Your child’s world stays with you.

2. Information stored on your device

The following stays on the device where AbleSteps is installed and is not uploaded to our servers:

• Personal picture cards you create, including words and photos of people, places and favourite things.
• Your child’s name and age, and their progress: skills practised, tasks completed and stars collected.
• App settings, such as sound, animation, theme, text size, voice speed and the Parent Dome PIN.

Because this information lives on your device, removing the app removes it. If your device backs up apps (for example Google or iCloud backup), this information may be included in your own backup, under your Google or Apple account.

3. Information in your account

A parent or caregiver signs in with an email address. Your account holds only:

• Your email address, used for sign-in and important account messages (such as confirming your email or resetting your password).
• Your password, stored only as a secure one-way hash. We can never see it.
• Your subscription details, such as your plan, trial and renewal status.
• A daily count of Buddy messages, used for fair-use limits.

We use this information only to provide your account, manage your plan, keep your account secure and respond when you contact us. Your account is stored on a server operated by BrightLoop Studio and hosted by OVHcloud in Quebec, Canada.

4. Payments

Payments for AbleSteps Premium are processed securely by Stripe. Card details are entered with Stripe and handled under Stripe’s privacy policy; BrightLoop Studio never sees or stores your card number. Every purchase or plan change sits behind a grown-up check in the Parent Dome.

5. Buddy chat (Premium)

Buddy needs an internet connection. When your child chats with Buddy, their messages and first name are sent over a secure connection to our server, which asks OpenAI to write Buddy’s reply. If a parent turns on voice chat, your child’s recorded voice is sent the same way to be turned into text, and Buddy’s reply is turned into speech.

We do not keep chat messages or voice recordings on our server. They are sent only to produce a reply. Under OpenAI’s API terms, this data is not used to train OpenAI’s models, and OpenAI may keep it for up to 30 days to monitor for abuse.

6. Children’s privacy

AbleSteps is made for children to use with a parent or caregiver. Accounts are created and managed by adults, settings are protected by the Parent Dome PIN, and children cannot make purchases or change plans.

The app shows no advertising and contains no third-party analytics or tracking. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children beyond what is described here.

7. Who we share information with

We do not sell or rent personal information. We share it only with service providers that help us run AbleSteps, and only as needed:

• Stripe — payment processing.
• OVHcloud — hosting for our server in Canada.
• Brevo — sending account emails, such as email confirmation and password resets.
• OpenAI — generating Buddy replies and voice.

We may also disclose information if required by law.

8. Keeping and deleting data

We keep your account information for as long as your account is open. You can cancel your plan anytime from the Parent Dome. To delete your account, choose Delete account in the Parent Dome, or email us. Deleting your account cancels any subscription and removes your account information from our server straight away. Stripe keeps payment records as required by law.

9. Your choices and rights

You can ask to see, correct or delete the personal information we hold about you, or withdraw consent, by contacting us. You can also turn Buddy voice chat off, and remove on-device data by deleting your personal cards or uninstalling the app.

10. Changes to this policy

If we make important changes, we will update the effective date above and let you know in the app or by email before they take effect.