Fair Use and Acceptable Use Policy

Last updated on June 16, 2026.

This policy sets out the rules for acceptable use of the Poocho Platform and its products — Recruit, our participant recruitment and research session product, and Studio, our analysis product. It applies to all Users of the Platform, including Researchers (Recruit) and Customers (Studio).

This policy applies in addition to our Platform Terms, Recruit Product Terms, and Studio Product Terms, and forms part of your agreement with Poocho Research Technologies Private Limited. Where this policy uses terms defined in those documents, they have the same meaning.

If something is prohibited under the Platform Terms or either Product Terms, it remains prohibited even if this policy does not repeat the rule.

1. Rules that apply to all Platform Users

These rules apply regardless of which product you are using.

1.1 Content you may not create, upload, or share

You may not use the Platform to create, upload, distribute, or otherwise deal in content that:

• is unlawful, fraudulent, or facilitates an unlawful act under any applicable law;
• is defamatory, threatening, harassing, or incites violence or hatred against any person or group;
• infringes the intellectual property, privacy, publicity, or other rights of any person;
• impersonates any person, organisation, or entity in a misleading or deceptive way;
• contains malware, viruses, or any code designed to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorised access to any system; or
• a court or regulatory authority has ordered to be removed or not published.

1.2 Activities you may not conduct

You may not:

• attempt to probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of the Platform or any system or network connected to it, or breach any security or authentication measure without Poocho's prior written consent;
• use automated means — bots, scrapers, or similar — to access or interact with the Platform in a way that is not expressly permitted;
• attempt to reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, or otherwise derive the source code of any part of the Platform;
• use the Platform in a way that could damage, disable, overburden, or impair it, or interfere with any other user's use of it;
• access or attempt to access another user's account, data, or workspace without authorisation; or
• resell, sublicense, or otherwise commercialise access to the Platform without Poocho's prior written consent.

1.3 Sensitive and special category personal data

You must not use Poocho — including screeners, session recordings, survey responses, uploads to Studio, or any other feature of the Platform — to collect or process personal data of a sensitive or special nature, including:

• financial account details, transaction data, or bank statements;
• government identification numbers, including PAN, Aadhaar, passport numbers, and voter identification numbers;
• health records, medical history, or diagnostic data;
• biometric data, including fingerprints, facial geometry data, and voice prints used for identification purposes;
• data relating to children under 18 years of age; or
• any other category of data designated as sensitive under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 or any other applicable law;

unless you have:

(a) a lawful basis under the DPDPA and any other applicable law to collect and process that data for your purpose; (b) implemented additional safeguards appropriate to the sensitivity of the data; and (c) obtained Poocho's prior written approval.

To request approval, write to us before you collect. We will respond with any conditions that apply to the engagement.

As the data fiduciary (controller) for the personal data you collect through your studies, surveys, and Customer Data you upload to Studio, the responsibility for the lawfulness of what you collect and how you handle it rests with you. Poocho processes that data only on your instructions.

1.4 Highly regulated domains

You must not use the Platform to conduct research or analysis in a highly regulated domain — including medical diagnostics, pharmaceutical efficacy, clinical outcomes, financial advice, legal advice, or psychological assessment — unless you have obtained any licence, registration, or approval required by applicable law to conduct such activity, and you have obtained Poocho's prior written approval for the engagement.

This rule is about the subject matter of your activity. It is separate from the rule in clause 1.3, which is about the personal data inside your collection. Both apply.

2. Rules specific to Recruit

These rules apply to Researchers using Recruit.

2.1 Participant conduct

No off-platform contact. You may not ask any Participant for contact details or any other means of reaching them outside the Platform, or contact or attempt to contact any Participant other than through the Platform. This rule protects Participants and the integrity of the panel. The full terms are in clause 4.1 of the Recruit Product Terms.

Treat Participants with respect. You must conduct your studies and surveys in a way that is respectful of Participants' time, dignity, and wellbeing. You must not:

• mislead Participants about the purpose, duration, or nature of a study or survey;
• pressure or coerce Participants to continue a session or survey they wish to leave;
• record Participants without their knowledge and consent; or
• share identifiable information about a Participant from one study or survey with another researcher or brand, or use it in a subsequent study or survey without fresh consent from the Participant.

Screener design. You are responsible for the lawfulness of the screener questions you design, including whether you have a lawful basis to collect the answers. Screeners must not ask Participants for the categories of sensitive data in clause 1.3 unless you have met the conditions in that clause.

2.2 Study and survey conduct and data collection

You are the data fiduciary (controller) for the personal data you collect from Participants in the course of any Study or Survey you conduct on Recruit. For Studies, this includes screener responses, session recordings, transcripts, and any other session materials you gather. For Surveys, this includes screener responses and survey question responses. Poocho processes that data on your behalf as a data processor.

Where Poocho or its engaged service partners provide moderation or research manager services — including making recommendations on screener and discussion guide design — final design decisions are made by you. Your written approval of the screener, discussion guide, and recruitment criteria before a study or survey deploys constitutes your determination of the purpose and means of data collection You remain the data fiduciary for all study and survey data collected through such services.

You must not design or conduct a study or survey with the intent of collecting personal data for a purpose other than the research described to Participants at the time of their consent.

2.3 Incentives and payments

Participant incentives are processed through Poocho Points at one Poocho Point per Indian Rupee, passed through at cost with no markup. You may not offer or promise Participants an incentive outside the Platform, or use a Poocho-facilitated study or survey as the mechanism to recruit Participants into an off-platform incentive arrangement.

All payments and incentive flows are governed by the Recruit Product Terms. Poocho Points are a closed-loop unit and may not be used for any payment outside the Platform.

2.4 Research subject matter

You must not use Recruit to recruit Participants for research that:

• involves deception of Participants that could cause harm or distress, without an IRB-approved or equivalent debrief protocol;
• involves minors (under 18 years of age) without a documented protocol for obtaining parental or guardian consent, and Poocho's prior written approval;
• is designed primarily to collect Participant personal data for commercial sale or transfer to a third party rather than for genuine research purposes; or
• conflicts with any applicable regulation, guideline, or code of ethics for research in your sector.

3. Rules specific to Studio

These rules apply to Customers.

3.1 Content you may upload

You may upload to Studio only content that you have the right to upload and process for your purposes. You represent that you have obtained all rights, consents, permissions, and authorisations necessary to upload and process this content — including from any identifiable individual whose voice, image, or personal data appears in your uploads, such as research Participants, interview subjects, employees, customers, or any other data subject.

You may not upload content that belongs to a third party unless you have a written licence, contract, or other lawful basis to use that content for the purpose you are uploading it for.

These rules are in addition to the content restrictions in clause 3.4 of the Studio Product Terms.

3.2 Usage limits and consumption conduct

Your Studio subscription gives you a defined allocation of processing minutes, AI Credits, team seats, and workspaces as set out in your applicable order, pricing plan, or Capacity Estimate. You must not:

• use automated or bulk methods — including scripts, bots, or API calls outside normal product use — to upload, process, or query content in a way designed to consume processing minutes or AI Credits at a rate beyond your subscription scope;
• share your Studio account or workspace access credentials with individuals who are not covered by your seat allocation; or
• allow your subscription to be used by, or on behalf of, any person or entity other than the organisation named in your applicable order.

If you need additional capacity, the correct path is a top-up or plan change as described in the Studio Product Terms.

3.3 Team seats and access

Each team seat under your subscription is for one individual team member. You may not share login credentials across multiple individuals or assign a seat to a generic or shared account. If you need more seats, write to us at studiodesk@poocho.co.

3.4 How you may use Studio outputs

AI Output and other Studio outputs are analytical aids. You may use them for your internal purposes — including research, analysis, business insight, or any other lawful use — and to share findings with your clients and stakeholders in line with your normal working practice.

You must not:

• present Studio outputs as verified statements of fact about specific individuals, organisations, or events without independent verification;
• publish Studio outputs in a way that attributes them to a named researcher, analyst, or expert who did not author them, without disclosing that they are AI-assisted;
• use Studio outputs as a substitute for professional advice — including legal, medical, financial, or regulatory advice — in a context where such advice is required; or
• use Studio outputs in any way that would breach your obligations to your clients, research Participants, or applicable professional or regulatory standards.

4. Enforcement

4.1 What we may do

If we reasonably believe you are in breach of this policy, we may — immediately and without prior notice where necessary to protect the Platform, other users, or Participants:

• issue a warning;
• remove or disable access to the content or feature in question;
• suspend your access to specific features or products; or
• terminate your account in line with clause 11 of the Platform Terms.

We will tell you what we have done and why, unless we are legally prevented from doing so.

Repeated or serious violations — including any violation of the sensitive data rule in clause 1.3 or the Participant conduct rules in clause 2.1 — will result in permanent account termination.

4.2 Reporting a violation

If you become aware of a violation of this policy by another user, or if you have a concern about how the Platform is being used, write to us at legal@poocho.co.

5. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time as the Platform evolves. We will give you reasonable notice of any material change in line with the change-of-terms process in the Platform Terms.

6. Contact

For questions about this policy:

• Recruit: researcherdesk@poocho.co
• Studio: studiodesk@poocho.co
• Legal and data protection: legal@poocho.co
• DPDPA grievances: contact our Grievance Officer as set out in clause 22 of the Platform Terms.

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