Draft — pending legal review. The final wording of this policy is being finalised with qualified counsel. The structure below reflects what the published policy will cover.
DRAFT — pending legal review. Not legal advice.
Microbiome Test — Informed Consent
This Informed Consent explains what the microbiome test offered by VAMS BioInnovation Private Limited ("VAMS", "we", "us", "our") is and is not, what it measures, what data is generated, and how that data is used. Please read it carefully before you provide a sample. By giving your consent, you confirm that you understand and accept the terms below.
If anything here is unclear, contact us before proceeding at legal@vamsbiome.com.
1. What This Test Is
The microbiome test is an educational and wellness-oriented service. It is designed to give you general, informational insight into the microbial context of the sample you provide.
The test uses sequencing-based methods to characterise the mix of microorganisms present in your sample, and presents that information in an easy-to-read report together with general educational content.
The service is intended to support your curiosity, learning, and general wellness understanding of your own microbiome.
2. What This Test Is NOT
This test is not a diagnostic test and is not a substitute for medical care.
It does not diagnose, treat, cure, prevent, or predict any disease, condition, or health outcome.
The report does not tell you whether you have or will develop any illness, and it is not a medical opinion.
VAMS does not describe itself as, and does not act as, a healthcare provider, diagnostic provider, or accredited laboratory in providing this service.
The report is not a reason to start, stop, or change any medication, treatment, diet, or other health decision. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional about your health and before making any such decision.
3. What Is Measured
The test analyses your sample to produce sequencing-derived microbial context — a description of the relative presence and mix of microorganisms detected in the sample.
Results are informational and wellness-oriented and may be presented as general descriptions, relative measures, or educational scores. Any score or measure describes microbial context only; it is not a measure of health, disease risk, or clinical status.
Results can be affected by the sample itself, how and when it was collected, natural biological variation, and the limits of the methods used. Results may vary over time and between samples.
4. Voluntary Participation
Taking this test is entirely voluntary. You are choosing to participate of your own free will.
You may decide not to provide a sample, or to stop at any point before your sample is processed, without penalty. Please see Section 9 for how withdrawal affects samples already processed.
5. Data Generated by the Test
To deliver the service, we generate and handle information that may include:
Your sample and the raw and processed sequencing data derived from it;
The microbial context results and the report produced for you;
Account, contact, and order details needed to fulfil your order and deliver your report.
6. How Your Data Is Used — For the Service Only
By consenting to the service, you agree that we will process the data described above only as necessary to provide the service you purchased. This mandatory, service-only processing includes:
Accepting and processing your sample;
Generating your sequencing data, results, and report;
Delivering your report to you and providing related customer support;
Keeping records as reasonably required to operate the service and to meet our legal and record-keeping obligations.
This processing is necessary to deliver the service — without it, we cannot provide the test. It is separate from, and does not include, the optional uses described in Section 7.
We may use trusted service providers (https://www.vamsbiome.com/legal/subprocessors) to help perform these service-only activities. Sample handling may occur at Samples may be processed by qualified third-party laboratories in India or another location disclosed to the customer before sample submission or processing. The specific processing laboratory and country will be identified in the order documentation or test report where applicable. (VAMS BioInnovation Private Limited is not itself represented as an accredited clinical laboratory. Laboratory accreditation, quality certification and permitted testing scope vary by processing partner and will be disclosed for the applicable service. No accreditation should be inferred unless expressly stated and independently verifiable.). Our handling of your personal data is governed by our Privacy Policy.
7. Research, Marketing, and Profiling Are Separate, Optional Consents
None of the following is required to buy or receive the test. Each is a separate, optional choice that you may accept or decline independently, and consent to the service does not imply consent to any of these. You can choose the test without agreeing to any of them:
Product marketing and promotional communications;
Longitudinal profiling of your results over time;
Algorithm and product development;
Commercial or scientific research;
Biobank / long-term retention of your sample or data beyond what the service requires;
Sharing of your data with research collaborators;
Any future, unspecified research use.
We will ask for these consents separately and specifically. Your choices are affirmative and unbundled — nothing here is presumed or grouped together. If you decline, you still receive the full service you paid for. You may change your mind about any optional consent at any time (see Section 9).
8. Risks and Limitations
The risks of this test are minimal, and mainly relate to information and privacy rather than physical harm:
Sample collection is designed to be simple and low-risk; follow the kit instructions. Minor discomfort is possible depending on the sample type.
Informational limits. Because results are educational and wellness-oriented, they may be incomplete, may change over time, and should not be relied on for any health, medical, or life decision.
Misinterpretation. Reading more into a result than it supports — for example, treating it as a diagnosis — could lead to unnecessary worry or unwise decisions. If in doubt, speak with a qualified healthcare professional.
Privacy. Any handling of personal and sample-derived data carries some inherent privacy risk. We apply reasonable safeguards, and our data-security responsibilities to you remain in force.
9. Report Delivery, Withdrawal, and Your Rights
Report delivery. Your report is delivered electronically through your account or another method we make available, once processing is complete. Delivery timelines are estimates and may vary.
Right to withdraw. You may withdraw your consent at any time by contacting legal@vamsbiome.com or privacy@vamsbiome.com. Withdrawal is straightforward and takes effect going forward:
If you withdraw before your sample is processed, we will stop and will not generate results.
If you withdraw after processing, we cannot undo work already completed or reverse a report already generated, but we will stop further processing that is not legally required.
Withdrawing an optional consent (Section 7) stops that optional use going forward and does not affect the core service.
Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before you withdrew.
Your data rights. Subject to applicable law, you may request access to your data, correction of inaccurate data, and erasure; you may withdraw consent; you may nominate another individual to exercise your rights in the event of death or incapacity; and you may raise a grievance with us. Where you are not satisfied, you may complain to the Data Protection Board of India or other competent authority (Ministry of Corporate Affairs; Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology; Data Protection Board of India; Department of Consumer Affairs and Central Consumer Protection Authority; and, depending on the product or claim, CDSCO, FSSAI, relevant State authorities and other competent regulators.). Nothing here removes statutory consumer remedies or your access to Consumer Commissions and statutory grievance mechanisms.
Retention. Samples and data are retained only as long as needed for the service and as required by law (sample: Unless a different period is disclosed and consented to, residual biological samples will normally be destroyed within 30 days after the final report is issued. Samples may be retained longer only for necessary repeat testing, quality investigation, legal requirements or separately consented research.; data: Retention depends on the record type and purpose. Generally: order, invoice and statutory business records for up to 8 years; identifiable microbiome test data and reports for up to 3 years after report delivery or account closure; raw sequencing files for up to 12 months after report delivery; support records for up to 3 years; and consent records for as long as necessary to demonstrate compliance. Data may be retained longer where required by law, litigation hold or explicit research consent, and may be deleted or anonymised earlier when no longer necessary.), or as separately consented for any optional use.
10. Who to Contact
General and consent questions: legal@vamsbiome.com
Privacy, data rights, and grievances: privacy@vamsbiome.com
Registered office: VAMS BioInnovation Private Limited, Plot No. 59, A-12-4-1, Near Matha Towers, K P Nagar, Benz Circle, Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh 520008, India
This consent is governed by Laws of India, including applicable laws of the State of Andhra Pradesh and should be read together with our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.
Your Consent
By proceeding, you confirm that you have read and understood this Informed Consent, that your participation is voluntary, that you understand the test is educational and wellness-oriented and not diagnostic, and that you agree to the service-only processing described in Section 6. Any optional use in Section 7 requires your separate, specific consent.
Version and Change History
Document name: Microbiome Test — Informed Consent
Version: 1.0
Effective date: 10 July 2026
Change history: v1.0 (10 July 2026) — Initial publication.