Synopsis
Byju's, the most valuable startup in India and a household name, is facing a range of complaints on social media platforms and consumer websites from customers who say they were exploited and deceived, putting their savings and futures in jeopardy.
By Reuters
Last Updated:
Rakesh Kumar was playing with his daughter at a park in northern India one evening in September when two smartly dressed salesmen approached the carpenter and father-of-three.
The men said they worked for Byju's, an Indian education technology company that offers online classes, and pitched a 36,000-rupee ($435) tuition course for Kumar's 11-year-old daughter, saying it would be her golden ticket to success.
Initially intrigued, Kumar allowed the men into his home, where they quizzed his child for two hours, said she was academically "weak", and pressured him to buy the course.
Initially intrigued, Kumar allowed the men into his home, where they quizzed his child for two hours, said she was academically "weak", and pressured him to buy the course.
At first, he refused as the cost seemed unaffordable with his monthly salary of about 20,000 rupees working at a woodshop.
"But then they said things like 'Your daughter will end up poor like you' and 'You should be ashamed for trying to stop her from succeeding in life'," the 41-year-old said at his workplace in the city of Faridabad, located on the outskirts of Delhi.
"I finally caved and ... made the worst decision of my life," Kumar told Context.
"I finally caved and ... made the worst decision of my life," Kumar told Context.
"We are in a financial mess," he said, adding that he had borrowed money from his brother-in-law in October and was not sure when or how he would be able to pay him back.
Kumar's experience with Bjyu's is not unique - scores of Indian consumers have been airing similar grievances online.
Kumar's experience with Bjyu's is not unique - scores of Indian consumers have been airing similar grievances online.
Byju's, the most valuable startup in India and a household name, is facing a range of complaints on social media platforms and consumer websites from customers who say they were exploited and deceived, putting their savings and futures in jeopardy.
Twenty-two Byju's customers, several from low-income homes, told Context how they had been aggressively targeted by salespeople, with some coerced into paying for courses, tricked into taking out loans and ultimately left out of pocket.
Twenty-two Byju's customers, several from low-income homes, told Context how they had been aggressively targeted by salespeople, with some coerced into paying for courses, tricked into taking out loans and ultimately left out of pocket.
Most were parents who said Byju's staff took advantage of a desire to provide the best education for their children, and encroached on their privacy by ambushing them in public, pressuring them at home, or secretly collecting their data.
Complaints to Byju's and requests for refunds were generally ignored - leaving customers with little recourse, they said.
Complaints to Byju's and requests for refunds were generally ignored - leaving customers with little recourse, they said.
Many parents, including Sheikh and Sharma, said companies such as Byju's often partnered with local schools to offer tutoring services, making students fill out forms with all sorts of details - including mobile numbers, emails and addresses - which were then used by them to make marketing calls.
Several Byju's employees told Context the company had access to information such as the kind of phone model being used, a child's name, age and grade, among other things, to target potential leads and fine-tune pitches.
"We know almost everything before we call you," a Byju's salesman said, on condition of anonymity to protect his job.
In response, the Byju's spokesperson told Context the company "does not track or store any data for which it does not explicitly seek permission from its users".
Tech policy experts including Nivedita Krishna of the Bengaluru-based Wadhwani Foundation said that in the absence of a data protection law in India, there are few safeguards and no recourse if citizens' digital rights are violated.
"We very quickly need a data protection or data privacy law that provides enough and more comfort to the average citizen of India, and when we do that, indirectly, we will also address children's safety online," said Krishna.
For Kumar, he said his sole focus is now to make ends meet.
He has closed his bank account to stop any more deductions by Byju's, and taken on freelance carpentry work in nearby apartments on top of his regular job to recover his losses.
"I will do whatever I can for my children. I want them to study, get (degrees), work in proper air-conditioned offices," said Kumar, who dropped out of school when he was 11.
"I do not want them to end up like me, because that would be my biggest failure."
Several Byju's employees told Context the company had access to information such as the kind of phone model being used, a child's name, age and grade, among other things, to target potential leads and fine-tune pitches.
"We know almost everything before we call you," a Byju's salesman said, on condition of anonymity to protect his job.
In response, the Byju's spokesperson told Context the company "does not track or store any data for which it does not explicitly seek permission from its users".
Tech policy experts including Nivedita Krishna of the Bengaluru-based Wadhwani Foundation said that in the absence of a data protection law in India, there are few safeguards and no recourse if citizens' digital rights are violated.
"We very quickly need a data protection or data privacy law that provides enough and more comfort to the average citizen of India, and when we do that, indirectly, we will also address children's safety online," said Krishna.
For Kumar, he said his sole focus is now to make ends meet.
He has closed his bank account to stop any more deductions by Byju's, and taken on freelance carpentry work in nearby apartments on top of his regular job to recover his losses.
"I will do whatever I can for my children. I want them to study, get (degrees), work in proper air-conditioned offices," said Kumar, who dropped out of school when he was 11.
"I do not want them to end up like me, because that would be my biggest failure."
My inference: I got this from the internet. Even I'm a parent, a concerned parent. Even I wanted the world's best education for my child. She goes to a ICSE school. It is very very expensive. They have air-conditioned auditorium, lifts, different hobby classes in their premises and excellent teachers too. Our child is safe and healthy over there. Five year-olds are trained to face the camera and in the annual day function the well-prepared and beautiful videos are shown through a projector. The premises is clean and well-ventilated. They have till junior college in all streams.
But I'm also thinking again now because the fees is very high.
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