1. Introduction

Welcome to Toolia, a social media platform for sharing and discovering tools and web applications. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal information when you use our platform.

By using Toolia, you consent to the practices described in this policy. If you don't agree with our practices, please don't use our service.

2. Information We Collect

Account Information

Registration Data: Email address, username, full name, and password (hashed)
OAuth Data: When you sign in with Google, LinkedIn, or GitHub, we receive your name, email, and profile image
Profile Information: Bio, profile image, and other optional profile details

Content and Activity Data

Tool Shares: URLs, descriptions, categories, and metadata of tools you share
Posts: Content you create, including text and tool discussions
Social Interactions: Likes, reactions, follows, and comments
Search History: Tools and users you search for (to improve recommendations)

Technical Information

Usage Data: How you interact with Toolia, features used, and time spent
Device Information: Browser type, device type, and operating system
Log Data: IP address, access times, and pages visited

3. How We Use Your Information

Platform Functionality

Authenticate your account and manage sessions
Display your profile and shared tools to other users
Enable social features like following and interactions
Generate personalized feeds based on users you follow
Provide search functionality and recommendations
Automatically moderate comments to ensure community safety and prevent harmful content

Communication and Support

Send important account and security notifications
Respond to your support requests and bug reports
Notify you about platform updates and new features

Platform Improvement

Analyze usage patterns to improve our service
Debug technical issues and maintain platform security
Develop new features based on user behavior

4. How We Share Your Information

Public Information

Your profile information, shared tools, posts, and social interactions are publicly visible to other Toolia users. This is core to our social discovery platform.

Service Providers

We share data with trusted service providers who help us operate Toolia:

Vercel: Hosting and database services (PostgreSQL via Neon)
OAuth Providers: Google, LinkedIn, GitHub for authentication
NextAuth: Authentication and session management
AI Moderation Services: Comment content is analyzed by AI services to detect hate speech, violence, racial slurs, and self-harm content

Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information when required by law or to protect our rights, users' safety, or investigate potential violations of our Terms of Service.

5. Data Storage and Security

Security Measures

Passwords are hashed using bcrypt before storage
Data is stored in secure PostgreSQL databases via Vercel/Neon
HTTPS encryption for all data transmission
Regular security updates and monitoring
Access controls and authentication requirements

Data Location

Your data is primarily stored on Vercel's infrastructure, which may include servers in various geographic locations. We ensure all storage locations meet our security and privacy standards.

Important: While we implement strong security measures, no system is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security of data transmitted over the internet.

6. Your Rights and Choices

Account Management

Access: View and download your personal data through your profile settings
Update: Modify your profile information, bio, and preferences at any time
Delete: Remove individual posts, tools, or delete your entire account
Export: Request a copy of your data in a portable format

Privacy Controls

Control who can follow you and see your content
Manage notification preferences
Opt out of certain data collection features
Control search history retention

7. Cookies and Tracking

How We Use Cookies

Essential Cookies: Required for login, session management, and basic functionality
Preference Cookies: Remember your settings and preferences
Analytics Cookies: Help us understand how users interact with Toolia

You can control cookie settings through your browser, but disabling essential cookies may affect platform functionality.

8. Children's Privacy

Toolia is not intended for children under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected information from a child under 13, we will delete that information promptly.

If you believe a child under 13 has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately.

9. International Users

Toolia is operated from the United States. If you are accessing our service from outside the US, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in the United States.

By using Toolia, you consent to the transfer of your information to the United States and processing according to this Privacy Policy.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices or for legal and regulatory reasons. We'll notify users of significant changes through email or platform notifications.

Continued use of Toolia after policy changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy. We encourage you to review this policy regularly.

11. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us:

Email: toolia.app@gmail.com

Platform: Use our in-app bug reporting feature for privacy-related concerns

Response Time: We aim to respond to privacy inquiries within 30 days