Your privacy, in plain words

Who we are

In shortThis policy explains how Sympholingua handles your data.

This policy covers the Sympholingua website and learner app. It explains what we collect, how we use it, who we share it with and the choices you have.

What we collect

In shortOnly what we need to teach you and run your account.

Account: your name, email address and a securely hashed password.

Profile, if you add it: a profile photo (location details are removed from it), phone number, country, city, learning goals, interests, interface language and teaching preferences.

Learning: courses, lesson progress, answers, vocabulary, practice results, call summaries and certificates.

Other: purchases (card details are handled by our payment providers, Stripe or Ziina, never by us), support requests, lesson reports, practice-partner profile if you opt in, and basic security data such as sign-in times.

Voice calls

In shortStreamed live, never recorded.

During an instructor call your microphone audio goes straight from your browser to our voice provider to create the reply. Sympholingua doesn't record or store the audio. The written transcript is used to prepare your call notes and is then discarded, unless you turn on Keep transcripts, in which case it is kept for up to 30 days.

Calls with practice partners connect your two browsers directly. The audio is not recorded; we keep only who called whom, when and for how long, to keep the feature safe.

How we use your data

In shortTo teach, personalise and keep things safe.

We use your data to deliver lessons and practice, plan your day, let your instructor remember your goals and progress, process purchases, send the messages and notifications you allow, answer support requests and prevent abuse. Only the context an instructor needs (such as your level, goals and recent words) is included in a call.

Instructor memory

In shortShort notes you can see and delete.

After a call, a few short notes may be saved so your instructor can pick up where you left off. You can read and delete them in Settings, or turn memory off completely, which also deletes what was stored.

Messages and notifications

In shortInbox, push and email, on your terms.

We send messages to your inbox, and push notifications or emails only if you enable them. You can pause push notifications, mute categories or stop them in Settings → Notifications at any time.

Who we share with

In shortTrusted providers only, and never for sale.

We use providers for hosting, database and private file storage, payments (Stripe and Ziina), voice and text processing (xAI), course writing (Anthropic, which receives course topics and no personal data), email (Resend) and push notifications (ntfy). Each receives only what its job needs.

Other learners see only what you choose to show as a practice partner: your first name, photo, native language and the languages you learn. We never sell your data.

Your choices and rights

In shortEverything is in Settings.

You can edit or remove your profile details and photo, switch instructor memory and transcripts on or off, hide yourself from the partner directory, and choose your notifications.

In Settings → Your data you can ask for a copy of your data or for your account to be deleted, and withdraw a deletion request while it is pending.

How long we keep data

In shortNo longer than needed.

Account and learning data are kept while your account is active. Kept transcripts are removed after at most 30 days, and messages you delete are cleared from our systems. Payment records are kept for as long as the law requires, and security logs for at least one year.

Security

In shortProtected by design.

Passwords are hashed, connections are encrypted, private files are kept outside the public site, team members only see what their role needs, and sensitive actions are recorded in an audit log.

Children

In shortNot for young children; partners are adults only.

Sympholingua is not directed at young children. Learners under the age of consent where they live need a parent's permission. Practice partners are only for adults aged 18 or over.

Changes and contact

In shortWe'll tell you about important changes.

If we change this policy in a way that matters to you, we'll let you know in your inbox. For any privacy question, open a request in Help & support, or use Settings → Your data for copies and deletion.