Privacy Policy

Kibin, Inc. ("Kibin," "we," "us") is committed to protecting your personal information and data. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and disclose personal information when you use our websites, mobile applications, and related services (collectively, the "Services"). By using our Services, you consent to the practices described in this Policy.

1. Our Services

Kibin operates two distinct services, and this Policy covers both:

• Kibin Study App — an AI-powered study platform (mobile and web) that turns your notes, documents, audio, and video into quizzes, flashcards, and explanations.
• Kibin Essay Editing Service — professional essay editing and proofreading, the Essay Examples Library, Paper Grader, Thesis Generator, and related writing tools.

Where a data practice is specific to one Service, we say so.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide

• Account information: name, email address, and (where applicable) profile picture provided via Google, Apple, or email sign-up.
• Study content (Study App): notes, documents, PDFs, audio files, and YouTube links you upload.
• Study activity (Study App): quiz answers, flashcard responses, explain interactions, and mastery progress.
• Essay submissions (Editing Service): essays, drafts, and other written work you submit for editing, grading, or analysis.
• Payment information: processed by Stripe, PayPal, or Apple. We do not store credit card numbers.
• Communications: feedback, support messages, and survey responses.
• Onboarding data (Study App): education level, field of study, study goals (optional).

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

• Usage data: pages visited, features used, session duration, and interaction patterns.
• Device information: browser type, operating system, device type, and screen resolution.
• Network information: IP address and approximate location. IP addresses let us identify the device you're using and are stored in case we need to track a connection for security purposes.
• Cookies and similar technologies: we use cookies for authentication, preferences, and analytics. You are free to decline cookies through your browser, though some parts of the Services may not function properly without them.

2.3 Information From Third Parties

• Google, Apple, Microsoft (sign-in): name, email, and profile picture when you sign in with these providers.
• Stripe, PayPal, Apple (payments): subscription status and payment confirmation (not card details).

3. How We Use Your Information

• Provide the Services: process your uploads, generate quizzes and flashcards, track mastery, deliver AI-powered explanations, and deliver essays to editors.
• Process payments: manage subscriptions, billing, free trial periods, and per-order editing fees.
• Improve the Services: analyze usage patterns, conduct research, and develop new features.
• Communicate with you: send account notifications, order updates, respond to support requests, provide study reminders, and (with your permission) share product announcements.
• Prevent abuse: detect fraud, enforce our Terms of Service, and prevent free tier exploitation.
• Comply with law: respond to legal requests and fulfill regulatory obligations.

4. AI Processing (Study App)

Your uploaded content is processed by third-party AI services to generate quizzes, flashcards, summaries, and explanations. This processing is necessary to provide the core functionality of the Study App. We do not use your content to train our own AI models. However, our third-party AI providers may process your content in accordance with their own terms and policies.

5. Content Sharing Policy

Kibin reserves the right to use User Content uploaded through public-facing Services for promotional, educational, or other business needs. When Kibin uses content in this manner:

• Content will never be used earlier than 90 days after being uploaded.
• Customers who pay for editing services are opted out of content sharing by default.
• You can check your content-sharing settings or opt out at any time through your account preferences.
• Kibin will never use or share the following types of content in this manner: business documents or materials, press releases, personally identifiable content, and copyrighted content including books, novels, short stories, and poems.

6. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information. We may share information with:

• Service providers: companies that help us operate the Services, including cloud hosting, payment processing (Stripe, PayPal, Apple), AI processing, email delivery, analytics, and customer support. These providers are contractually required to protect your information and use it only for the services we ask them to perform.
• Editors (Editing Service): when you place an editing order, we share your essay and relevant order details with the editor assigned to your order.
• Legal compliance: when required by law, regulation, court order, subpoena, search warrant, or in the course of a legal proceeding.
• Business transfers: in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets.
• With your consent: when you direct us to share information.

We carefully select third-party providers, but information you choose to share with them will fall under their privacy policies, which we encourage you to review.

7. Data Retention and Deletion

We retain your personal information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide the Services. When you delete your account, we delete your study materials, essay submissions, progress, and personal data. We retain a record of your email address and usage history to prevent free tier abuse (see our Terms of Service). We may retain aggregated, anonymized data indefinitely.

Our payment processors (Stripe, PayPal, Apple) may retain personally identifiable information regarding your transactions, including your name, email, IP address, and ZIP code, for their own legitimate interests such as responding to chargebacks, issuing refunds, tax and accounting purposes, and compliance with anti-money-laundering regulations. Please review their privacy policies for details.

To request deletion of your data, email privacy@kibin.com or use the delete-account option in Settings.

8. Data Security

We use industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information, including encrypted connections (HTTPS/TLS), secure authentication, and access controls. Our authorized employees, agents, and contractors receive your information only to the extent required to perform their work. However, no method of transmission over the Internet is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

9. Your Rights and Choices

• Access and portability: you can access your study data and order history through the Services.
• Correction: you can update your name and profile in Settings.
• Deletion: you can delete your account and associated data in Settings or by emailing privacy@kibin.com.
• Marketing opt-out: you can unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time via the unsubscribe link in any email.
• Text message opt-out: reply "STOP" to any text message from Kibin.
• Cookie controls: you can manage cookies through your browser settings.
• Joint accounts: joint account holders may make privacy choices for each other.

10. Children's Privacy

Kibin's Services are intended for users 13 and older. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we become aware that we have collected information from a child under 13, we will delete it promptly. If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us at help@kibin.com. We are not responsible for the collection and use of information by companies or individuals unaffiliated with us whose websites may contain links to ours.

11. International Users

Kibin is operated from the United States. If you access the Services from outside the United States, your information may be transferred to and processed in the United States, which may not provide the same level of data protection as your jurisdiction.

EEA, UK, and Switzerland

If you are located in the European Economic Area, United Kingdom, or Switzerland, we process your personal information on the following legal bases: (a) performance of our contract with you, (b) your consent, (c) our legitimate interests in operating and improving the Services, and (d) compliance with legal obligations. You have rights under the GDPR including access, rectification, erasure, restriction, portability, and objection. To exercise these rights, contact privacy@kibin.com.

California Residents

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), California residents have the right to know what personal information we collect, request deletion, and opt out of sales. We do not sell personal information. To exercise your rights, contact privacy@kibin.com with the subject line "CCPA Request."

12. Third-Party Vendors

We work with a number of third-party vendors to operate the Services. Vendors we rely on include Stripe and PayPal (payments), Google (sign-in, analytics), Apple (sign-in, app distribution, iOS payments), cloud hosting providers, AI model providers, email delivery providers, and customer support tools. Each of these vendors has its own privacy policy governing how they handle data we share with them.

13. Protecting Your Personally Identifiable Information

You are encouraged to take steps to protect your privacy by keeping passwords confidential, never disclosing personal information to unknown callers, and ensuring your Internet use is secured. If you believe you are a victim of identity theft, contact the Federal Trade Commission's Identity Theft hotline (877-IDTHEFT), file a report with your local authorities, and contact the major national credit reporting agencies.

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make material changes, we will notify you through the Services or by email. Your continued use of the Services after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Policy. This Policy applies to current and former customers.

15. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: privacy@kibin.com (for privacy and data requests) or help@kibin.com (for general support).