Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

Lingazing (“Lingazing,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) provides multilingual reading experiences through our website and iOS app. For privacy questions or requests, contact us at privacy@lingazing.com.

2. Information we collect

Information you provide

• Account information: email address and password (stored only as a secure bcrypt hash). If you forget your password, we send a time-limited reset link to your email address.
• Child profile information you enter as a parent: a nickname (we explicitly ask you not to use the child's real first or last name), avatar selection, year of birth, pronouns, target language, proficiency level, and reading level. We do not request, and ask you not to provide, a child's real name, address, phone number, or other contact information.
• Feedback: if you submit feedback (thumbs up / down or written feedback), we store the content of that feedback along with the related story.

Information generated as your child uses the app

• Reading and quiz progress: stories completed, quiz scores, time taken to answer questions, and which questions were answered correctly. This data is tied to the child profile you created.

Voice information (Shadow Mode reading practice)

Lingazing's iOS app includes a reading-aloud practice mode that uses your device's microphone. Audio is processed by Apple's on-device or server-based Speech Recognition service to convert speech to text so we can show your child whether they pronounced a word correctly. We do not record, store, or transmit your child's voice to Lingazing's servers. The audio is handled by Apple under Apple's privacy terms; refer to Apple's Privacy Policy for details. Microphone and speech recognition permissions are requested only when you tap to start a Shadow Mode session, and can be revoked at any time in iOS Settings.

Information collected automatically

• Device and log data: IP address, device type, operating system version, app version, and timestamps of requests. We use this to operate, secure, and debug the service.
• Usage analytics (website only): our website uses PostHog for product analytics. PostHog records pages viewed and, for signed-in users, associates that activity with your account so we can understand which features are used. We do not use this data for advertising and do not share it with third-party advertisers.

3. How we use information

• Authenticate you and keep your account secure.
• Show stories, quizzes, and progress for each child profile you create.
• Provide audio narration and speech-recognition-based reading practice.
• Improve content (for example, identifying quiz questions that are too hard).
• Respond to your feedback or support requests.
• Detect, investigate, and prevent abuse, fraud, or security incidents.
• Comply with our legal obligations.

We do not use your or your child's information for advertising, and we do not sell personal information.

4. Children's privacy

Lingazing is designed for children to use under a parent's account. Accounts may only be created by a parent or legal guardian who is at least 18 years old. The parent is the account holder and is responsible for any child profiles created under the account.

We comply with the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children under the age of 13. The information stored on a child profile is provided by the parent. We do not require children to disclose more information than is reasonably necessary to use the reading and quiz features.

As a parent, you may at any time:

• Review the information stored on each child profile.
• Edit or delete a child profile and the progress data associated with it.
• Request deletion of your account and all associated data by emailing privacy@lingazing.com.

5. How we share information

We do not sell personal information. We share information only with service providers who help us operate Lingazing, under contractual obligations to protect that information:

• Vercel — web hosting.
• PostHog — product analytics for our website.
• Google Cloud Platform — storage of story text, images, and pre-generated audio narration.
• Apple — speech recognition (Shadow Mode) and App Store distribution.
• Email delivery providers — sending password reset emails.

We may also disclose information if required by law, to enforce our terms, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of Lingazing or its users.

6. Data retention

We retain account, profile, and progress information for as long as your account is active. If you delete a child profile, the associated progress data is deleted. If you delete your account, we delete or anonymize your personal information within a reasonable period, except where we are required to retain it for legal, security, or accounting purposes.

7. Data security

We use industry-standard safeguards including encrypted connections (HTTPS), password hashing with bcrypt, and authenticated API access using signed JSON Web Tokens. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your information from unauthorized access, loss, or misuse.

8. Your rights and choices

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, or receive a copy of your personal information, and to object to certain processing. You can exercise these rights by emailing us at privacy@lingazing.com. We will respond within the timeframes required by applicable law.

9. International users

Lingazing is operated from the United States. If you access the service from outside the United States, your information will be transferred to and processed in the United States. We rely on appropriate safeguards for any such transfers as required by applicable law.

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we make material changes we will update the “Effective date” above and, where appropriate, notify you in the app or by email. Your continued use of Lingazing after the changes take effect means you accept the updated policy.

11. Contact us

Questions, requests, or concerns about this policy? Email us at privacy@lingazing.com.