Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

Information you provide

• Account information: Name, university email, password (encrypted)
• Profile information: Program, year of study, courses, study preferences
• Availability: Your schedule and when you're available to study
• Communications: Messages sent through our platform

Information collected automatically

• Usage data: How you interact with StudyPals (matches viewed, sessions created)
• Device information: Browser type, operating system, IP address
• Cookies: Essential cookies for authentication and preferences

How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• • Match you with compatible study partners based on courses and availability
• • Facilitate communication between matched students
• • Verify you're a legitimate university student (email verification)
• • Improve our matching algorithm and platform features
• • Send important updates about your account and matches
• • Ensure platform safety and prevent abuse

Information Sharing

Information shared with other students

When you match with another student, they can see:

• • Your first name and last initial
• • Your program and year of study
• • Courses you're taking
• • Your availability (times you selected as free)
• • Study preferences you've chosen to share

Service providers

We work with trusted service providers who help us operate StudyPals:

• • Cloud hosting services (encrypted data storage)
• • Email service providers (for verification and notifications)
• • Analytics tools (anonymized usage data only)

These providers are contractually required to protect your data and use it only for the services they provide to us.

Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures:

• • Encryption: TLS/SSL encryption for all data in transit
• • Secure storage: Encrypted databases with access controls
• • Password protection: Passwords are hashed using bcrypt
• • Regular security audits: Ongoing monitoring and updates
• • University verification: Email verification prevents fake accounts

Your Rights & Control

You have complete control over your data:

• • Access: Request a copy of all your data
• • Update: Edit your profile information anytime
• • Delete: Permanently delete your account and all associated data
• • Visibility: Control what information other students can see
• • Export: Download your data in a portable format

To exercise these rights, email us at info@studypals.ca

Data Retention

We retain your data only as long as necessary:

• • Active accounts: Data retained while your account is active
• • Deleted accounts: All personal data permanently deleted within 30 days
• • Anonymized analytics: Non-identifiable usage data may be retained to improve our service

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We'll notify you of significant changes via email or a prominent notice on our platform.

Contact Us

Questions about privacy or data protection?