Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Yotalks (“Yotalks”, “we”, “our”, “us”) are committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of our client’s personal information. This Privacy Policy outlines how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you engage with our services.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy. Any changes will be posted on our website with an updated effective date. We encourage you to review this policy regularly to stay informed about how we are protecting your personal data.

Data Collection and Processing

We may collect various types of personal data, including but not limited to identification information (such as your name, email address, and phone number), health-related information (including mental health history and treatment needs), payment details, and usage data from your interactions with our services.

Personal data is collected through several methods, including direct interactions when you register for our services or fill out forms, automated technologies such as cookies that track usage patterns on our website, and third-party sources that provide necessary information for service delivery.

The personal data we collect is processed for specific purposes, including providing therapy services, managing appointments, processing payments, improving our services, and complying with legal obligations. We ensure that all processing activities are conducted in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

By clearly communicating our data collection and processing practices, we aim to foster trust and transparency with our clients. Your rights regarding your personal data are important to us.

We may collect the following types of personal information:

• Visitor Data: When you access our website, we gather data such as the specific pages you visit, the features you engage with, the duration of your visit, any errors encountered on the platform, details about the device and browser used, and your IP address. If applicable based on the settings of your device, we may also process your third-party identifier or advertising ID. Moreover, we may share this information with third parties if you allow advertising and other cookies.
• Onboarding Data: To sign up for an account on the platform, users are required to complete a questionnaire. We process the information provided on the said questionnaire.
• Account Data: After a user registers an account on the platform, we collect and process data including the chosen account name, as well as demographic and contact details such as email address, age, phone number, emergency contact information, and whether the user has verified their email address.
• Login ID: We provide a sequentially generated Login ID to each individual including therapists who create an account. These Login IDs are unique to each account and are essential for the proper functioning of the platform.
• Transaction Data: When you make a payment on our platform, we collect information about your transaction. This includes details like whether you completed payment for our services, if you signed up for a trial offer, canceled a trial, received a discount, or requested a refund. We also track whether you registered to create an account. This data helps us manage your account and improve our services.
• Member Engagement Data: We collect and process data related to your login activity on the platform, including your login period, the number and duration of messages sent or received, and the number and length of live sessions scheduled or held including the usage of other features offered by the platform.
• Therapy Data: We process communications and related information that users share with their therapists to support the therapy process. This includes messages exchanged with therapists, worksheets, and journal entries.
• Therapy Quality Data: We collect and process client reviews regarding their therapists, including their ratings, decisions to switch therapists or discontinue therapy, and the reasons provided by clients for these actions. Also, we track the availability of therapists for sessions, as well as any cancellations and no-shows.
• Customer Service & Communication Data: We manage user communications with our Customer Service team.
• Therapist Data: We collect essential information from therapists to manage their applications and payments. This includes their name, bank account details, gender, date of birth, government ID numbers (SSN/FEIN), email address, phone number, physical address, license details, areas of expertise, education, and work history.
• Therapist Engagement Data: We gather essential information from therapists to manage their applications and ensure smooth operations. This includes tracking their login frequency, the number of live sessions they conduct, and the volume of messages exchanged. We also monitor the number of worksheets shared and journal entries submitted.
• Clinical Health Record: We maintain a “Clinical Health Record”, which contains essential information needed by your therapist to identify you and document the services provided. This record includes your therapist's internal notes, session dates, and specific subsets of data from the following categories:
• Onboarding Data: Responses to the onboarding questionnaire.
• Account Data: Account name, phone number, email address, and emergency contact details.
• Therapy Data: Session dates, communications with the therapist, worksheets, journal entries shared with the therapist, and internal notes from the therapist.

If you are a therapist on our platform or being recruited, we may also process additional data to:

• Assist in recruitment and onboarding.
• Operate the platform and match clients based on preferences.
• Verify your identity and secure your account.
• Conduct background checks for credentialing purposes.
• Process payments and comply with tax regulations. Provide quality statistics and feedback from our clinical operations team and clients.
• Inform you about new features, opportunities, and incentives.
• Promote your profile on our platform and third-party directories to attract more clients.
• Send reminders, notifications, and updates regarding your application or account.

Moreover, we share data with service providers to operate the platform effectively and perform necessary functions. When you opt-in, we may also share certain data with third parties.

Location Data

We may collect information about your location when you use our services. This may include GPS data from your device or inferred location based on your IP address. We process location data to enhance the quality of our services and to ensure compliance with legal requirements. Specifically, we use location data for the following purposes:

• Service Availability: To determine if our services are available in your area and to connect you with therapists who are licensed to practice in your locations.
• Emergency Situations: To assist in providing timely support in case of emergencies during therapy sessions.
• Personalization: To personalize our services and recommendations based on your geographical location.

Data Sharing

We may share your personal data in the following circumstances:

• With Service Providers: We may share your data with third-party service providers who assist us in operating our platform, processing payments, or delivering services. These providers are required to protect your information and use it only for the purposes for which it is shared.
• For Legal Compliance: We may disclose your information if required by law or in response to valid requests by public authorities. This includes sharing data to comply with applicable laws, regulations, or legal processes.
• In Emergency Situations: We may share your data in situations where we believe it is necessary to prevent physical harm or financial loss or in connection with an investigation of suspected or actual illegal activity.
• Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of our assets, your personal information may be transferred as part of that business transaction.

Third-Party Data Collection and Online Advertising

We may participate in interest-based advertising and work with third-party advertising companies to deliver targeted ads based on your browsing history. These companies may collect information about your use of our services over time, allowing them to display ads on our platform and other websites or services you visit across different devices.

Typically, this information is gathered using tracking technologies such as cookies, web beacons, and location-identifying tools. These technologies recognize your device and collect data like clickstream information, browser type, visit timestamps, AdID, and geolocation.

To help identify you across devices, we may share a common account identifier with our advertising partners. This data allows us and our partners to make the ads you see more relevant to your interests and to provide advertising-related services like reporting and analytics.

Moreover, we may use third-party services including social media to serve targeted ads. This may involve sharing a hashed version of your email address or other information with those platforms.

CONTROL OVER YOUR INFORMATION

You have control over your information in the following ways:

• Device Information Access: You can manage the platform's access to your device information through the “Settings” of your device. For example, you can revoke permission or limit access to the platform to access your network devices, geolocation, or to integrate with other platforms.
• Email Preferences: To stop receiving promotional emails from us, simply click the “unsubscribe” link included in those communications. Please note that you cannot opt out of service-related emails (such as account verification, transactional messages, updates to features, and technical or security notices).
• Push Notifications: You can disable push notifications by adjusting your preferences in the notification settings menu on your device.
• SMS Text Messaging: You can opt out of promotional SMS messages at any time. However, unsubscribing from promotional texts will not stop service-related SMS messages, such as those for account login and security verification codes.
• Modifying or Deleting Your Information: If you have questions about reviewing, modifying, or deleting your information, please submit a request through our Contact Us page. Please be aware that there may be circumstances where we may not be able to modify or delete your information.

DATA RETENTION

We retain your personal information only for as long as necessary to achieve the purposes for which it was collected, which are in line with our legitimate business interests and applicable laws. In some cases, we may keep personal information for extended periods to comply with legal, tax, and accounting requirements established by industry or government authorities.

To determine the appropriate retention period for personal information, we evaluate several factors, including the nature and sensitivity of the data, the potential risks of unauthorized access or disclosure, whether we can achieve our objectives through other means, and our legal, regulatory, tax, and accounting obligations.

Once your personal information is no longer needed for the purposes mentioned above, we will either delete or de-identify it. If deletion or de-identification is not feasible, we will securely store the information and restrict its processing until it can be deleted or de-identified.

RIGHTS UNDER THE DIGITAL PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION ACT, 2023 (DPDP Act)

Right of Access: Under Section 11 of the DPDP Act, Data Principals have the right to access information about their personal data being processed. This includes a summary of the data, the purposes of processing, and details about any other Data Fiduciaries or Data Processors with whom their data is shared.

Right of Correction: As per Section 12(1) of the DPDP Act, Data Principals can request corrections to their personal data if it has become inaccurate or if there were errors during its initial collection.

Right of Erasure: Section 12(1) also grants Data Principals the right to request the correction, completion, updating, or erasure of their personal data that they previously consented to have processed.

Right of Withdraw Consent: According to Section 6(4) of the DPDP Act, Data Principals can withdraw their consent at any time, and this process should be as straightforward as giving consent. Section 6(7) allows Data Principals to manage their consent through a Consent Manager.

Right of Object to Marketing: Section 6(4) specifies that consent given by Data Principals is limited to specific purposes. Therefore, if their data is used for marketing activities, including targeted advertising, they have the right to object.

Right of Grievance Redressal: Under Section 13(1) of the DPDP Act, Data Principals can utilize grievance redressal mechanisms provided by the Data Fiduciary or Consent Manager for any issues related to their personal data handling. If dissatisfied with this process, they may escalate their complaint to the Data Protection Board as outlined in Section 13(3).

Right to Nominate: Section 14(1) introduces a unique provision allowing Data Principals to nominate another individual to exercise their rights in case of death or incapacity.

CHILDREN'S PRIVACY

Children under the age of eighteen (18) are not permitted to access the Site. We also do not intentionally collect personal information from children. If you become aware or suspect that a child under eighteen is using the Site, please contact us immediately. We will take swift action to delete any personal information associated with that child.

Processing of Children's Data under the DPDP Act

Section 9(1) of the DPDP Act states that before processing children's personal data, the Data Fiduciary must obtain verifiable consent from the parent or lawful guardian.

Further, Section 9(2) clarifies that the Data Fiduciary shall not undertake any processing of personal data that is likely to have a detrimental effect on the well-being of a child.

Section 9(3) prohibits the tracking or behavioral monitoring of children or targeted advertising directed at children.

YOUR DATA PROTECTION RIGHTS UNDER THE GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATION (GDPR)

If you are a resident of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA), you have specific data protection rights under the GDPR.

In certain circumstances, you have the following rights:

• Right of Access: You can access, update, or delete the information we hold about you.
• Right to Rectification: You have the right to correct any inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Right to Object: You can object to our processing of your personal data.
• Right to Restriction: You can request that we limit the processing of your personal information.
• Right to Data Portability: You have the right to receive a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used format.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: You can withdraw your consent at any time if we rely on it to process your personal information.

Please be aware that we may need to verify your identity before responding to these requests. Additionally, some necessary data may be required for us to provide our services.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a Data Protection Authority regarding our collection and use of your personal data. For more information, please contact your local data protection authority in the EEA.

ADDITIONAL U.S. STATE PRIVACY DISCLOSURES

For residents of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Texas, Utah, and Virginia: These Additional U.S. State Privacy Disclosures ("U.S. Disclosures") enhance our Privacy Policy by providing further details about our personal data processing practices for individuals in these states. For a comprehensive overview of how we collect, use, disclose, and process personal data in connection with our services, please refer to our Privacy Policy. Unless otherwise specified, all terms defined in our Privacy Policy have the same meaning in these U.S. Disclosures.

Your Privacy Choices

Depending on your jurisdiction and applicable privacy laws, you may have some or all of the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of Access: You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right of Portability: In certain circumstances, you may have the right to receive a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format or to request its transfer to another entity.
• Right of Rectification: You may request the correction of any inaccurate or incomplete personal data we hold about you.
• Right of Deletion: You may request the deletion of your personal data in certain circumstances.
• Right of Restriction: You may request to limit the purposes for which we process your personal data.
• Right of Opt-Out: You may have the right to opt-out of certain processing activities, including the use of your personal data for targeted advertising or the "selling" or "sharing" of your data with third parties.
• Right of Control Automated Decision-Making: You may request that we refrain from using automated decision-making or profiling for specific purposes.
• Right of Withdraw Consent: If you have consented to the processing of your personal data, you can withdraw that consent at any time. Withdrawal will not affect the legality of our prior use of your data.
• Right of Appeal: If we deny your request to exercise any of your rights, you have the right to appeal our decision. If your appeal is rejected, you may file a complaint with your state attorney general.
• Right of Nondiscrimination: You have the right to be free from retaliatory or discriminatory treatment when exercising your rights. However, exercising these rights may lead to changes in pricing, rates, or service quality if such changes are reasonably related to the impact of your request and permitted by law.

SPECIFIC RIGHTS FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS

This section applies only to individuals residing in California and should be read alongside our entire Privacy Policy. As a California resident, you have the right to:

• Obtain additional information about your "personal information" as defined by the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA).
• Request disclosure of certain information we collect, use, disclose, and sell about you.
• Request the deletion of your personal information.
• Opt out of the sale of your personal information.

These rights pertain to information that can be reasonably linked to you, excluding data that cannot be associated with you.

DISCLAIMER

As a user of the platform, you assume all responsibility and risk associated with your use of the platform, the internet, and any information you post or access, as well as your conduct both on and off the platform.

INDEMNITY

You agree to indemnify us against any claims or disputes from third parties arising from your disclosure of information to them, whether through our platforms or otherwise, and from your use of third-party websites, applications, and resources. We are not liable for any actions taken by third parties regarding your information or personal data that you have shared with them.

CONTACT US

If you have any questions or concerns regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, you may contact us by clicking the "Contact Us" button on our website. We are here to assist you and will respond to your inquiries as promptly as possible.