriptions:
Purchases are processed by Google Play (we do not collect credit-card or payment card details or any other payment methods used by you during subscription(s)).
We store the purchaseToken and providerSubscriptionId returned by Google Play and use them to:
Verify subscription state on purchase,
Respond to RTDN that inform us when a subscription is cancelled, renewed, put on hold, or expired,
(Optionally) call the Google Play Developer API to confirm subscription state before changing entitlements.
Who we share this subscription data with :
Google Play / Google Cloud — for payment processing and RTDN (Pub/Sub).
Firebase (Firestore, Cloud Functions, FCM) — to store subscription records and send notifications.
Our payment/analytics partners only as needed to operate billing reconciliation and system health reporting. We do not sell your data.
Security for subscription data:
Data is transmitted over TLS/HTTPS.
Subscription tokens and metadata are stored in Firestore and protected by authentication, least-privilege service accounts, and secure Cloud Functions. We recommend and may enforce App Check and strict Firestore security rules to further limit access.
Cancelling, refunds & restoring purchases:
Third-party billing, refunds and Balmo’s role. All subscription purchases and refunds for subscriptions sold through the Google Play store are processed by Google Play (the applicable platform provider). Balmo does not collect or store your payment card details or other payment credentials. We store limited subscription metadata (for example: purchaseToken, orderId, productId, subscription start/end dates and status) only to validate entitlements and to reconcile subscription state. If you require a refund or need help with the billing transaction itself, please use Google Play’s refund and subscription support mechanisms — Google may issue refunds or revoke purchases in accordance with its refund policies, and Google may adjust payments to developers to reflect refunds or chargebacks. Balmo will, upon receiving confirmed store notifications or after verifying the store response, activate, suspend or revoke in-app entitlements as appropriate. Except where expressly required by applicable law, Balmo is not responsible for billing, payment processing, or refund decisions made by Google Play or the payment processor. (Balmo will, however, cooperate with lawful requests and consumer grievance processes.)
Cancel / manage subscription: Use the Play Store subscription management UI (Google Play handles billing and refunds). When a cancellation/expiry occurs, our backend revokes benefits after verifying the change.
Refunds: Handled by Google Play. Contact Google Play support for refund requests.
Restore purchases: Sign in with the same Google account/email on the same device, or use the in-app restore flow. If you need help, contact support.
5. Sharing Your Information:
Balmo does not sell/share your personal information. However, we may share information in the following cases:-
With Service Providers:
With our backend service providers to manage user authentication and store work details securely.
Legal Requirements:
To comply with applicable laws, regulations, or legal processes, or to protect our legal rights.
Business Transactions:
In the event of a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, your information may be transferred to the new owner to continue providing services.
Payments & Transactions:
The payments between workers and work providers occur in physical and/or offline; Balmo does not have any connection between the two parties when it comes to payments. During subscriptions, we do not process transactions or collect payment details in-app (billing handled by Google Play).
6. Data Security:
We implement industry-standard safeguards
(encryption in transit and at rest, secure server configurations) to protect your information. We continuously monitor and update our security practices.
7. Your Privacy Choices:
You have the right to:
Delete your account and personal data anytime via settings or by contacting us.
Access or update your personal information through the app.
Request deletion of your account and associated data.
Opt-out of certain data collection or processing activities.
To exercise these rights, please contact us at balmoservice@gmail.com.
8. Retention of Data:
We retain your information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy or as required by law.
Once your information is no longer needed, we securely delete or anonymize it.
For subscription records we retain transaction metadata for up to 2 years after subscription expiry for audit and chargeback reasons (unless you request deletion sooner and legal retention requirements permit).
9. Children's Privacy:
Balmo is not intended for individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us with their data, please contact us, and we will take steps to delete it.
In compliance with the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986, Balmo does not support or facilitate child labor.
We strictly prohibit the engagement of individuals below the minimum legal working age. Any work posts involving children/child labor will be denied, and appropriate action will be taken if such instances are reported and/or found in the app.
10. Changes to This Privacy Policy:
We may update our Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be effective upon posting the updated policy in the app.
Your continued use of the app signifies your acceptance of the revised terms.
11. Contact Us:
If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or your data, you can reach us at: Email: balmoservice@gmail.com
Terms of Use:
1. Acceptance of Terms:
By accessing or using the Balmo app, you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use.
If you do not agree to all the terms, you may not use our app.
2. User Responsibilities:
You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account information, and for all activities that occur under your account.
You agree to notify us immediately of any unauthorized use of your account.
By using Balmo, you confirm that all details provided during account registration or service requests are accurate and up-to-date.
Balmo may suspend or terminate accounts for suspected abuse or violation of these terms.
3. Prohibited Conduct:
You agree not to engage in any of the following prohibited activities:
Violating any applicable laws or regulations or using the app for any illegal or unauthorized purpose.
Requesting/Posting any services that involve child labor, in compliance with the Child and Adolescent Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act,1986.
Interfering with or disrupting the security, integrity, or performance of the app.
Impersonate others or provide false information.
Harass, defraud, or harm other users.
4. Work Postings & Applications:
No guarantee of availability, suitability or results. While Balmo may verify certain worker profiles and provide subscription-based visibility or entitlement features, Balmo does not guarantee the availability, suitability, performance, or conduct of any worker, whether verified or not. Verification reflects steps we have taken to validate supplied identity or credentials, not a promise of service or availability at any time and/or everywhere. Any agreement for work, including terms of payment, timing, or quality of work, is solely between the parties. Balmo is not and does not act as an employer, agent, broker, or insurer for workers or posters, and Balmo DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY for disputes or losses arising from offline agreements, payments, or unsatisfactory performance, except to the extent required by applicable law. Balmo may, in its discretion, suspend or remove accounts and postings that violate these Terms.
Work posters must accurately describe Trade, Work Description, and Location.
Verified Workers (“Raise Hand” applicants) must meet work requirements and conduct themselves professionally.
All assignments and payments occur offline between parties; Balmo is not a party to any contract for labor or payment processing.
5. In‑App Messaging & Ratings
Users and workers may communicate via Balmo’s messaging feature to clarify work details.
Users can rate/report the verified workers after completion to maintain community trust.
Abusive or inappropriate messages or ratings may lead to account suspension.
6. Subscriptions — Entitlements, Billing & Management
Subscription Plans & Benefits: Balmo offers paid subscription plans (“Balmo Boost” and “Balmo Boost Worker”) that provide in-app entitlements described in the app (for example: increased post limits, longer post durations, increased raise-hand allowance, and increased daily messaging character limit). The exact numeric benefits currently are:
Regular users: post limit increases from 5 → 6 per month and post duration from 24 → 48 hours.
Verified workers: raise-hand allowance increases from 3 → 10 per month.
Messaging allowance increases from 150 → 400 characters per day for subscribed users.
Billing & Payment:
Subscriptions are billed and processed by Google Play (or the platform's payment processor). By subscribing you agree to Google Play’s terms for billing. Balmo does not collect or store your payment card information.
Third-party billing; limited liability :
Subscription payments and refunds are processed by the applicable app store (for example, Google Play). By purchasing a subscription you agree that billing, refunds, chargebacks and other transactional disputes are governed by the store’s policies and terms. Balmo’s role is limited to (a) receiving subscription metadata from the store to grant entitlements, and (b) enforcing entitlements within the Balmo platform. Balmo is not the payment processor and is not liable for charging errors, payment disputes, or refund determinations made by the store or its payment provider; the store’s refund and dispute mechanisms are your primary remedy. Balmo will, where required by law or where reasonably possible, assist in resolving payment disputes and will cooperate with government or regulatory requests.
Activation & Verification:
Upon successful purchase, we may store subscription metadata (purchase token/order id, product id, start/end dates) and grant entitlements to your Balmo account. We validate purchases using tokens provided by the store and respond to Real-Time Developer Notifications (RTDN) to revoke or adjust entitlements as needed.
Cancellation & Refunds:
Subscriptions may be cancelled or refunded through Google Play’s subscription management UI. Cancelled subscriptions will remain active until the end of the current paid period; after expiry or confirmed cancellation our backend will revoke subscription entitlements. Refunds are handled by Google Play — contact Google Play support for refund requests.
Restoration & Transfer:
To restore a subscription, sign in with the same Google account used for purchase or use the in-app restore flow. Subscription entitlements are associated with your Balmo account and cannot be transferred to another Balmo account except through actions described by the platform (e.g., restore/purchase on the same Google account).
Entitlement Limits:
Balmo reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate subscription benefits for users who violate these Terms, for abuse, or for fraudulent activity. In case of disputed subscriptions or chargebacks, entitlements may be revoked pending resolution.
7. Intellectual Property Rights:
All content available on the Balmo app, including text, graphics, logos, and software, is the property of Balmo or its licensors and is protected by intellectual property laws.
You may not reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from any content on the app without our prior written consent.
You retain ownership of content you upload (e.g., profile photos, work posts), but grant Balmo a license to display and distribute it within the app.
8. Limitation of Liability:
Balmo shall not be liable for any damages arising out of your use or inability to use the app.
This includes, but is not limited to, damages for loss of data, interruptions in service, or any failure to meet user expectations, disputes between users and workers, service interruptions or data loss.
9. Modifications to Terms:
We reserve the right to modify these Terms of Use at any time. Changes will be effective immediately upon posting in the app. Your continued use of the app following any changes indicates your acceptance of the new terms.
10. Governing Law:
These Terms of Use are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India.
Any disputes arising from these terms will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in [Your Area].
11. Contact Us
If you have any questions about these Terms of Use, please contact us at Email: balmoservice@gmail.com
Thank you for choosing Balmo—building a fair, efficient marketplace for blue‑collar work.