Privacy Policy

Information you give us

• Account and verification: your name, student email address, student ID details, and the campus you belong to, used to confirm you are an enrolled student.
• Profile: your display name, profile photo, and any bio you add.
• Listings and activity: item photos and descriptions, prices, deposits, requests, bookings, ratings, and reviews.
• Messages: the messages you exchange with other users and with our support team.
• Payment proof: screenshots or images of GCash transfers you upload so our team can verify payments, plus the account details you give us to receive payouts.

Information we collect automatically

• Device and log data: IP address, browser and device type, and timestamps of your actions on the Platform.
• Usage data: the pages and listings you view and how you move through the Platform.
• Approximate location: your campus and general area, used to show nearby items. We do not track your precise GPS location.

Information from others

• Other users: ratings, reviews, and dispute reports about you.
• Sign-in providers: if you sign in with a third-party provider such as Google, we receive basic profile information you allow them to share.

We use personal data to:

• Create your account and verify that you are an enrolled student.
• Operate the marketplace: publish listings, match borrowers and lenders, and arrange handoffs and returns.
• Verify manual payments, hold deposits, and process lender payouts.
• Keep Arkila safe: prevent fraud and abuse, and review disputes.
• Provide support and send service messages, such as booking updates and notifications.
• Improve the Platform and understand how it is used.
• Comply with legal, tax, and accounting obligations.

We send service-related notifications as part of operating your account. Any optional marketing is sent only where you have not opted out, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Under the Data Privacy Act, we rely on one or more of the following criteria for lawful processing:

Contract

To provide the service you signed up for, including bookings and payments.

Consent

For things you opt into, such as certain notifications or sign-in providers.

Legitimate interests

To keep the Platform safe, prevent fraud, and improve it, balanced against your rights.

Legal obligation

To meet tax, accounting, and other legal requirements.

Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw it at any time; this does not affect processing already carried out.

We share personal data only as described here:

• With other users: when you lend or borrow, the other party sees a limited profile (such as your name, photo, ratings, and the details needed for the handoff). They do not see your email, ID document, or payment details.
• With our team: Arkila staff and campus student-operations members access data as needed to run verification, payouts, and disputes.
• With service providers: hosting, payment tools such as GCash, and sign-in providers that process data on our behalf under appropriate safeguards.
• For legal and safety reasons: when required by law, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of users, the public, or Arkila.
• In a business transfer: if Arkila is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, with notice to you as required by law.

Arkila uses a manual payment flow. Borrowers pay through GCash and upload proof of the transfer, which our team reviews before confirming a booking and before releasing lender payouts. We store the proof images and your payout account details for as long as needed to run the booking and to meet financial record-keeping obligations.

We do not collect or store full card numbers. Payments made through GCash are also subject to GCash’s own privacy practices.

We use a small set of cookies and similar storage to:

• Keep you signed in and secure your session (these are essential).
• Remember your preferences, such as your campus.
• Understand, in aggregate, how the Platform is used so we can improve it.

You can control cookies through your browser settings. Blocking essential cookies may stop parts of Arkila, such as staying signed in, from working.

We keep personal data only as long as we have a reason to, then delete or anonymize it:

Account data

While your account is active, then removed after closure unless we must keep it.

Bookings & payment proof

Retained to satisfy tax and accounting record-keeping requirements.

Dispute records

Kept as long as needed to handle the dispute and any follow-on claims.

Logs

Kept for a limited period for security and troubleshooting.

We use organizational and technical measures suited to the sensitivity of the data, including encryption of traffic in transit, access controls that limit staff to what they need, and review of who can reach verification documents and payment proof.

No system is perfectly secure. If a personal-data breach occurs that is likely to put your rights at serious risk, we will notify you and the National Privacy Commission as required by the Data Privacy Act.

As a data subject, you have the right to:

• Be informed about how your data is processed (this policy).
• Access the personal data we hold about you.
• Correct data that is inaccurate or out of date.
• Object to certain processing, including direct marketing.
• Erase or block data where the law allows.
• Data portability for data you provided, in a usable format.
• Lodge a complaint with the National Privacy Commission, and to be indemnified for damage caused by unlawful processing.

To exercise any of these, email [email protected]. We may ask you to confirm your identity, and we will respond within the time the law requires.

Arkila is built for tertiary-level students and is intended for users 18 and over. Where a verified student is a minor under local law, a parent or guardian must consent to these practices on their behalf. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children below the age of digital consent without that consent; if we learn we have, we will delete it.

We process and store data primarily in the Philippines. Some service providers may process data in other countries. Where data moves across borders, we take steps so it remains protected to a standard consistent with the Data Privacy Act.

The Platform links to and relies on third parties, such as GCash and sign-in providers. Their handling of your data is governed by their own privacy policies, which we encourage you to read. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of services we do not control.

We may update this Privacy Policy as Arkila evolves or as the law changes. We will post the new version here with a fresh effective date and, for material changes, let you know in the app or by email. Continuing to use Arkila after an update means you have read the current version.

For any privacy question, or to reach our Data Protection Officer, email [email protected] or write to the Data Protection Officer, Arkila, Inc., Metro Manila, Philippines.

If you believe your rights have been infringed, you may also contact the National Privacy Commission.