A1. Who we are

Aran is an AI-powered call-screening and contact-protection application developed and operated by Vaayil Technologies, an MSME registered in India.

Registered address: Pinewood Tower A, House of Hiranandani, Rajiv Gandhi Salai, Egattur, Chennai — 603103, Tamil Nadu, India.

For privacy questions contact us at privacy@vaayil.com.

A2. Beta programme — additional data notice

Because Aran is in beta, we may collect additional diagnostic information that would not be collected in a production release:

• Crash reports and error logs — stack traces and device state at the time of a crash, used solely to identify and fix bugs. Logs are retained for 30 days.
• Feature-usage telemetry — anonymised events such as which screens are visited and which features are invoked, used to prioritise development. No personally identifiable information is included in telemetry events.
• Screening quality signals — after a Guardian Agent screening session, anonymised indicators (e.g. transcript length, outcome, detected language) may be used to evaluate and improve AI model accuracy.

Beta diagnostic data is processed exclusively by Vaayil Technologies and is not shared with third parties beyond the infrastructure providers listed in A4. You may opt out of telemetry by emailing privacy@vaayil.com.

A3. Information we collect

We collect only what is necessary to deliver the Aran service:

• Phone number — used to identify your account and route call-screening to your device.
• SIM hardware identifier (hashed) — a one-way cryptographic hash of your SIM ICCID, used for device authentication. The raw ICCID is never stored on our servers.
• Google account identifier (sub) — the unique numeric ID from your Google account, collected only if you choose to link your account via the web portal. We do not store your Google name or email on our servers.
• Device model name — e.g. "Samsung Galaxy S24", sent during enrolment and displayed in the web portal so you can identify your protected devices.
• Call screening records — when the Guardian Agent answers a call on your behalf, we store metadata (caller number last 4 digits, timestamp, AI-assessed spam score, intent category) and the transcript of the conversation. These are used to show you a screening summary and to improve model accuracy.
• Call audio — audio from screened calls is temporarily buffered during the screening session for real-time speech recognition. It is not retained after the call ends.

We do not collect your contacts, SMS messages, browsing history, or any data unrelated to call screening.

A4. Third-party services

Aran relies on the following third-party services to function:

• Google Cloud Speech-to-Text — real-time transcription of caller audio during screening sessions. Audio is sent to Google's API and subject to Google Cloud's privacy notice.
• Google Cloud Text-to-Speech — synthesis of the Guardian Agent's spoken responses.
• Google Gemini API — AI reasoning used to assess caller intent and generate screening responses.
• Google Sign-In (optional) — used only if you choose to link your Google account for web-portal access.
• Firebase Cloud Messaging (FCM) — push notifications used to deliver screening results to your device.
• Exotel — telephony platform used to receive and bridge calls in India.

Each of these services operates under its own privacy policy. We encourage you to review them.

A5. Data retention

• Call screening records — retained for up to 12 months, then automatically deleted.
• Account data (phone number, SIM hash, Google sub, device name) — retained for as long as your account is active. Deactivating your account (via the web portal "Deboard" action) permanently wipes all security credentials and marks the account inactive.
• Call audio — not retained beyond the duration of the screening call.
• Beta crash logs and telemetry — retained for 30 days.

A6. Data security

• All API communication is encrypted in transit using TLS 1.2 or higher.
• Your SIM identifier is stored as a one-way cryptographic hash (SHA-256); the original value cannot be recovered from our database.
• The Aran app uses Android's hardware-backed Trusted Execution Environment (TEE / StrongBox) to generate and store cryptographic keys that cannot be exported or cloned.
• FIDO2 biometric attestation is required for sensitive operations such as call approval and re-enrolment.

No security system is perfect. During the beta period, you acknowledge that residual risks exist and that Vaayil Technologies cannot guarantee the absolute security of data transmitted over the internet.

A7. Your rights

Under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (India) and applicable international standards, you have the right to:

• Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Correction — ask us to correct inaccurate data.
• Deletion (Erasure) — delete your account and all associated data via the web portal "Deboard" action, or by contacting us.
• Portability — request an export of your call screening records.
• Objection / Withdrawal of consent — object to processing of your data for model-improvement or telemetry purposes at any time.
• Grievance redressal — lodge a complaint with our Grievance Officer at privacy@vaayil.com. We will acknowledge within 48 hours and resolve within 30 days.

A8. Children

Aran is not directed at children under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors. If you believe a minor has provided us with personal information, please contact us at privacy@vaayil.com and we will delete it promptly.

A9. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy as the product evolves out of beta. When we do, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. For material changes, we will notify users via an in-app notice at least 7 days before the change takes effect. Continued use of Aran after any change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

A10. Contact & Grievance Officer

B1. Acceptance

By downloading, installing, or using the Aran application or any related services (collectively, the "Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Use ("Terms") and the Privacy Policy above. If you do not agree, you must uninstall the application and cease using the Service immediately.

These Terms constitute a legally binding agreement between you and Vaayil Technologies ("we", "us", or "our").

B3. Eligibility and account

• You must be at least 18 years old and legally capable of entering into a binding contract under Indian law to use the Service.
• You must hold a valid Indian mobile number in your own name or have the lawful authority to register it with the Service.
• You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activities that occur under your account.
• You may register only one account per phone number. Creating multiple accounts to circumvent restrictions is prohibited.

B4. Permitted use

You may use the Service solely for your own personal, non-commercial call-screening purposes in accordance with these Terms and all applicable laws. You must not:

• Use the Service to harass, stalk, defraud, or harm any person.
• Intercept, record, or screen calls on behalf of any person who has not consented to being screened.
• Attempt to reverse-engineer, decompile, disassemble, or derive the source code of the Aran application or its backend services.
• Use automated scripts, bots, or other tools to interact with the Service in a manner not intended by Vaayil Technologies.
• Probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of the Service's infrastructure without prior written authorisation.
• Circumvent, disable, or interfere with security-related features of the Service, including biometric gates and hardware attestation.
• Use the Service in any way that violates the Indian Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) guidelines, the Information Technology Act, 2000, or any other applicable law.

B5. Intellectual property

All rights, title, and interest in and to the Service — including the Aran application, the Guardian Agent AI system, the web portal, all provisional and granted patents filed by Vaayil Technologies, trademarks, trade names, logos, source code, algorithms, training data, and documentation — are and remain the exclusive property of Vaayil Technologies.

No licence, ownership right, or other intellectual property right is transferred to you by these Terms or by your use of the Service, other than the limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the application on your personal Android device for the purposes described in B4.

The name "Aran", the Guardian Agent concept, and the Vaayil Technologies name and logo are proprietary to Vaayil Technologies. You may not use them without our prior written consent.

B6. Feedback

If you provide us with feedback, suggestions, ideas, or bug reports about the Service ("Feedback"), you grant Vaayil Technologies a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, incorporate, and commercialise that Feedback in any manner without any obligation to you. You waive any moral rights in such Feedback to the extent permissible under applicable law.

B9. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Vaayil Technologies and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) your use or misuse of the Service; (b) your violation of these Terms; (c) your violation of any third-party right; or (d) any claim that your use of the Service caused damage to a third party.

B10. Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Service at any time, with or without cause or notice, including if we believe you have violated these Terms. Upon termination:

• Your licence to use the Service ends immediately.
• Your account data will be retained for 30 days to allow you to request an export, after which it will be deleted unless a longer retention period is required by law.
• Provisions of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination (including B5, B6, B7, B8, B9, B11, B12) shall survive.

You may terminate your account at any time by using the "Deboard" option in the web portal or by contacting us.

B11. Governing law and jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India, without regard to its conflict-of-law principles. Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts at Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.

B12. General

• Entire agreement — These Terms and the Privacy Policy above constitute the entire agreement between you and Vaayil Technologies regarding the Service and supersede all prior agreements.
• Severability — If any provision of these Terms is held to be invalid or unenforceable, that provision shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary and the remaining provisions shall continue in full force.
• No waiver — Failure by Vaayil Technologies to enforce any provision of these Terms does not constitute a waiver of the right to enforce it in the future.
• Assignment — You may not assign or transfer these Terms or any rights hereunder without our prior written consent. Vaayil Technologies may assign these Terms freely, including in connection with a merger or acquisition.
• Updates to Terms — We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will provide notice of material changes in-app at least 7 days before they take effect. Continued use of the Service after that date constitutes acceptance.

B13. Contact

For any questions or notices under these Terms: