Privacy Policy

This policy explains how the BioConcepts mobile app (“BioConcepts” or “the app”) handles information. The app is developed and published by Saurabh Rao (“I”, “me” or “the developer”). It applies to the app on Android and iOS and to this website.

If you have any question about this policy, write to saurabhsrao@hotmail.com.

None. BioConcepts does not send your personal information to the developer. The developer does not run any server that receives data from the app, and does not collect, store, sell, rent or share personal information about you. You can use every feature without creating an account or signing in.

To work, the app keeps the following in a private database on your device:

• notes you write, and any notes you export;
• bookmarks, saved words and recently looked-up words;
• lesson progress and quiz and practice history;
• settings, such as theme, text size, meaning language, read-aloud voice and speed, and the topics you said you were interested in when you first opened the app.

This information is not uploaded by the app and the developer has no access to it. If your phone’s own backup is turned on (for example Android backup to your Google account, or iCloud Backup), your phone may include app data in those backups. That is controlled by your device settings and the backup provider’s privacy policy.

The Scan feature lets you point your camera at a page, or choose a photo, and tap a word to see its meaning.

• The camera is used only while the Scan screen is open. The app asks for camera permission first, and you can say no. You can still scan a photo, and every other feature works as normal.
• When you choose a photo, the app receives only the photo you pick through the system photo picker.
• Text is recognised on your device using Google’s ML Kit text recognition. Pictures are not uploaded anywhere and are not saved by the app.

Lessons, diagrams, quizzes and the glossary are part of the app and work offline. Some optional parts are downloaded only when needed:

Like any download, these requests reach the provider’s servers, which receive standard technical information such as your IP address and device type in order to deliver the file. That information is handled under the provider’s own privacy policy (see section 11). It is not sent to the developer. After a download, dictionary look-ups and translations happen on your device. The words you look up are not sent anywhere.

Text recognition and translation use Google’s ML Kit, which runs on your device. Google states that ML Kit may contact Google’s servers to receive updates and models, and sends Google limited diagnostic and usage information, such as:

• device details, such as manufacturer, model and operating system version;
• app details, such as the app’s package name and version;
• performance figures and how the feature was set up;
• a per-installation identifier, which is not meant to identify you or your device.

Google says it uses this information to measure performance, fix problems and improve ML Kit, and that it is encrypted in transit. It does not include your pictures, the text on a page or the words you look up. The developer does not receive this information. See Google’s ML Kit data disclosure and the Google Privacy Policy.

Read aloud uses the text-to-speech engine already on your phone, provided by your phone’s maker, Google or Apple. Most voices work offline. If you choose a voice that needs the internet, the engine’s provider handles that text under its own privacy policy.

• When you export notes as PDF or Word, the file goes only where you choose to send it using your phone’s share sheet.
• Links in Sources & attributions, and web searches for a word, open in your web browser. The website’s own privacy policy applies there.

BioConcepts shows no advertising. It contains no advertising, analytics or crash-reporting libraries added by the developer. It does not use your device’s advertising ID, and it does not track you across other apps or websites.

BioConcepts is designed for school students, including teenagers, and for other learners. The app does not collect personal information from anyone, including children under 13 or under the minimum age in your country. A parent or guardian with a question can write to saurabhsrao@hotmail.com.

These providers may process technical information when you use the features described above:

• Google (Google Play, Google Play services and ML Kit): Google Privacy Policy and ML Kit Terms
• Apple (App Store and On-Demand Resources): Apple Privacy Policy

Data on your device stays there until you delete it. You can:

• clear your progress in Settings → Reset progress;
• delete notes, bookmarks and saved words in your Library;
• remove the English dictionary in Settings → Downloaded content;
• uninstall the app, which removes everything BioConcepts stored on your device.

The developer holds no copy of your data, so there is nothing stored elsewhere to delete. You do not need to make a request, but you are welcome to write if you have a question.

Your data is protected by your device’s own security, such as your screen lock and storage encryption. Downloads use encrypted connections, and the app checks the dictionary file against a known checksum before installing it. No method of storage is perfectly secure, so keep your device locked and up to date.

Depending on where you live, laws such as India’s Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 or the EU General Data Protection Regulation give you rights to access, correct or delete personal data held about you. The developer does not hold personal data about you. Your app data is on your device, where you can view and delete it as described in section 12. For any privacy request, contact saurabhsrao@hotmail.com.

If the app changes how it handles information, this page will be updated and the effective date above will change. Any optional feature that would send your data off your device, such as cloud sync, will be described here before it is offered, and will stay optional.