Privacy Policy | StoryBaze

1. Introduction

Welcome to StoryBaze ("we," "our," or "us"). StoryBaze is a digital storytelling platform that connects readers with authors, offering an immersive reading experience with AI-powered voice narration, interactive features, and a vibrant creative community. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your personal information when you use our mobile application ("App"), website (storybaze.com), and related services (collectively, the "Services"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data in an open and transparent manner. By accessing or using StoryBaze, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to be bound by this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, please do not use our Services.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information You Provide Directly

Account Registration: When you create a StoryBaze account, we collect your email address, password, display name, and optionally your profile picture, bio, and date of birth. If you register using a social login provider (Google, Facebook, or Apple), we receive basic profile information from that provider. Profile Information: You may choose to provide additional information such as your age, gender, country of residence, reading preferences, favorite genres, and mature content preferences. Authors may provide additional information including their real name, payment details for earnings withdrawals, and identity verification documents for KYC (Know Your Customer) compliance. User-Generated Content: We collect content you create, upload, or share on our platform, including stories, chapters, short stories ("Whispers"), comments, ratings, reviews, and any other content you submit. This also includes drafts, revisions, and unpublished content stored on our servers. Communications: When you contact our support team, participate in surveys, or communicate with us through any channel, we collect the content of those communications along with metadata such as timestamp and communication channel. Payment Information: When you make purchases, such as buying coins or subscribing to StoryBaze Premium, we receive transaction identifiers, product identifiers, purchase status, price/currency, storefront, and receipt or entitlement information from the applicable app store payment system, such as Apple App Store in-app purchase, Google Play Billing, or another supported native store billing provider where available. We do not collect or store full payment card numbers for those purchases. Author Withdrawal Information: If you are an author eligible for earnings, you may provide bank account details or other supported payout information to receive your earnings. This information is stored securely and used solely for processing your withdrawals.

2.2 Information Collected Automatically

Device Information: We collect information about the devices you use to access StoryBaze, including device type, operating system and version, unique device identifiers (such as IDFA on iOS or Advertising ID on Android), device manufacturer, model, screen resolution, and mobile network information. Usage Data: We automatically collect information about how you interact with our Services, including pages viewed, stories read, chapters completed, time spent reading, features used, buttons clicked, search queries, scroll depth, and navigation patterns. This helps us understand how you use our platform and improve your experience. Reading Analytics: For stories you read, we track your reading progress, bookmarks, reading speed, session duration, and completion rates. This data helps authors understand their audience and allows us to provide personalized recommendations. Location Information: With your consent, we may collect approximate location information based on your IP address or, if you grant permission, more precise location data from your device. We use this to provide region-appropriate content, currency conversion, and to comply with local regulations. Log Data: Our servers automatically record information when you access our Services, including your IP address, browser type, referring/exit pages, pages visited, date and time stamps, and clickstream data. Cookies and Similar Technologies: We use cookies, local storage, and similar tracking technologies to maintain your session, remember your preferences, understand usage patterns, and deliver targeted content. You can control cookie preferences through your browser settings.

2.3 Information from Third Parties

Social Login Providers: If you choose to sign in using Google, Facebook, or Apple, we receive profile information as authorized by you during the authentication process, typically including your email address, name, and profile picture. App Store Billing Providers: Apple App Store, Google Play Store, and any other supported native store billing providers share transaction and receipt information with us to complete purchases, manage entitlements, process refunds, and prevent fraud. Analytics Partners: We receive aggregated analytics data from third-party services to understand user behavior and improve our Services.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for various purposes, including: Providing and Maintaining Services: To create and manage your account, authenticate your identity, process transactions, deliver content, enable reading and writing features, and maintain the functionality of our platform. AI-Powered Voice Narration: We use ElevenLabs text-to-speech technology to convert written stories into audio format. Story content is processed by ElevenLabs to generate voice narration. We select voices and apply reading enhancements to provide an immersive listening experience. Personalization: To customize your experience, provide personalized story recommendations, curate your home feed, remember your reading preferences, and suggest content based on your interests and reading history. Content Moderation: To review user-generated content for compliance with our Community Guidelines, detect and prevent violations, ensure age-appropriate content classification, and maintain a safe environment for all users. We use both automated AI-powered moderation and human review for this purpose. Communications: To send you important account notifications, security alerts, system updates, and customer support responses. With your consent, we may also send promotional emails, newsletters, and marketing communications which you can opt out of at any time. Analytics and Improvements: To analyze usage patterns, conduct research, measure the effectiveness of our features, identify bugs and issues, and continuously improve our Services. Author Tools and Insights: To provide authors with analytics about their stories' performance, reader engagement, earnings reports, and audience demographics (in aggregate form). Payment Processing: To process purchases, manage coin balances, handle author earnings and withdrawals, prevent fraud, and maintain accurate financial records. Legal Compliance: To comply with applicable laws, regulations, legal processes, and governmental requests, and to protect our rights, privacy, safety, and property.

4. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal information to third parties. We may share your information in the following circumstances: With Other Users: Your public profile information (display name, avatar, bio) and public content (published stories, comments, ratings) are visible to other users. You can control what information is publicly visible through your privacy settings. With Authors: When you read, like, comment on, or interact with stories, authors can see aggregated analytics about their readers. Individual reader identities are not shared unless you publicly comment or follow the author. Service Providers: We share information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating our Services, including:

Supabase: Database hosting and authentication services
Apple App Store and Google Play: In-app purchase processing for coins, Premium subscriptions, and other digital goods
ElevenLabs: AI voice synthesis for story narration
Resend: Email delivery services
Firebase/Expo: Push notification services
Cloud hosting providers: Infrastructure and hosting Legal Requirements: We may disclose information if required by law, court order, subpoena, or other legal process, or if we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others. Business Transfers: In the event of a merger, acquisition, reorganization, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred to the successor entity, subject to the same privacy protections described in this policy. With Your Consent: We may share information for other purposes when you give us explicit consent to do so.

5. Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information, including:

Encryption of data in transit using TLS/SSL protocols
Encryption of sensitive data at rest
Secure authentication using JWT tokens and bcrypt password hashing
Regular security audits and vulnerability assessments
Access controls limiting employee access to personal data
Secure payment processing through PCI-compliant providers
Two-factor authentication options for enhanced account security However, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to provide our Services and fulfill the purposes described in this Privacy Policy. Specifically:

Account Information: Retained while your account is active and for a reasonable period afterward to allow for account recovery and legal compliance.
User Content: Retained until you delete it or your account is closed. Published stories may be retained longer if they have community engagement.
Transaction Records: Retained for at least 7 years for tax and legal compliance purposes.
Usage Data: Generally retained for 24 months for analytics purposes, then aggregated or anonymized.
Communication Records: Support conversations retained for 3 years to provide context for future inquiries. When you delete your account, we will delete or anonymize your personal information within 30 days, except where retention is required by law or for legitimate business purposes.

7. Your Rights and Choices

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights regarding your personal information: Access: You can request a copy of the personal information we hold about you through the "Download Your Data" feature in your account settings. Correction: You can update or correct your information through your profile settings, or contact us for assistance. Deletion:

In-App: You can delete your account immediately and permanently through the app settings (Settings > Danger Zone > Delete Account).
Web Request: If you cannot access the app, you may request account deletion by emailing us at privacy@storybaze.com with the subject "Delete My Account". We will process these requests within 30 days.

Upon deletion, we will permanently remove or anonymize your personal information, except where retention is required by law (e.g., transaction records for tax compliance). Portability: You can request your data in a commonly used, machine-readable format. Opt-Out: You can opt out of marketing emails by clicking "unsubscribe" in any promotional email or adjusting your notification preferences. You can disable push notifications through your device settings. Do Not Track: We currently do not respond to "Do Not Track" browser signals as there is no industry standard for this feature. To exercise these rights, please contact us at privacy@storybaze.com or use the in-app privacy settings.

8. Children's Privacy

StoryBaze is not intended for children under 13 years of age (or the applicable age of digital consent in your jurisdiction). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information without your consent, please contact us immediately at privacy@storybaze.com. We will take steps to delete such information from our servers. For users between 13 and 18 years old, parental consent may be required for certain features, and mature content is restricted unless age verification is provided.

9. International Data Transfers

StoryBaze operates globally, and your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your country of residence. These countries may have different data protection laws. When we transfer data internationally, we implement appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses approved by relevant data protection authorities, or rely on adequacy decisions where applicable. By using our Services, you consent to the transfer of your information to these countries.

10. Third-Party Links and Services

Our Services may contain links to third-party websites, applications, or services that are not operated by us. This Privacy Policy does not apply to those third-party services. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party services you access through our platform. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third parties.

11. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make material changes, we will notify you by posting the updated policy on our website and app, and by sending you an email or in-app notification if appropriate. The "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy indicates when it was last revised. Your continued use of our Services after any changes become effective constitutes your acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy.

12. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us: StoryBaze Privacy Team

Email: privacy@storybaze.com
General Inquiries: hello@storybaze.com
Website: storybaze.com We will respond to your inquiry within 30 days.

13. Additional Disclosures for California Residents

If you are a California resident, you have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA):

Right to Know: You have the right to request information about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we have collected about you.
Right to Delete: You have the right to request deletion of your personal information, subject to certain exceptions.
Right to Non-Discrimination: We will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights.
Do Not Sell: We do not sell your personal information. If this changes, we will provide you with the right to opt out. To exercise these rights, please contact us at privacy@storybaze.com.

14. Additional Disclosures for European Users

If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or Switzerland, you have additional rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):

Legal Basis: We process your data based on consent, contract performance, legitimate interests (such as providing and improving our services, fraud prevention, and security), and legal compliance.
Right to Object: You can object to processing based on legitimate interests.
Right to Restrict Processing: You can request that we limit how we use your data.
Supervisory Authority: You have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.