Privacy Policy — Smart Team Networks Pvt. ltd. (STN)
Effective date: 1 August 2026 Last updated: 8 August 2026
1. Who we are
Smart Team Networks Pvt. ltd. ("STN", "we", "us") operates the STN platform — a mobile application and website offering bus ticketing, ride-hailing, food ordering and delivery, live commerce, job matching, and related community services in Nepal.
- Registered name: Smart Team Networks Pvt. ltd. (स्मार्ट टिम नेटवर्क्स प्रा.लि.)
- Company Registration No.: 391645/82/83
- PAN: 623609606
- Registered address: Ward No. 9, Tulsipur Sub-Metropolitan City, Dang, Nepal
- Contact for privacy matters: stnsupport.np@gmail.com
This policy explains what we collect, why, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and how you can delete your account.
2. Information we collect
2.1 Information you give us
Your STN account is created and secured with your mobile number alone. There is no email-and-password sign-in.
| What | When | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Mobile number — required | Registration and every login | It identifies your account, and it is where we send your one-time password (OTP) |
| Name, email address, district, and address — all optional | Registration and profile editing | To identify you to drivers, vendors and bus operators, and to deliver your orders |
| Delivery address | When you place a food or product order | To deliver your order |
| Emergency contacts — the name, mobile number and relationship of each person you nominate | When you set up the emergency/SOS feature | So we can alert them if you raise an SOS |
| Messages you type into chat and in-app assistance | When you use them | To pass them to the person you are messaging, or to answer you |
| Support correspondence | When you contact us | To respond to your request |
A note about emergency contacts. These are other people's phone numbers, given to us by you rather than by them. Please only add people who are willing to be contacted this way. You can remove a contact at any time from your profile, and all of them are erased when you delete your account.
2.2 If you register as a bus owner
Listing a bus requires information about the vehicle and the business:
| What | Why | Who can see it |
|---|---|---|
| Number plate, bus name, type, and seat layout | To list your bus and let passengers choose seats | Public |
| Operator name, contact phone, tagline, description, amenities, photographs, and an optional introduction video | Your public bus page | Public |
| Photographs of your bluebook, route permit, and insurance certificate, and the insurance expiry date | An STN administrator reviews these manually before approving your bus | STN administrators only — these are stored with restricted access and are never shown on your public page |
| Bank name, account name and account number, and/or a payment QR image, if you choose to accept payment directly | So passengers can pay you directly | The payment details you choose to publish are shown to passengers booking your bus |
Merchants and riders/drivers similarly provide the business and vehicle details needed to verify them and display their listing.
2.3 Information collected automatically
| What | When | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Location — your approximate and precise device location | Only while the app is open and you are using a feature that needs it (ride pickup, delivery address, trip tracking, job matching). We do not collect location in the background or when the app is closed, and our apps do not request background-location permission. | To match you with a nearby driver, navigate, and show trip progress |
| Booking, order, ride, and payment records | Each time you transact | To provide the service, resolve disputes, and meet accounting and tax obligations |
| Ratings you give and receive | After a completed trip | To show drivers and passengers a trust score |
| Session and device information (login session tokens, app version, basic device type) | While signed in | To keep you signed in securely and to diagnose faults |
| Push notification token | If you allow notifications in the passenger app | To send you order, trip, and booking updates |
| Basic technical information, including your IP address | Whenever your device connects to us | Needed for the service to function, and to protect against abuse |
We do not sell your personal information to anyone. We use no advertising network, no analytics SDK, and no crash-reporting SDK.
2.4 Payments
Bus ticket payments are settled directly with the bus operator. We record which payment method was used and the amount, but we do not collect or store your card numbers, bank account numbers, or digital-wallet credentials, and no third-party payment gateway is integrated.
3. Who we share information with
We share only what is necessary for the service to function.
3.1 Other users
Drivers, vendors and bus operators you transact with receive your name, phone number, and the pickup or delivery address relevant to that specific transaction, so they can fulfil your order or trip.
3.2 Service providers
| Recipient | What they receive | Why | Their privacy policy |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aakash Tech Pvt. ltd. (AakashSMS, Nepal) | Your mobile number and the message text | Delivering OTP codes and emergency SMS alerts | https://aakashsms.com/privacy-policy/ |
| MongoDB, Inc. (Atlas) | All stored platform data, on their managed infrastructure | Storing and operating the service | https://www.mongodb.com/legal/privacy-policy |
| Cloudinary Ltd. | Photographs and videos uploaded to STN — including profile and bus photos, introduction videos, payment QR images, and bus documents | Storing and delivering images and video | https://cloudinary.com/privacy |
| Google LLC (Google Maps SDK, Firebase Cloud Messaging) | Map and location requests from the mobile apps; a push-notification token if you enable notifications | Displaying maps and delivering notifications | https://policies.google.com/privacy |
| Anthropic PBC | The text you type into AI-assisted features, and the content of an emergency alert you raise | Generating a response; assessing an alert to decide who should be notified | https://www.anthropic.com/legal/privacy |
| OpenStreetMap Foundation | Map-tile requests from our website, which include the map area viewed and your device's IP address | Displaying maps on the website | https://osmfoundation.org/wiki/Privacy_Policy |
3.3 Emergency alerts
When you raise an SOS, the alert is assessed automatically to decide who should be told. If your nominated emergency contacts should be alerted, we send them an SMS containing your name and the details of the alert — which means their mobile numbers are passed to our SMS provider for that purpose.
3.4 Where your information is stored
STN's database is hosted by MongoDB Atlas in Mumbai, India. Our other providers may also store and process information outside Nepal. By using STN you understand that your information is transferred to and stored in countries other than Nepal, and we take reasonable steps to keep it protected wherever it is held.
3.5 Legal and insurance disclosures
We disclose information to government authorities, insurers, and law enforcement only where the law requires it, or where it is necessary for an insurance claim you have filed, to investigate fraud, or to protect someone's safety.
4. AI-assisted features
Some parts of STN answer your questions using an automated assistant powered by Anthropic's Claude. When you use these features, the text of your question is sent to Anthropic to generate a response, and the exchange is stored so that you can refer back to it and so we can investigate problems and keep the service safe.
STN's emergency feature also uses this assistant to assess an alert you raise and decide who should be notified.
Please do not type sensitive personal information — such as citizenship numbers, bank details, or health information — into chat features. Stored chat history is deleted when you delete your account.
5. How long we keep your information
- Active account data is kept while your account exists.
- Transaction records (orders, bookings, payments) are retained after account deletion in a de-identified form — with your phone number, name, and address removed — because Nepali tax and accounting rules require us to keep records of completed transactions.
- Ride records (the date, route, distance, fare and vehicle of a completed trip) are kept for at least 18 months from the date the record was created, because Nepal's transport regulations require ride-service operators to keep trip records available for that period. If you delete your account before then, the ride record survives with your phone number, name, and address removed.
- Insurance claim records are retained in full, including any police report or milapatra reference you submitted, because they are legal and financial records connected to a claim. See section 6.
6. Deleting your account
You can permanently delete your STN account at any time.
Two ways to request deletion:
- On the web: visit stn-smart-team-networks.vercel.app/delete-account, sign in, and confirm.
- In the app: open Profile → Delete account, and confirm.
Both routes require you to sign in and to confirm with an OTP sent to your registered phone number. Deletion is immediate and cannot be undone.
6.1 What is permanently deleted
- Your account and login identity, and your merchant, rider, and service-provider profiles
- All active login sessions (you are signed out of every device)
- Your saved profile details, addresses, and contact information
- Your emergency contacts, including the names and phone numbers you added
- Your chat and assistance history
- Job posts you created
6.2 What is kept, and why
- Completed orders, rides, and bookings — kept with your name, phone number, and address removed, so the record can no longer be linked to you. Required for tax, accounting, and dispute records. Ride records are kept for at least 18 months from the date the record was created, as transport regulations require; see section 5.
- Insurance claim records — kept in full. These are legal documents tied to an incident and, where applicable, to an insurer and the police. They cannot be altered or removed.
- Bus and showroom listings you published — remain visible with your personal contact details removed, because other users may have active bookings or orders that depend on them.
- Images and video you uploaded — photographs, documents, and payment QR images are held by our media provider (Cloudinary) and are not erased automatically when your account is deleted. Write to stnsupport.np@gmail.com to have specific files removed.
- Records we are required by law to retain, for as long as the law requires.
6.3 When deletion may be blocked
If you have an obligation outstanding — for example an unfinished trip, an undelivered order, or tickets you have sold for an upcoming bus departure — deletion is refused and the app tells you exactly what must be settled first. Complete or cancel the obligation, then request deletion again.
7. Your rights
You may:
- Access the personal information we hold about you
- Correct inaccurate details through your profile, or by contacting us
- Delete your account, as described in section 6
- Withdraw permissions (such as location or notifications) in your device settings — note that some features will stop working
To exercise any of these, write to stnsupport.np@gmail.com. We respond within 30 days.
8. Security
We protect your information with encrypted connections (HTTPS), server-side session cookies that cannot be read by scripts in your browser, short-lived access tokens with revocable refresh tokens, and access controls limiting who on our team can view stored data. Bus documents such as bluebooks and insurance certificates are stored with restricted access rather than published.
No system is perfectly secure. If a breach affects your personal information, we will notify affected users and the relevant authorities as required by law.
9. Children
STN is not intended for children under 16, and we do not knowingly collect information from them. If you believe a child has created an account, contact stnsupport.np@gmail.com and we will delete it.
10. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy. The "Last updated" date at the top will change, and material changes will be announced in the app. Continuing to use STN after a change means you accept the updated policy.
11. Contact
Smart Team Networks Pvt. ltd. Ward No. 9, Tulsipur Sub-Metropolitan City, Dang, Nepal Email: stnsupport.np@gmail.com