Privacy Policy

📝Information You Provide

When you create an account, book a mentor session, or interact with our platform, you may provide us with the following types of information:

• Full name, email address, and contact details
• Academic background, current level of study, and educational goals
• Country of residence and preferred study destinations
• Course interests, career aspirations, and field preferences
• Profile information and preferences used to personalise your experience
• Communications with mentors and support teams

✦AI Interaction Data

When you use Edsteps AI-powered exploration tools, we collect data from your interactions to improve guidance quality and personalise recommendations.

• Queries and prompts submitted to the AI exploration tools
• Career, course, country, and university preferences expressed through AI sessions
• Interaction patterns used to improve AI recommendation accuracy
• Session duration and engagement data

AI interaction data is used solely to improve platform performance and personalise your exploration experience. It is never sold to third parties or used for advertising purposes unrelated to your educational journey.

📡Information Collected Automatically

When you access Edsteps, certain information is collected automatically through standard web technologies:

• IP address and approximate geographic location
• Device type, operating system, and browser information
• Pages visited, session duration, and navigation patterns
• Referral source — how you arrived at the platform
• Cookies and similar tracking technologies (see Cookie Policy)

This data helps us understand how students engage with the platform, improve our content and navigation, and maintain platform performance and security.

💳Payment Information

When you purchase a mentor session or subscribe to AI services, payment is processed through secure third-party payment processors. Edsteps does not store full payment card details on its servers.

• Transaction amounts and dates are retained for billing records
• Payment processor tokens (non-sensitive references) may be stored
• Refund transaction records are maintained per our Refund Policy

🔍How We Use Your Data

Your information is used exclusively to deliver, improve, and personalise the Edsteps experience:

• Personalising course, country, and university recommendations
• Facilitating mentor session bookings and communications
• Improving AI exploration accuracy and relevance
• Sending platform updates, session reminders, and relevant insights
• Maintaining platform security and preventing fraudulent activity
• Analysing aggregate usage patterns to improve content and features
• Complying with applicable legal and regulatory obligations

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to third parties for marketing purposes. Your data is never used to build advertising profiles for unrelated businesses.

🔗Data Sharing

We share your data only in limited, clearly defined circumstances:

We work with trusted third-party service providers for hosting, payment processing, analytics, and communication tools. These providers are contractually bound to handle your data securely and only for the purposes we specify.

When you book a mentor session, limited profile information (name, study interests, session goals) is shared with your confirmed mentor to enable a meaningful session.

We may disclose your information when required by applicable law, court order, or regulatory authority — or to protect the safety of our users and platform integrity.

⚖️Your Rights

You have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Access — Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Correction — Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Deletion — Request deletion of your account and associated data
• Portability — Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Restriction — Request limitation of how we process your data in certain circumstances
• Withdrawal of Consent — Withdraw consent for data uses where consent is the legal basis

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at privacy@edsteps.com. We will respond to all requests within 30 days.

🛡Data Security

Edsteps implements industry-standard security measures to protect your personal data against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These include encrypted data transmission (HTTPS), access controls, regular security audits, and secure data storage practices.

While we take robust precautions, no internet-based system can guarantee absolute security. We encourage users to use strong passwords and to contact us immediately if they suspect any unauthorised access to their account.

✉️Contact Us

If you have questions, concerns, or requests related to this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal data, please contact us:

• Email: privacy@edsteps.com
• Response time: Within 30 business days