Child / Minor Safety and Data Protection Policy

For any Student under 18, a parent or lawful guardian must give verifiable consent, stay informed, and be jointly responsible; our staff follow strict safeguarding rules.

1. Verifiable parental consent

Under Section 9 of the DPDP Act, 2023 and the DPDP Rules, 2025, we process a child's personal data only after consent from a parent or lawful guardian, captured by the parent's own tick-box with their name and mobile number. We may verify it by calling or sending an OTP to the parent's mobile, and may ask for proof of identity or guardianship where needed.

2. What we never do with children's data

• Track or monitor a child's behaviour online.

• Show targeted advertising to children or build behavioural profiles of them.

• Share a child's data except with institutions the parent chose, and our processors.

3. Staff safeguarding rules

• Counselling for a minor is arranged through, and shared with, the parent or guardian.

• Staff contact minors only on official Career Comrade numbers and accounts, with the parent included in WhatsApp groups and emails wherever practicable.

• No private social-media contact, personal gifts, or requests for photos not needed for an application.

• In-person meetings with minors take place only at our office or an institution, with a parent or second staff member present.

• Staff are background-verified before working with students.

4. Reporting concerns

Anyone may report a safeguarding concern about our staff or services to careercomradehelpdesk@gmail.com or +91 80416 63641. Every report is investigated promptly, the staff member concerned may be suspended during the investigation, and we will report offences to the police as required by the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.

5. Parents' rights

Parents or guardians can access, correct or erase their child's data and withdraw consent at any time under the Account Deletion and Data Erasure Policy.