Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy describes how ScholarNet AI ("ScholarNet," "we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, and shares information when you use our website at scholar.0xpi.com and our related services (collectively, the "Service"). By using the Service, you agree to the practices described in this Policy.

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Information You Provide

• Account information: name, email address, username, password (stored hashed), and profile details.
• School affiliation: the school, college, or university you choose to associate with your profile, your role (e.g., student, educator), and graduation year if provided.
• User-generated content: posts, comments, study notes, quiz questions, whiteboard drawings, messages, and any other content you create or upload.
• Communications: emails, support requests, and messages you send to us or through the Service.
• Payment information: if you subscribe to a paid tier, billing details are processed by our third-party payment processor. We do not store full payment card numbers on our servers.

1.2 Information We Collect Automatically

• Usage data: pages viewed, features used, quiz attempts, time spent, click patterns, and referral URLs.
• Device and technical data: IP address, browser type, operating system, device identifiers, language preference, and approximate location derived from IP address.
• Performance data: error logs, response times, and diagnostic information needed to keep the Service running.
• Gamification data: XP earned, achievements unlocked, leaderboard standings, streaks, and competitive history.

1.3 Information from Third Parties

• Single sign-on providers: if you log in via Google, Microsoft, or another SSO provider, we receive basic profile information they share with us.
• Connected social platforms: if you link a Reddit, Twitter/X, or other social account, we receive limited profile and posting permissions you authorize.
• Search Console & analytics: aggregated data from Google Search Console and similar tools.

2. How We Use Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide, maintain, and improve the Service.
• Create and manage your account, authenticate logins, and personalize your experience.
• Operate Brain Battles competitions, leaderboards, and gamification systems.
• Match users for collaborative study rooms, peer review, and quiz competitions.
• Generate AI-powered study materials, quiz questions, and recommendations.
• Communicate with you about updates, security alerts, and support.
• Send marketing communications you have opted in to receive (you can opt out at any time).
• Detect, investigate, and prevent fraud, abuse, cheating in competitions, and violations of our Terms.
• Comply with legal obligations and enforce our agreements.
• Conduct analytics to understand how the Service is used and to improve it.

3. How We Share Information

We do not sell your personal information. We share information only as described below:

• Other users: your username, profile, school affiliation, posts, comments, leaderboard ranking, and Brain Battles results may be visible to other users of the Service. Do not post information you do not want to be public.
• Service providers: we share information with vendors who help us operate the Service (hosting, payment processing, email delivery, analytics, customer support). They are contractually limited to using the data only for the services they provide to us.
• Legal compliance: we may disclose information when required by law, subpoena, or other valid legal process, or to protect the rights, safety, or property of ScholarNet, our users, or others.
• Business transfers: if we are involved in a merger, acquisition, financing, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you of any such change in ownership.
• Aggregated or de-identified data: we may share aggregated or de-identified information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you.
• With your consent: for any other purpose disclosed at the time of collection or with your explicit permission.

4. Children's Privacy (COPPA)

If you are between 13 and 18 years old, you may use the Service only with the involvement and consent of a parent, legal guardian, or qualified educator. Schools or districts that enable ScholarNet for students under 18 are responsible for obtaining any required parental consents and serve as the educational institution's authorized agent for purposes of providing notice and obtaining consent under applicable laws.

If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13 without verifiable parental consent, we will delete that information promptly. If you believe we may have collected such information, please contact us at the address in Section 15.

5. Educational Records (FERPA)

When ScholarNet is used by a school, district, or institution, certain information may constitute "education records" under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act ("FERPA"). In those cases:

• We act as a "school official" with a "legitimate educational interest" under FERPA, where applicable, and use education records only for the purposes authorized by the educational institution.
• We do not use education records for advertising or to build advertising profiles.
• The educational institution remains in control of education records and may request access, correction, or deletion at any time.

Individual users may also contact their school or institution regarding access to and correction of their educational records.

6. Brain Battles & Competition Data

Brain Battles is a school-vs-school competitive quiz feature. When you participate, the following information may be collected, displayed, and retained:

• Your username, school affiliation, scores, response times, and accuracy.
• Your team and individual contributions to school standings.
• Anti-cheating signals such as input timing patterns and session metadata used to detect automation or collusion.

Aggregate Brain Battles results, leaderboards, and school standings are public. Individual question-by-question performance is visible to you and may be visible to your school's authorized administrators where the institution has enabled administrative dashboards.

7. Study Rooms, Whiteboards & Real-Time Sessions

The Service includes features that allow real-time interaction, including video/audio study rooms and collaborative whiteboards.

• Video/audio: live streams in WebRTC study rooms are transmitted between participants and, by default, are not recorded by us. If a session is recorded, all participants will be visibly notified before recording begins, and you may leave the session.
• Whiteboards and shared documents: content you draw, type, or upload into a shared workspace is visible to other participants in that workspace and is stored on our servers so the workspace can be resumed.
• Chat: in-session chat messages are stored to support moderation, dispute resolution, and abuse reporting.

You should not share personal information (such as full addresses, phone numbers, or financial details) in public study rooms or whiteboards.

8. Cookies & Similar Technologies

We use cookies, local storage, and similar technologies to:

• Keep you signed in.
• Remember your preferences (theme, language, notification settings).
• Measure and analyze usage of the Service.
• Detect and prevent fraud and abuse.

You can configure your browser to refuse cookies or to alert you when cookies are being sent. Disabling cookies may limit your ability to use certain features (such as staying signed in).

9. Third-Party Services

The Service may include links to or integrations with third-party websites and services (such as Reddit, Twitter/X, university websites, payment processors, and analytics providers). Their privacy practices are governed by their own privacy policies, not by this Policy. We encourage you to review them before providing information to those services.

10. Data Retention

We retain personal information for as long as your account is active, as needed to provide the Service, to comply with our legal obligations, to resolve disputes, and to enforce our agreements. When you delete your account, we delete or de-identify your personal information within a reasonable period, except where retention is required by law (e.g., tax, accounting, or fraud-prevention records).

Some content (such as anonymized aggregate quiz statistics, public posts that other users have replied to, and Brain Battles historical leaderboards) may persist after account deletion in de-identified or aggregated form.

11. Security

We implement reasonable administrative, technical, and physical safeguards designed to protect your information, including encryption in transit (TLS), hashed passwords, access controls, and monitoring. No method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

12. Your Rights & Choices

Depending on where you live, you may have the following rights with respect to your personal information:

• Access: request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
• Correction: ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Deletion: request deletion of your personal information, subject to limited exceptions.
• Portability: receive your information in a structured, commonly used format.
• Objection / restriction: object to or restrict certain processing.
• Withdraw consent: where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time.
• Opt out of marketing: unsubscribe from marketing emails using the link in the email.
• "Do Not Sell or Share": we do not sell personal information. To the extent any sharing is considered a "sale" or "share" under California or other state laws, you may opt out by contacting us.

To exercise these rights, contact us using the information in Section 15. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling your request. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection authority in your country.

13. International Users

The Service is operated from the United States. If you access the Service from outside the United States, you understand that your information will be transferred to, stored in, and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country. By using the Service, you consent to such transfer.

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the "Last Updated" date at the top. If the changes are material, we will provide additional notice (such as a banner or email). Your continued use of the Service after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the updated Policy.

15. Contact Us

If you have questions or requests regarding this Policy or your personal information, contact us at:

ScholarNet AI
Email: privacy@scholar.0xpi.com
Website: https://scholar.0xpi.com