Privacy Policy

1. Overview

Cognora Inc. ("Cognora," "we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our educational technology services, including StudyBuddy and related platforms ("Services").

We serve users globally and comply with international data protection standards, including GDPR, CCPA, PIPEDA, and other applicable regulations.

2. Information Collection

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account information (name, email, academic details)
• Profile information and preferences
• Payment information (processed via Stripe)
• Chat conversations and interactions with our AI systems
• Uploaded documents, files, images, and study materials
• Feedback and support communications

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

• Device information (browser type, IP address)
• Usage patterns and interaction data
• Performance and error data
• Location information (country/region)

2.3 Third-Party Sources

We may receive information about you from:

• Educational institutions (with proper authorization)
• Integration partners
• Authentication services
• Public sources for research and verification

3. Information Usage

3.1 Core Service Provision

• Delivering personalized AI tutoring
• Processing and analyzing educational content
• Managing your account and preferences
• Processing payments and subscriptions

3.2 Service Improvement & Internal Usage

• Training and improving our AI systems using your chat history
• Analyzing your uploaded content for service enhancement
• Enhancing AI model performance and accuracy
• Developing new educational features and capabilities
• Analyzing usage patterns and interaction trends
• Conducting research and development activities
• Quality assurance and safety monitoring

3.3 Communication

• Service updates and announcements
• Technical support and assistance
• Educational content and resources
• Marketing communications (with consent)

4. Information Sharing

4.1 Service Providers

We share information with trusted service providers:

• Cloud infrastructure providers
• Payment processors (Stripe)
• Analytics services
• Customer support tools

4.2 Legal Requirements

We may disclose information:

• To comply with legal obligations
• To protect rights and safety
• To prevent fraud or abuse
• In response to valid legal requests

5. Data Security

We implement comprehensive security measures:

• Encryption in transit and at rest
• Access controls and authentication
• Regular security assessments
• Employee training and compliance
• Incident response procedures

6. Data Retention & Internal Usage

6.1 Chat History and Upload Retention

We retain your data indefinitely for internal purposes:

• All chat conversations with our AI systems are stored permanently
• All uploaded documents, files, and media are retained indefinitely
• This data is used internally to improve our AI systems and services
• Your interactions help us train and enhance our AI models

6.2 Internal Data Usage Rights

By using our services, you grant us the right to:

• Use your chat history and uploads for AI model training
• Analyze your interactions for service improvement
• Process your content for research and development
• Use your data in anonymized or aggregated forms
• Retain your data for quality assurance and safety monitoring

6.3 Data Deletion Requests

While we retain data indefinitely by default:

• You may request deletion of your specific data
• Contact privacy@cognora.ca for deletion requests
• Some data may be retained for legal, safety, or operational purposes
• Aggregated or anonymized data may not be deletable

7. AI Processing & Third-Party Services

Our AI-powered features are provided with the help of:

• Anthropic's Claude AI
• OpenAI's GPT models
• Google's Gemini
• Groq
• XAI's Grok

These services in a varied manner will process your queries and content in real-time. All AI processing is handled by our trusted third-party providers in accordance with their respective privacy policies and security standards.

8. Your Rights & Choices

8.1 Access Rights

You have the right to:

• Access your personal information
• Request data portability
• Correct inaccurate data
• Request data deletion (subject to our retention policies)

8.2 Control Options

• Manage notification preferences
• Control data sharing settings
• Opt-out of marketing communications
• Delete account (chat history and uploads may be retained)

8.3 Exercise Your Rights

To exercise these rights, you can:

• Use account settings and privacy controls
• Contact our privacy team at privacy@cognora.ca
• Submit a formal rights request through our portal

9. International Data Transfers

9.1 Data Storage Locations

We primarily store data using a cloud-based database, which may involve data centers in:

• United States
• European Union
• Other regions as required for redundancy and performance

9.2 Transfer Safeguards

We protect international transfers through:

• Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs)
• Data Processing Agreements (DPAs)
• Compliance with applicable data protection regulations
• Regional data localization (when required)

10. Legal Compliance

10.1 Regulatory Framework

We comply with applicable data protection laws including:

• GDPR (European Union)
• CCPA (California)
• PIPEDA (Canada)
• Other regional privacy regulations

11. Children's Privacy

11.1 Age Restrictions

Our services have specific age requirements:

• 13+ for basic account creation
• Parental consent required for users under 16
• Special protections for educational institution users

11.2 Special Protections

For users under 18, we:

• Collect minimal personal information
• Require parental/guardian consent
• Provide enhanced privacy controls
• Restrict marketing communications

12. Policy Changes

12.1 Update Process

When we update this policy, we will:

• Post the new version on our website
• Update the "Last Modified" date

12.2 Previous Versions

Previous versions of this policy are available upon request. Contact our privacy team for access to historical versions.