Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy explains how Univs.com collects, uses, stores, and protects your personal data. We are committed to transparency and to processing your data lawfully and fairly.
1. Introduction
Univs.com ("Univs", "we", "us", "our") is committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, retain, and protect your personal data when you use any part of our Platform — including univs.com, portal.univs.com, pay.univs.com, and all associated subdomains and services.
Please read this policy carefully. If you have any questions or do not agree with its terms, please contact us before using the Platform.
2. Who We Are and How to Contact Us
Univs.com operates as an international education marketplace and student services platform.
Primary Contact for Privacy Matters: Email: info@univs.com, Website: univs.com
We are committed to responding to privacy-related inquiries within 30 days of receipt.
3. Scope of This Policy
This Policy applies to:
- All visitors to univs.com (including unregistered/guest visitors)
- Registered Students
- University Partners and University Managers
- Agents and Partners
- Univs Staff
- Users of portal.univs.com
- Users of pay.univs.com
- Users of any other current or future Univs subdomain or digital service
4. Data We Collect
4.1 Data You Provide Directly:
- Student Accounts: Full name, email, password (encrypted), date of birth, nationality, phone, educational history, academic documents, identity documents, supporting documents, scholarship info, language proficiency, other voluntary submissions.
- University Manager/Staff Accounts: Full name, work email, job title, university name, phone, submitted content.
- Agent/Partner Accounts: Full name, business name, email, phone, business registration, country of operation.
4.2 Data Collected Automatically:
- IP address and geolocation
- Browser type/version
- Operating system
- Device type
- Pages visited
- Time spent on pages
- Clickstream data
- Referral URLs
- Search queries
- Session data
- Performance data
4.3 Cookies and Tracking Technologies:
See Section 13 and our Cookie Policy.
4.4 Data from Third Parties:
- Payment processors
- Analytics and advertising partners
- Social media platforms
- University Partners
- Publicly available sources for verification
5. How We Use Your Data
- Account creation and management
- Processing applications and inquiries
- Connecting students with universities and agents
- Sending transactional communications
- Sending marketing communications (where you have opted in)
- Processing payments and subscriptions
- Platform analytics and improvement
- Fraud detection and security
- Legal compliance
- Providing AI-assisted recommendations
6. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)
For EU/EEA/UK users, we rely on:
- Consent (freely given, specific, informed, withdrawable at any time)
- Contract Performance (necessary to provide services you requested)
- Legitimate Interests (fraud detection, platform security, service improvement)
- Legal Obligation (compliance with tax, financial, and data protection laws)
7. How We Share Your Data
7.1 With University Partners:
When you submit an application or inquiry, your data is shared with that University Partner. You expressly consent to this.
7.2 With Agents and Partners:
Relevant data may be shared with your Agent to facilitate your applications and communications.
7.3 Within Univs Group:
Data may be shared across the Univs group for internal business purposes.
7.4 With Service Providers:
- Payment processors (Stripe, regional processors)
- Cloud hosting providers
- Email platforms
- Analytics (Google Analytics)
- CDN providers
- Fraud detection services
- Customer support tools
All bound by data processing agreements.
7.5 Data We Do NOT Sell:
Univs does not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to any third party.
7.6 Legal Disclosures:
We may disclose data if required by law, regulation, court order, government request, or to protect our rights, property, or safety.
8. International Data Transfers
Your data may be stored and/or processed in the UAE, India, and wherever our service providers operate globally. Where we transfer data from the EEA or UK to countries without adequacy decisions, we use:
- Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs)
- Data processing agreements
- Other legally recognized transfer mechanisms
9. Data Retention
We retain your personal data for as long as necessary. We are currently undertaking a formal data retention policy review. Certain categories of data may be legally required to be retained for specific periods.
10. Your Privacy Rights
10.1 Universal Rights:
- Access
- Rectification
- Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten")
- Restriction of Processing
- Data Portability (students via portal.univs.com, others via email)
- Withdraw Consent
- Object to Automated Decision-Making
10.2 Additional EU/EEA Rights:
- Object to processing based on legitimate interests
- Lodge a complaint with national Data Protection Authority (edpb.europa.eu)
10.3 Additional UK Rights:
- Lodge a complaint with the ICO (ico.org.uk)
10.4 Exercising Your Rights:
Contact info@univs.com with subject "Privacy Rights Request." Response within 30 days. Identity verification may be required.
11. Account Deletion
Contact info@univs.com. Self-service deletion not currently available. Deletion requests processed within 30 days. Certain data may be retained as required by law.
12. Security
- Encrypted storage
- HTTPS/TLS for data in transit
- Access controls and authentication
- Regular security audits
- Restricted staff access to personal data
Data breach notification in accordance with applicable law.
13. Cookie Policy
13.1 What Are Cookies?
Small text files placed on your device when you visit a website.
13.2 Cookies We Use:
- Strictly Necessary (login, CSRF)
- Functional (preferences, wishlist)
- Analytics (Google Analytics)
- Marketing (advertising tracking, only with consent)
13.3 Cookie Consent:
Banner displayed to new visitors. Options: Accept all, Reject non-essential, Customise preferences.
13.4 Cookie Reference Table
| Cookie | Category | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
wordpress_logged_in_* |
Necessary | Authenticates logged-in users | Session / 14 days |
wordpress_sec_* |
Necessary | CSRF protection | Session |
wp-settings-* |
Functional | Stores UI preferences | 1 year |
univs_wishlist |
Functional | Preserves program wishlist | 30 days |
_ga, _gid |
Analytics | Google Analytics user/session distinction | 2 years / 24 hours |
_gat |
Analytics | Google Analytics throttle rate | 1 minute |