Privacy Policy

Who we are

Evidote is run by Tu Dao, as an individual. It is not a product of any company.

We follow the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). We are not sure the law requires it of us, so we act as if it does.

What we collect

• For a parent: email address, a username, a password, and the declaration they accepted (which version, and when).
• For a child: a first name or nickname, an age band, and the parent's consent.
• What a child types, and the words from what they say.
• The feedback they get, their goals, their progress and short notes.
• Error and request logs that keep the app running. They hold no answers and no names.

We do not ask for a last name, birth date, address, school or photo. Please do not type them.

We try to hide names, addresses, schools, emails and phone numbers before words go to the AI. This can miss some. So a missed detail could reach the AI company.

Why we use it

• To run the account and sign you in.
• To turn speech into words and write feedback.
• To show a parent how the child is going.
• To fix problems and keep the app safe.

We do not sell information. We do not show ads. We do not do direct marketing. We do not use analytics. We do not train AI on it.

Children

• A child under 15 needs a parent's or guardian's consent.
• The parent creates and manages the account. They accept a short declaration when they create the child's account.
• An adult sits nearby while a child practises.
• Children never see scores. They get feedback to help them improve.
• Some speaking tasks have a private first try. Nobody sees what the child said. The words are removed when the lesson ends, or 24 hours after it was left open. A parent only sees that the child tried.
• A teacher sees a child's work only if the parent shares it with that teacher.

Children also have a short notice in plain words inside the app.

If we are worried about a child

If something a child writes or says sounds like they may not be safe, we keep a short note: when it happened and what kind of worry it is. The note never holds the child's words.

We email the parent or guardian who manages the account, at their verified address. If the child may be in danger, we email straight away. For a smaller worry, we email only if no adult has looked at it within 24 hours, and at most once a day.

The email never holds the child's words or what the worry was about. It asks the parent to check in, and gives Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800) and 000. We never email a teacher about it.

Only the parent or guardian and the people who run Evidote can see the note. It is deleted when the child's account is deleted.

Who we share it with, and where

We use these companies to run Evidote. Some are outside Australia.

Anthropic's commercial terms say it may not train its models on customer content. It normally deletes what we send within 30 days. It may keep items its safety checks flag for up to 2 years, and safety scores for up to 7 years. It may keep more if the law requires.

We have not confirmed how long Resend keeps sent-email records. When we delete your data, copies at these companies follow their own times, not ours.

Microsoft says real-time speech-to-text processes audio in memory and does not store it.

Sending information overseas (APP 8)

Your information goes to companies in Singapore and the United States. Parents are told this and agree to it when they create the child's account.

Before we send information overseas, we take reasonable steps to make sure the company handles it in line with the APPs. We use their standard business terms. We have not agreed special contracts with them.

Under the Privacy Act, we stay responsible for how these companies handle the information we send them.

How long we keep it

We keep a family's data while the family uses Evidote. We delete it when:

• you delete it in the app. You can do this at any time.
• you ask us to. We do it within 7 days and confirm in writing.
• you tell us you no longer use Evidote.

Other things have shorter times:

• Voice recordings are deleted within 24 hours by default. A parent can choose a longer time in settings.
• First tries are removed when the lesson ends, or 24 hours after it was left open.
• Error logs are kept for 30 days.
• Backups can hold deleted data for up to 7 days more.
• The companies above keep their own copies for their own times, as described in the section on sharing.

We keep only what we need to run Evidote for you.

Keeping it safe

We encrypt information as it travels. Each family can only see its own information. A parent can see the work made available to them. That does not include a child's private first tries. A teacher sees work only if the parent shares it. The companies above process information to run Evidote, as described earlier.

No outside expert has audited our security yet. No system is perfect.

Your rights

You can ask to see, correct or delete your information, or your child's. Write to the contact address in the app from the email on your account. It costs nothing.

A parent can delete a child or the whole account in the app. Ask us for a copy of the information first if you need one.

We reply within 30 days. For a deletion request we act within 7 days and confirm in writing.

Questions and complaints

Write to the contact address in the app. Say which child, if any. A child can ask a grown-up to write for them.

• We say we got your message within 3 working days.
• We reply in plain words within 14 days. It will never be more than 30 days.
• We tell you what we changed, or why we did not.

If you are not happy, reply and say "escalate". You can also contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC). It usually asks that you have tried us first and given us 30 days to answer.

If something goes wrong

If someone sees information they should not, we act at once. If it is likely to cause serious harm, we tell the people affected and the OAIC, as the law requires.

Changes

If this policy changes in a way that matters, we will tell parents by email. The "last updated" date is at the top.