SAARC Arbitration Council (“SARCO”, “we”, “our”, or “us”) is committed to protecting your privacy and handling personal information in a transparent and responsible manner. This Privacy Policy describes what information we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, and the choices you have regarding your personal information.

By using our website, submitting forms, or interacting with our services, you consent to the practices described in this Privacy Policy.

We collect information you provide directly to us and information collected automatically when you visit our website or use our services.

• Contact details (name, email, telephone, postal address);
• Professional and educational details (qualifications, organization, position);
• Documents and attachments you upload (resumes, statements, supporting documents);
• Any other information you choose to provide via forms, emails, or correspondence.

• Technical data such as IP addresses, browser type, pages visited, and device information;
• Cookies and similar tracking technologies (see section 5)

We use personal information for the purposes described below, on lawful grounds including performance of contract, legitimate interests, and compliance with legal obligations:

• To process applications, registrations, and other requests you submit to SARCO;
• To communicate with you about your application, account, or services;
• To provide, maintain and improve our website, products and services;
• To perform administrative and operational functions including record-keeping and audit;
• To detect, prevent and respond to security incidents, abuse or fraud;
• To comply with legal obligations and cooperate with regulatory or government authorities where required.

We will not sell or rent your personal information to third parties. We may disclose information to:

• SARCO personnel and SAARC Member State officials: for processing applications and internal administration;
• Service providers: third-party vendors who perform services on our behalf (hosting, IT, payment processors) under contractual confidentiality obligations;
• Legal and regulatory authorities: where required by law, regulation, or court order;
• Third parties with your consent: when you explicitly authorize such disclosure.

Where possible, we will anonymize or pseudonymize data before sharing for statistical or research purposes.

We use cookies and similar technologies to operate the website, remember preferences, analyze usage, and improve performance.

• Essential cookies: required for core site functions and security.
• Performance & analytics cookies: help us understand how the site is used so we can improve it.
• Functional cookies: remember user preferences to enhance experience.

You can control cookies through your browser settings; however disabling cookies may affect site functionality.

We implement appropriate physical, technical and organizational safeguards to protect personal data against unauthorized or unlawful processing, accidental loss, destruction or damage. Measures include access controls, encryption (where appropriate), and regular security reviews.

While we take steps to secure your data, no internet-based system can be completely secure—please take care when transmitting sensitive information.

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, and enforce agreements. Retention periods vary depending on the category of data and legal requirements.

If you request deletion, we will remove your personal data unless retention is required for legal or legitimate business purposes.

Subject to applicable law, you may have the right to:

• Request access to personal data we hold about you;
• Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information;
• Request deletion of your personal data (where lawful to do so);
• Object to or restrict processing in certain circumstances;
• Withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
• Request a copy of your data in a commonly used, machine-readable format.

To exercise these rights or for enquiries, contact info@sarco-sec.org. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling requests and we will respond within applicable legal timelines.

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, tools, and services. This Privacy Policy does not apply to those third parties; we do not control their content or privacy practices. We recommend reviewing the privacy policies of any third-party site you visit.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal/regulatory requirements. The “Last updated” date at the end of this page will indicate when the policy was last revised. Substantial changes will be communicated when appropriate.

If you have questions, requests or concerns about this Privacy Policy or SARCO’s privacy practices, please contact:

Data Protection Officer
SAARC Arbitration Council (SARCO)
Email: info@sarco-sec.org
Address: Plot No. D-3, Street No. 67, Sector F-10/3, Islamabad, Pakistan