Certbie

Privacy Policy

Effective date: January 1, 2025
Last updated: May 12, 2026

This Privacy Policy describes how Certbie ("we," "us," or "our") collects, uses, and protects your personal information when you visit and use our website at certbie.com (the "Service"). By using the Service, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Information You Provide

  • Account information: email address, username, and password (securely hashed with PBKDF2).
  • Payment information: credit card and billing details are collected and processed directly by Stripe. We never store full card numbers on our servers.
  • Study activity: quiz attempts, answers, scores, flashcard reviews, and progress data you generate while using the Service.
  • Communications: if you contact us by email, we keep a record of the correspondence.

1.2 Information Collected Automatically

  • Device and usage data: IP address, browser type, operating system, referring URLs, pages visited, and interaction timestamps.
  • Cookies and similar technologies: session cookies for authentication, analytics cookies, and advertising cookies (see Section 4 below).

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

  • Provide, maintain, and improve the Service, including personalized study recommendations.
  • Process payments and manage subscriptions through Stripe.
  • Track your study progress, quiz performance, and spaced-repetition scheduling.
  • Send account-related notifications (password resets, billing receipts, important updates).
  • Analyze aggregate usage patterns to improve content quality and site performance.
  • Display relevant advertisements through third-party advertising partners.
  • Detect, prevent, and address fraud, abuse, or security issues.
  • Comply with legal obligations.

3. Third-Party Services

We use the following third-party services that may collect information about your activity:

  • Stripe — payment processing. Stripe collects and handles your payment data directly. See Stripe's Privacy Policy.
  • Google AdSense — advertising. Google may serve ads on our pages and use cookies to personalize those ads based on your browsing history. See Section 4 below and Google's Privacy Policy.
  • Google Analytics — website analytics. Google Analytics uses cookies to collect information about how visitors use our site. This data is aggregated and anonymous.

4. Advertising and Cookies

4.1 Google AdSense

We use Google AdSense to display advertisements on the Service. Google AdSense uses cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to our website or other websites. Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads based on your visit to our site and/or other sites on the Internet.

You may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings. Alternatively, you can opt out of a third-party vendor's use of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting aboutads.info.

4.2 DoubleClick DART Cookie

Google uses the DoubleClick DART cookie on publisher websites that display Google AdSense ads. When a user visits a website that uses AdSense, a third-party cookie is set on the user's browser with the domain name doubleclick.net. This cookie is used to serve ads and track ad performance. Users can disable the DART cookie by visiting the Google Ads Settings.

4.3 Types of Cookies We Use

  • Essential cookies: required for the Service to function (authentication, session management).
  • Analytics cookies: help us understand how visitors use the Service (Google Analytics).
  • Advertising cookies: used by Google AdSense and its partners to deliver relevant ads and measure ad performance (DoubleClick DART cookie).

Most browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. Disabling cookies may affect the functionality of the Service.

5. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal information. We may share data with:

  • Service providers: Stripe (payments), Google AdSense (advertising), Google Analytics (analytics), and hosting providers — each bound by their own privacy policies.
  • Legal requirements: when required by law, legal process, or to protect the rights and safety of our users or the public.

6. Data Security

We use industry-standard security measures including PBKDF2 password hashing, HTTPS encryption (TLS), secure session management, and regular access reviews. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.

7. Data Retention

We retain your account information for as long as your account is active. Study progress data is retained for the duration of your membership. You may request deletion of your account and associated data by contacting us.

8. Children's Privacy

The Service is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13, we will delete that information promptly.

9. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, or port your personal data. To exercise any of these rights, contact us at the address below. We will respond within a reasonable timeframe.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date. Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

11. Contact

For questions or requests related to this Privacy Policy, contact us at support@certbie.com.