ReadClub Privacy Policy & Data Protection

1. Overview & Commitment

Welcome to ReadClub: Books & AI Audio ("we", "our", or "us"), an official application under the Finance Chemistry digital ecosystem. ReadClub is designed to deliver a modern, distraction-free reading experience for ebooks, PDFs, EPUB documents, and audio synthesis.

We operate with a core belief: your reading choices, annotations, and personal files are confidential and private to you. This document explains transparently what minimal data is required to operate the application, how your data is secured, and how you retain complete ownership over your account.

2. Information We Collect

We collect information solely to deliver, synchronize, and improve your reading workflow:

A. Information You Voluntarily Provide

• Authentication Profile: When you choose to sign in via Google Sign-In or Firebase Authentication, we store your basic profile information (display name, email address, and profile photo URL) to maintain your synchronized reading profile.
• Reading Progress & Library Data: Your bookmarks, highlighted quotes, reading progress percentages, and customized reading goals are stored in your private cloud profile to allow seamless continuity across all your devices.
• Transactions & Subscriptions: ReadClub Pro purchases or virtual coin packs are processed securely through Google Play In-App Billing and RevenueCat. We never store, process, or have access to your bank details, credit card numbers, or UPI credentials.

B. Automatically Collected Technical Data

• Diagnostic Diagnostics & Performance: Anonymized crash logs and system telemetry collected via Google Firebase Crashlytics to resolve bugs, memory leaks, and render errors across different Android device configurations.
• Device Specifications: Operating system version, device model, and active display language to properly scale typography and UI components.

3. On-Device Processing: OCR & AI Text-to-Speech

ReadClub incorporates cutting-edge assistive reading technologies that respect your confidentiality:

• Local OCR Processing: When you take a photo of a physical book page or select an image from your gallery, the optical character recognition model extracts text locally on your device hardware without transmitting the image outside your phone.
• Local Audio Generation: Text-to-Speech utilizes your Android operating system's built-in text-to-speech engine or pre-downloaded local voice packages, guaranteeing that no spoken audio or book text is streamed over the internet.

4. Google Drive Integration & File Safety

ReadClub features seamless integration with Google Drive to help readers browse public book collections and open personal files:

• Curated Public Catalogue: The app queries official Google Drive API endpoints strictly to fetch book catalogues, metadata, and book cover images made publicly accessible for readers.
• Local Document Viewing: When you open a PDF or EPUB document from Google Drive or device storage, the file is loaded into the application's local memory sandboxed by Android.
• Antivirus & Magic-Byte Verification: To protect users against malicious payloads or corrupted files, ReadClub conducts automated magic-byte checks before rendering any document in the reader canvas.
• No Unauthorized Uploads: ReadClub never uploads your local files or personal storage contents to any third-party server without your explicit command.

5. Third-Party Service Providers

We partner with industry-leading, privacy-compliant infrastructure providers to power application authentication, databases, and billing. Each provider operates under strict data processing agreements:

6. Data Retention & Encryption

We utilize robust technical and organizational protocols to protect your information against unauthorized access, loss, or disclosure:

• Encryption in Transit: All data transmitted between the ReadClub application and backend cloud endpoints is encrypted using modern Transport Layer Security (TLS 1.2 and TLS 1.3).
• Android Application Sandboxing: Downloaded book files and cache databases are isolated within Android's secure application sandbox, inaccessible to other third-party apps installed on your device.
• Retention Policy: We retain your cloud profile and synchronized reading bookmarks only while your account remains active. Upon initiating account deletion, all data is purged within 30 days.

7. User Data & Account Deletion (Google Play Compliance)

In strict compliance with Google Play Developer Program Policies, every ReadClub user possesses the absolute right to delete their account and all associated personal data at any time.

• What is Purged: Your Firebase Auth credentials, synchronized reading progress, bookmarks, highlighted notes, and cloud library lists.
• What is Retained: Non-personally identifiable billing receipts maintained strictly for tax, accounting, or statutory regulatory audits.

8. Children's Privacy (COPPA & Global Standards)

ReadClub is built for general audiences interested in reading and self-improvement. We do not knowingly collect, solicit, or maintain personally identifiable information from children under the age of 13 (or under 16 in the European Economic Area).

If a parent or legal guardian discovers that their child has registered an account or provided personal details without consent, please notify our compliance desk immediately at support@financechemistry.com. We will promptly delete the data from our active databases.

9. Your Legal Rights (GDPR, CCPA/CPRA & DPDP)

Depending on your jurisdiction, you have clear, enforceable rights regarding your personal information:

• Right to Access: You can request a complete export of the personal information stored in your ReadClub account.
• Right to Rectification: You can update your display name, email, or credentials anytime within your profile settings.
• Right to Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten"): You have the right to request permanent deletion of all cloud records.
• Right to Non-Discrimination: We will never penalize you, alter subscription pricing, or degrade service quality because you exercised your statutory privacy rights.

10. Android App Permissions

ReadClub requests only the bare minimum Android operating system permissions required for operation:

• android.permission.INTERNET: Essential for verifying accounts, retrieving book metadata, syncing reading bookmarks, and updating catalogues.
• android.permission.POST_NOTIFICATIONS: Optional; requested only if you explicitly choose to enable daily reading habit reminders and reading streaks.
• com.android.vending.BILLING: Required by the Google Play Store to manage Pro subscriptions and digital feature purchases.

11. Frequently Asked Questions

12. Contact Support Desk

For questions, clarification, or privacy requests regarding ReadClub, please contact our dedicated support desk: