Legal

1. Be Respectful

Treat every member with kindness. Disagreements about books are fine — personal attacks, insults, and harassment are not.

2. No Hate Speech

Content that promotes hatred, discrimination, or violence based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, disability, or any other characteristic is strictly prohibited.

3. No Spam or Self-Promotion

Do not post unsolicited advertisements, affiliate links, or repetitive promotional content. Genuine book recommendations are always welcome.

4. No Inappropriate Content

Bookneko members are 13 and older. Books explore mature themes, and talking about them is welcome: describe them, don't depict them. Explicit sexual content, graphic violence, and disturbing imagery are not permitted in posts, comments, messages, images, or videos. Mark spoilers as spoilers.

5. Respect Privacy

Do not share personal information about others without their consent. Do not impersonate another person.

6. Report and Block

If you see content or encounter a member that violates these guidelines, use the report or block buttons within the app. Our team reviews all reports within 24 hours. Blocking a user will immediately hide their content and prevent them from contacting you.

7. Consequences

Violations of these guidelines may result in content removal, temporary suspension, or permanent account termination depending on severity.

8. Contact

Questions about these guidelines? Contact us at support@bookneko.com.

1. Information We Collect

Account information. When you register or sign in via Google, Facebook, or Apple, we receive your name, email address, and profile picture from that provider. If you sign up with email and password, we store your email address and a hashed password.

Profile data you provide. Display name, bio, avatar, and any other profile details you choose to add.

Reading activity. Books you add to your library, reading sessions (start/end dates, page counts), ratings, reviews, reading notes, reading challenges and goals, wishlists, loans, collections, and lists.

Social activity. Friends and followers, posts, comments, reactions, direct messages, messages in Nooks (book clubs), and the photos, videos, GIFs and voice recordings you share.

Conversations with Paige. If you are a Premium member and use Paige, the AI reading assistant, the messages you write to her, her replies, and the reading preferences she saves. See section 5.

Purchases. If you subscribe, the plan, its status and renewal dates. If you buy from the shop, your name, email address, shipping address and what you ordered — used to mail the order, confirm it to you and keep the record of the sale. The shipping address is deleted 90 days after the order is mailed or cancelled. Card details are handled by Apple, Google or Stripe; we never see your full card number.

Usage data. Pages visited, features used, and standard server logs (IP address, browser/device type, timestamps). We also use Firebase Analytics (Google) to measure aggregate usage — which features are opened and how often — so we can see what is worth improving. It is never linked to your account, never used for advertising, and never sold. See section 9 for how to turn it off.

Device information. If you allow notifications, a push token that lets us deliver them to your device.

How you use the feed. Only if you turn on "Personalise my feed" (Settings → Privacy), which is off by default: when you scroll the home feed or Reels, the app records which posts appear on your screen and for how long, including the ones you scroll past quickly, along with the feed tab, the post's position in the feed, and your device type. These records are linked to your account. With the setting off, nothing is recorded.

2. How We Use Your Information

• Provide, operate, and improve the Bookneko service.
• Personalise your experience (e.g. reading stats, recommendations).
• Decide the order of your home feed and Reels: avoid showing you posts you have already seen and, if you have turned on "Personalise my feed", learn from the time you spend on posts which kinds you prefer, so we can show you more of those and fewer of the ones you skip. This is never used for advertising, never shared with other users, and never sold.
• Enable social features — show your activity to the people your privacy settings allow.
• Answer your questions through Paige, if you are a Premium member and choose to use her (section 5).
• Translate a post, review or comment when a reader asks to read it in their own language.
• Keep the community safe: images you upload are checked automatically for explicit or violent content, and messages for spam and abuse signals. These checks only flag content for a person on our team to review; they never decide on their own.
• Send transactional messages (e.g. password reset, account and service notices). We send news and tips by email only if you turn on "Email me news, tips and product updates" in Settings → Notifications, and every such email carries an unsubscribe link.
• Detect and prevent fraud or abuse.

3. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal data. We share data only in these limited circumstances:

• With other users. Content you post (reviews, lists, collections, posts) and basic profile details are visible to other Bookneko users according to your privacy settings. New accounts start on Private, the most protective setting: you choose who can find you and see your activity when you sign up, and you can change it at any time in Settings → Privacy. Messages are visible to the people in the conversation.
• Service providers. We rely on the following providers, each only for the purpose listed, under a written agreement that requires them to use the information solely to provide their service to us and to protect it:
  • Google (Firebase and Google Cloud) — sign-in, database, file storage, push notifications, usage analytics, automated checks of uploaded images, and reading the text in a photo when you scan a quote.
  • Anthropic — the AI model behind Paige (section 5).
  • DeepL and Google Translate — translating a post, review or comment when a reader asks for it.
  • Stripe — payments on the web. Apple and Google process purchases made in their app stores, and RevenueCat keeps your subscription status in sync across your devices.
  • Cloudflare — storing and streaming the videos you post.
  • Resend — delivering our emails.
  • GIPHY — when you search for a GIF, your search terms and your device's IP address go directly to GIPHY.
  • Apple, Google and Facebook — only if you choose to sign in with them.
• Book metadata APIs. When you search for or add a book, we query third-party APIs (Hardcover, Google Books, ISBNdb, Open Library) using only the book ISBN or title — no personal data is sent. Some book covers are displayed directly from those catalogues' image servers, which, like any website, see your device's IP address when the image loads.
• Legal requirements. We may disclose information if required by law or to protect the rights and safety of our users.

4. Where Your Information Is Processed

Our database, your messages and our servers are in Montréal, Québec (Google Cloud). The files you upload (photos, avatars, voice recordings) are stored by Google Cloud in the United States, and sign-in is handled by Firebase Authentication, also in the United States. Some of the other providers listed in section 3 process information outside Québec — mainly in the United States, and in the European Union for DeepL. Before entrusting information to a provider outside Québec, we assessed the protection it would receive there, and each provider is bound by contract to protect it. Information held outside Québec is subject to the laws of the place where it is held, which may allow local authorities to access it.

5. Paige, the AI Reading Assistant

Paige is an optional feature for Premium members. When you write to her, we send your message to Anthropic, the company that provides the AI model behind her, along with what she needs to answer you: your display name, language and time zone, an overview of your library and reading history, your goals, ratings and loans, the reading preferences she has saved, and — when your question calls for it — your private reading notes and what your friends are reading, limited to what you can already see in the app. Anthropic processes this information on our behalf in the United States to generate her replies, and under its commercial terms does not use it to train its models. We keep your conversation and the preferences Paige learns on our servers so she can pick up where you left off: "Erase Paige's memory" deletes both at any time, and both are deleted with your account. Paige's replies are generated automatically and can be wrong.

6. Data Retention

We keep your information for as long as your account is active. You can delete your account at any time (see section 9). When you do, your profile, library, reading activity, posts, comments, messages, reactions, photos, videos and voice recordings are deleted, along with your conversations with Paige, and remaining copies are erased within 30 days. We keep only what the law requires or what belongs to someone else: payment and tax records (6 years), the record of your marketing-email consent choices, reports other members filed, and server logs (about 30 days). Messages other people wrote stay in their conversations. Feed viewing records (section 1) are deleted when you turn off "Personalise my feed" or delete your account.

7. Security

We use industry-standard measures including encrypted connections (HTTPS), Firebase Authentication, and access-controlled cloud infrastructure. No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure; we cannot guarantee absolute security.

8. Children's Privacy

Bookneko is not directed to children under 13, or under 16 for readers in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a child has provided us data, please contact us and we will delete it.

9. Your Rights & Choices

You can exercise any of these rights by writing to support@bookneko.com. We answer within 30 days.

• Access & correction. Update your profile at any time from Settings, or ask us for a copy of the personal information we hold about you and have it corrected.
• Account deletion. Go to Profile → Settings → Delete Account, or email us at support@bookneko.com. Your data will be permanently deleted as described in section 6. If you subscribed through the App Store or Google Play, cancel the subscription there as well: deleting your account cannot cancel it for you.
• Data portability. On request, we send you the personal information you gave us in a structured, commonly used format.
• Marketing emails. Off unless you turn them on in Settings → Notifications. You can turn them off there at any time, or with the unsubscribe link in any such email. We keep a record of when you gave or withdrew this consent, as anti-spam law requires us to be able to prove it.
• Feed personalisation. "Personalise my feed" (Settings → Privacy) is off unless you turn it on. You can turn it off at any time: recording stops immediately and what was recorded is deleted.
• Usage analytics. You can turn usage analytics off at any time using the control below; the choice is remembered on this device. If you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom we ask before collecting anything, and nothing is collected unless you agree.
• Complaints. If you are not satisfied with how we handled a request, you can complain to the Commission d'accès à l'information du Québec (cai.gouv.qc.ca) or, if you live elsewhere, to the data protection authority where you live.

10. How We Govern Your Information

• Responsibility. The privacy officer named in section 12 is accountable for the protection of personal information at our business and answers requests and complaints.
• Access. Only the people who run the service can access personal information, and only when needed to operate, support or protect it.
• Assessments. Before launching a feature that uses personal information in a new way, or entrusting it to a provider outside Québec, we assess its privacy impact.
• Retention and destruction. Information is kept only as long as described in section 6, then deleted.
• Incidents. If a confidentiality incident creates a risk of serious injury, we promptly notify the Commission d'accès à l'information and the people concerned. We keep a register of every incident.
• Complaints. Write to the privacy officer at the address in section 12. We acknowledge your complaint, look into it, and give you a written answer within 30 days.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. We will notify you of material changes in the app or by email, and post the new policy on this page with an updated date.

12. Contact

Questions? Email us at support@bookneko.com, or write to us at the address below.

Privacy officer. Jean-David Simard is responsible for the protection of personal information at SigmEta. Questions about how your information is handled, requests to exercise the rights in section 9, and complaints can be sent to support@bookneko.com.

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years old to use Bookneko, or at least 16 if you are in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom. By using the app you confirm that you meet this requirement.

2. Your Account

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activity that occurs under your account. Notify us immediately at support@bookneko.com if you suspect unauthorised access.

3. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

• Post content that is illegal, abusive, or infringes copyright.
• Harass, threaten, or impersonate other users.
• Use automated means to scrape or abuse the service without prior written permission.
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to our systems or other users' accounts.

4. User Content

You retain ownership of content you post (reviews, lists, etc.). By posting, you grant Bookneko a non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to store, display, and share that content as part of the service. You represent that you have the right to grant this licence.

5. Book Metadata

Book metadata (titles, covers, descriptions) is sourced from third-party databases. We do not claim ownership of this data and make no warranties about its accuracy.

6. Disclaimers

Bookneko is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind. We do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation.

7. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Bookneko shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential damages arising from your use of the service.

8. Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms. You may close your account at any time as described in the Privacy Policy.

9. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms. We will tell you about material changes in the app or by email before they take effect. Continued use of Bookneko after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the new Terms.

10. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Province of Quebec, Canada, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. This does not deprive you of the protection of the mandatory consumer laws of the place where you live.

11. Subscriptions and Purchases

Bookneko offers optional paid subscriptions, such as Premium. Purchases made in the app are processed by Apple (App Store) or Google (Google Play); purchases made on the web are processed by Stripe. Subscriptions automatically renew at the end of each billing period (monthly or annual) unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the renewal date. If an offer includes a free trial, it becomes a paid subscription when the trial ends unless you cancel before then; the length of the trial and the price are shown before you confirm. A free trial is offered only to members who have never subscribed and have not already received a free month (see section 12). If you subscribe on the web while a free month is running, billing starts when that month ends. For subscriptions purchased through the Apple App Store or Google Play, you can manage or cancel them at any time in your App Store or Google Play account settings, and refunds are handled by Apple or Google under their own policies; for web subscriptions, use Profile → Settings → Subscription, and contact us at support@bookneko.com about a refund. Prices are displayed in your local currency at the time of purchase. We may change pricing with reasonable notice; a change never applies to a billing period you have already paid for.

12. Referral Program

Bookneko may offer a referral program that rewards members for inviting friends. The following terms apply whenever the program is active.

• Eligibility. Referral rewards are for new members only. A referral code must be applied by an account within 14 days of that account being created, and each member may be referred only once, ever.
• Rewards. When a referred friend completes onboarding and adds their first book, both that friend and the referring member receive one free month of Premium, starting that day. Each member may earn one referral reward as a referrer. Each member can receive only one free month in total, whether it comes from a free trial or from the referral program: a member who has already had a free trial or a free month receives no referral month, and a member who already pays for Premium receives none either. Free months have no cash value and cannot be transferred, sold, or refunded.
• Fair use. You may not refer yourself, create accounts in order to refer them, or otherwise manipulate the program. We may withhold or revoke rewards, and suspend or disqualify accounts, that we believe are engaged in fraudulent, abusive, or self-dealing activity.
• Changes. Bookneko may modify, suspend, or end the referral program, or change these terms, at any time and without notice.

13. Intellectual Property

Bookneko™ is a trademark of SigmEta. The Bookneko app, its design, its original text and images, and its source code belong to SigmEta and are protected by copyright. Nothing in these Terms grants you any right to copy, reuse, or adapt them, or to use our name, logo, or branding, without our prior written permission. This does not affect your ownership of your own content under Section 4, or third-party rights in book metadata under Section 5.

14. Paige, the AI Reading Assistant

• What Paige is. Paige is an artificial-intelligence assistant included with Premium. Her replies are generated automatically by an AI model provided by Anthropic. She is not a person, and her replies are not statements by our team.
• Accuracy. Paige can be wrong, incomplete or out of date. Check anything important, and do not rely on her for professional advice (medical, legal, financial or other). You are responsible for how you use her replies.
• Actions on your behalf. When you ask, Paige can make changes to your account, such as adding a book, rating it, logging a reading session, updating your progress, or creating a collection or note. Check that the result is what you wanted; you can change or undo it like any other edit.
• Fair use. Section 3 applies to what you ask Paige. Do not share information about other people that they would not want shared. To keep the service available to everyone, Paige has a daily message limit, shown in the app.
• Changes. We may improve or change how Paige works. If we stop offering Paige, we will tell Premium members in advance.
• Your information. How Paige handles your information is described in section 5 of the Privacy Policy.

15. Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email support@bookneko.com, or write to us at the address below.

Option 1 — Delete your account in the app

1. Open Bookneko and go to your Profile.
2. Tap the settings icon and select "Delete Account".
3. Confirm the deletion. All your data will be permanently removed.

Option 2 — Revoke Facebook access

1. Go to your Facebook Account's "Settings & Privacy" → "Settings".
2. Tap "Apps and Websites".
3. Find Bookneko in the list and tap "Remove".

This removes Facebook's link to our app. To also delete the data stored in Bookneko, follow Option 1 above or email us at support@bookneko.com.