Your data, handled with care.

Who is responsible

Wasla is run by Othmane_HOUSNI (“Wasla”, “we”). We are responsible for the personal data described here under the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP). Where the EU General Data Protection Regulation applies to you, we follow it too.

Questions or requests about your data: hello@wasla.ch.

What we collect

When you sign in

• Your sign-in email address and, if you use Google or LinkedIn, the basic profile they share (name, email).
• Security records about your sessions: sign-in times, IP address and browser, kept by our authentication provider.

What you add to your profile

• Name, whether you’re a student, alumni or professional, city, headline and bio.
• Education, work experience, skills, languages, links and an optional photo.
• What you’re open to (mentoring, referrals, opportunities) and whether you accept introductions.
• Optional contact details (email, phone) that are only ever shared with your consent.

To verify your membership

• The university or work email you confirm with a one-time code. It is never shown on your profile.
• The invitation you used, or the note and link you send for manual review.
• Your confirmation that you are Moroccan or of Moroccan heritage with a link to Switzerland.

When you use Wasla

• Introduction requests, replies and the contact details you choose to share.
• Posts, comments and reactions you share, and the groups you create, join or ask to join.
• Private messages you exchange with members you’re connected with.
• Opportunities you post, reports you file and members you block.
• Notifications and your email preferences.

We don’t use advertising trackers, we don’t buy data about you, and we never sell your data.

Your origin is sensitive data

Wasla is a community for people of Moroccan origin, so being a member can reveal your ethnic origin. Under the FADP this can be sensitive personal data. We therefore process it only with your explicit consent, which you give during onboarding, and only to run your membership.

Profiles are visible to verified members only — never to search engines or the public. You can withdraw your consent at any time by leaving Wasla or deleting your account.

Why we use it

• To provide Wasla: your account, the member directory, introductions, the feed, groups, private messages, opportunities and notifications (our agreement with you).
• To keep Wasla members-only and safe: verification, moderation, preventing spam and abuse, and investigating reports (our legitimate interest in a trustworthy community).
• To process your origin: only with your explicit consent (see above).
• To send you emails: codes and membership decisions are essential; emails about introductions, messages, posts, groups and opportunities can be switched off in your settings. Emails never contain the text of your messages or comments.
• To meet legal obligations, for example answering lawful requests from authorities.

Who can see your data

• Verified members see your profile while you are discoverable. You can hide it from the directory at any time; members you are already connected with can still see it.
• Your contact details are shown only to a member whose introduction request you accepted, and only if you chose to share them. You can stop sharing whenever you like.
• Posts and comments are seen by verified members: everyone for community posts and open groups, only that group’s members for private groups. Your name, headline and photo appear with what you post, even if your profile is hidden from the directory.
• Groups: who belongs to a private group is visible only to its members. A group’s owner and moderators are shown to every member who can find the group.
• Private messages are seen only by you and the member you’re writing with. Wasla staff can’t read conversations. If one of you reports a message, moderators see that single message.
• Moderators and administrators see what they need to review applications and reports, and can remove posts and comments that break the guidelines (a group’s managers can do the same in their group). Their actions are recorded in an audit log and administrator access requires two-factor authentication.
• Service providers process data on our behalf, under contract, as listed below.

Service providers and locations

When data leaves Switzerland, it goes to countries the Federal Council recognises as providing adequate protection (such as the EU), to companies certified under the Swiss-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, or under the European Commission’s standard contractual clauses as recognised by the FDPIC.

How long we keep it

• Your account and profile: for as long as you are a member. Deleting your account erases them right away.
• Posts, comments, reactions and messages: until you delete them or your account. Deleting your account deletes your posts and comments and the conversations you were part of; groups you own pass to another member.
• Posts and comments removed by moderators: deleted after 90 days (kept that long in case you appeal). The copy of reported content attached to a report: deleted 180 days after the decision.
• Requests to join a group: deleted 90 days after they’re answered or withdrawn.
• Verification codes: deleted after 7 days. Manual-review notes and links: deleted 30 days after the decision.
• Unused invitations: deleted 90 days after they expire or are withdrawn.
• Read notifications: deleted after 180 days. Email delivery records: deleted after 30 to 90 days.
• Security and moderation records (audit log): kept up to 2 years, so we can investigate abuse and account for moderators’ decisions.
• Backups roll over within 30 days, after which deleted data is gone from them too.

Your rights

You can, at any time:

• See and download your data — use Export my data in your settings, or ask us.
• Correct it by editing your profile, or ask us to.
• Delete your account and data from your settings.
• Withdraw consent and object to processing by leaving Wasla.
• Complain to the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) in Bern, or — if you live in the EU — to your local data protection authority.

We answer requests within 30 days. Write to hello@wasla.ch.

Cookies

We only use cookies that Wasla needs to work, so there is no cookie banner:

• Sign-in session (sb-…): keeps you signed in.
• Sign-in destination (wasla_next, 1 hour): returns you to the page you were opening.
• Invitation (wasla_invite, 7 days): remembers an invitation you accepted.

Your light or dark theme choice is stored in your browser only.

Security

Data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Access is enforced in the database itself, so members can only ever read what their membership allows. Staff accounts use two-factor authentication and every sensitive action is logged. If we ever learn of a breach that puts you at risk, we will inform you and the FDPIC as the law requires.

Age

Wasla is for adults. You must be at least 18 years old to become a member.

Changes to this notice

If we change how we use your data in a meaningful way, we will email members before the change takes effect. Earlier versions are available on request. See also our Terms and Community guidelines.