Privacy Policy

Overview

AlphaBes ("we," "us") provides alphabet, phonics, and reading lessons, worksheets, and games for children ages 3-8. This policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, and the choices you have. AlphaBes accounts are created and managed by a parent, guardian, or teacher — never directly by a child.

Information we collect

Account information. When a parent, guardian, or teacher creates an account, we collect an email address, a name, and a securely hashed password (handled through NextAuth). We never store your plain-text password.

Child profile information. A child profile stores only a first name and an age range — never a photo, address, phone number, school, or any other contact information for the child. Lesson and worksheet progress is linked to the child profile so a parent can see it on their dashboard.

Subscription and billing information. If you subscribe to AlphaBes Pro, payment is handled by our payment provider (currently being finalized; the site previously integrated with Stripe). We do not store full card numbers on our servers — our payment provider processes and stores that information under its own privacy policy.

Technical information. Our servers and hosting provider automatically log standard technical data such as IP address and request timing, used for security, abuse prevention (for example, rate-limiting login and signup attempts), and diagnosing problems.

How we use your information

We use the information above to: create and authenticate your account; operate the lessons, worksheets, and games you and your child use; show progress on the parent dashboard; process and manage subscriptions; keep the service secure and prevent abuse; and communicate with you about your account (for example, billing or security notices).

Once Google AdSense is approved for this site, we also intend to use limited, non-account browsing information to display advertising, as described in the Cookies section below.

Cookies and similar technologies

Essential cookies. We use a session cookie to keep you securely logged in. This is required for the site to function and cannot be turned off.

Analytics cookies. With your consent, we may use analytics tools (such as Google Analytics) to understand how the site is used so we can improve lessons and fix problems. These only load after consent, in line with applicable rules such as the UK's PECR.

Advertising cookies. AlphaBes intends to display advertising through Google AdSense once our application is approved. Once enabled, Google and its partners may set cookies on your device to serve ads, including based on your visits to this and other websites. You can learn more about how Google uses this information, and opt out of personalized advertising, at policies.google.com/technologies/partner-sites and Google Ads Settings. Because this site is directed in part at children, we intend to configure AdSense to serve non-personalized, contextual ads only, consistent with Google's requirements for child-directed content — not ads based on tracking a child's activity.

See our Cookie Policy for more detail, and use your browser settings to control or delete cookies at any time.

Third-party services we use

We rely on the following categories of service providers, each governed by its own privacy policy:

• Database hosting — our Postgres database, where account, child profile, and progress data is stored.
• Site hosting and infrastructure — Netlify, which serves the website and processes requests to it.
• Authentication — NextAuth, used to manage secure login sessions.
• Payments — our payment provider (see "Subscription and billing information" above), used only for parents/guardians who subscribe to AlphaBes Pro.
• Advertising — Google AdSense, once our application is approved.
• Analytics — an analytics provider such as Google Analytics, only if and when you consent to analytics cookies.

Children's privacy (COPPA)

AlphaBes is directed in part at children under 13, so we take extra care with children's information under the US Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and similar laws elsewhere.

An AlphaBes account can only be created by a parent, guardian, or teacher, who confirms they are an adult when signing up — a child cannot create their own account. Creating a child profile within a parent's account is how we obtain the parent's consent for a child to use the service.

We collect only a first name and age range for a child profile — never an email address, precise location, photo, or any other contact information directly from a child. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children, and we do not allow children to create accounts, communicate with other users, or make purchases.

A parent or guardian may review, correct, or request deletion of their child's profile information at any time — see "Your rights" below.

Data retention

We keep account and child profile information for as long as your account is active, so lessons and progress stay available to you. If you delete your account, we delete or anonymize your account and child profile data within a reasonable period, except where we must keep limited records to comply with legal, tax, or security obligations (for example, basic billing records).

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, export, or delete your personal information, and your child's profile information, and to withdraw consent for optional cookies (such as analytics or advertising) at any time. You can:

• Review and update your account details from your account settings.
• Request a copy of your data, or deletion of your account and child profiles, by contacting us (below).
• Manage or withdraw cookie consent through your browser settings and, where offered, our cookie controls.

We will respond to verified requests within a reasonable timeframe.

Data security

We use industry-standard measures to protect your information, including encrypted connections and secure password hashing. No method of storage or transmission is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your information appropriately for the type of data we hold.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy as AlphaBes changes — for example, once our AdSense application or payment provider integration is finalized. We'll update the "Last updated" date above when we do, and encourage you to review this page periodically.

Contact us

Questions about this policy, or requests about your data, can be sent through our Contact page.