Privacy Policy & Child Safety
This Privacy Policy explains how Kani Tales ("Kani Tales", "we", "us", or "our"), collects, uses, stores, and protects personal data when you use our mobile applications, website, and related backend services (collectively, the "Services").
Kani Tales is operated as a sole proprietorship established in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, by Arvind Vijayendiran. For users in the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), and the United Kingdom (UK), Arvind Vijayendiran serves as the Data Controller under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and UK GDPR.
Owner & Data Controller Information
Our Target Audience & Children’s Privacy (COPPA & GDPR)
Kani Tales creates personalized, illustrated educational and bedtime stories designed for toddlers and young children, used in coordination with parents and legal guardians. We prioritize child data protection in compliance with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA), the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR / UK GDPR), and applicable regional child protection frameworks.
A. Verifiable Parental Consent & Child Profile Creation
- Adult Account Administration: Children may not directly create an account. Accounts must be registered and administered by an adult parent or legal guardian (aged 18 or older).
- Affirmative Consent Checkboxes: When creating a child profile, the adult user must confirm via an affirmative consent mechanism (checkbox verification) that they are a parent or authorized legal guardian consenting to the collection and processing of child-related profile details.
B. Child Profile Data Collected
We collect only the minimum context required to personalize stories and illustrations:
- Child Profile Attributes: First name (or nickname), gender, and companion animal / pet name (if applicable).
- Child Photo (Strictly Optional): Parents may optionally upload a photo of the child solely to extract basic physical avatar characteristics (such as hair style, eye color, or costume preferences) for illustrated story generation.
- Biometric & Image Deletion Guarantee: Photos uploaded for avatar trait extraction are processed transiently via our AI processor (OpenAI). In accordance with OpenAI’s data handling and API policies, the transmitted image data is retained securely on their servers for up to 30 days solely for abuse monitoring, quality, and platform trust-and-safety purposes. After this 30-day security window, the image is permanently deleted. It is not used to train generalized foundation models. We do not store persistent facial recognition templates, biometric faceprints, or raw child photos in our database.
C. Parental Controls & Settings Dashboard
Parents retain full control over their child’s information at all times. Through the in-app Parental Settings Dashboard, parents can review, edit, update, or permanently delete child profiles, pet profiles, and generated story history with immediate effect.
Categories of Data We Collect
👤 Account & Identity
- Direct Registration: First & last name, email address, password hash.
- Google Sign-In: Verified email address, full name, Google UID.
✨ Story Customization
- Child’s first name/nickname, gender, optional pet name.
- Visual traits: hair, skin tone, pajamas/costume.
- Historical story texts & illustrations.
🔐 Session Metadata
- Standard HTTP User-Agent (browser & OS).
- Session timestamps (
login time,last seen). - Strictly for account security & session stability.
How We Use Personal Data & Legal Bases (GDPR / UK GDPR)
Under the GDPR and UK GDPR, we process personal data under the following transparent legal bases:
| Purpose / Processing Activity | Data Categories Used | Legal Basis (GDPR Art. 6 / Art. 9) |
|---|---|---|
| Account Creation & Authentication | Name, email, password hash, Google UID | Contractual Necessity (Art. 6(1)(b)) — to provide access to the Services. |
| Story & Image Personalization | Child name, gender, pet name, visual style traits | Contractual Necessity (Art. 6(1)(b)) & Parental Consent (Art. 6(1)(a)). |
| Optional Photo Trait Extraction | Uploaded child photo (transiently processed) | Explicit Parental Consent (Art. 6(1)(a) / Art. 9(2)(a)) via profile setup checkpoint. |
| Subscription & Payment Validation | User ID, email, subscription status, receipts | Contractual Necessity (Art. 6(1)(b)) & Legal Obligation (Art. 6(1)(c)) for tax accounting. |
| Account Security & Session Integrity | User-Agent string, active login timestamps | Legitimate Interests (Art. 6(1)(f)) — to prevent unauthorized session hijackings. |
Third-Party Service Providers (Sub-Processors)
We work with a minimal set of vetted third-party service providers to host infrastructure, process payments, and run generative AI pipelines. We execute Data Processing Agreements (DPAs) with these providers:
| Provider | Role & Location | Purpose | Data Transmitted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supabase | Infrastructure / Global | Database hosting, auth, profile storage | Account credentials, child profile attributes, stories, session timestamps. |
| OpenAI, LLC | AI Processing / USA | Story text generation & optical trait scanning | Story prompt parameters; temporary photo inputs (purged after 30 days; no AI model training). |
| Leonardo AI | AI Image Gen / USA & AUS | Storybook illustration generation | Minimized visual prompt descriptors only. Never receives child photos or email addresses. |
| Dodo Payments | Merchant of Record / USA | Payment processing & invoicing | Billing details, receipts. (Kani Tales never accesses or stores credit card numbers). |
| Zoho Desk | Customer Support / Global | Help tickets & privacy inquiries | Support correspondence, user email. |
AI Generation & Privacy Safeguards
🎯 Minimized Context
Prompts sent to OpenAI and Leonardo AI include only the contextual variables needed to render the requested bedtime scene (child’s first name, pet name, outfit, background theme).
🔒 Zero Model Training
Photos sent to OpenAI’s Vision API are processed over encrypted TLS solely to extract text traits. Images are automatically deleted in 30 days and are never used to train generalized AI models.
🚫 No Hidden Tracing
We do not route requests through third-party AI observability or prompt-harvesting proxies (such as Langfuse, Helicone, or Arize). Transmissions occur directly with official AI APIs.
Data Retention & Account Deletion
Your account profile, child profiles, and generated bedtime stories remain accessible as long as your subscription or free account remains active.
When a subscription is canceled or lapses, user accounts, linked child profiles, and generated story assets are retained for 180 days to allow seamless reactivation. After 180 consecutive days of inactivity, the account and all associated personalized assets are systematically and permanently deleted from our active database.
You do not need to wait for retention windows to expire. Users can trigger complete, permanent account and data deletion at any time directly through the in-app Account Settings. Once confirmed, your user profile, child profiles, images, and story libraries are immediately removed from production storage.
International Data Transfers
Because Kani Tales is based in India and utilizes cloud infrastructure located in the US and globally (e.g., Supabase, OpenAI, Leonardo AI), personal data may be transferred to and processed in countries outside your country of residence.
For users residing in the EU, EEA, or UK, transfers to third countries outside the EEA/UK are governed by Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission, relevant UK International Data Transfer Addendums, and verified certifications under the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework where applicable.
Your Privacy Rights (GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA/CPRA)
Depending on your jurisdiction, you hold specific statutory rights regarding your personal information:
Request an export copy of personal data and child profiles in a structured machine-readable format.
Update or correct inaccurate or incomplete data directly via your in-app profile dashboard.
Permanently delete your account and associated records via app settings or by contacting us.
Object to or limit specific processing activities where applicable under data protection law.
Withdraw consent at any time by deleting the profile or closing the account without penalty.
We will not deny services, charge different prices, or lower service quality for exercising your privacy rights.
Security Practices
- Mandatory TLS/HTTPS Encryption: All data transmitted across our applications, APIs, and sub-processors is encrypted using current TLS protocols.
- Password Hashing & Token Auth: Credentials and session tokens are salted, hashed, and managed via secure Supabase authentication infrastructures.
- Strict Access Controls: Restricted operational and administrative access controls prevent unauthorized third-party inspection of user databases.
Updates to this Policy
We may periodically revise this Privacy Policy to reflect modifications in our features, changes in sub-processors, or shifts in legal obligations. When material updates are made, we will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this document and notify active users via an in-app notice or email notification prior to the change taking effect.
Contact Us & Regulatory Recourse
EU/UK users also hold the statutory right to lodge a formal complaint with their local data protection supervisory authority (such as the ICO in the UK, the CNIL in France, or the BfDI in Germany) if they believe their personal data has been handled contrary to applicable data protection regulations.