SmartPAL AI Inc. – Privacy Policy

Last updated: December 2025

SmartPAL AI Inc. ("SmartPAL", "we", "our", "us") is committed to protecting the privacy of students, instructors, and institutions who use our learning support platform. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect personal information when you use SmartPAL through our website, mobile application, or learning management system integrations (such as Canvas).

1. Overview

SmartPAL is an AI-powered learning support tool designed to enhance student engagement and provide instructors with timely insights. We collect only the minimum data required to operate our services and never sell personal information or use it for advertising.

2. Information We Collect

A. Information Provided by Institutions or Instructors

Course roster information (name, email, institutional identifier)
Course enrollment details
Assignment titles, due dates, descriptions
Course structure and teacher-defined settings

B. Information from Learning Management Systems (e.g., Canvas)

Assignment submissions and completion status
Grades and score visibility (subject to instructor settings)
Course activity logs (e.g., page views, last login)
Deadline adherence, late submissions, and activity patterns

C. Information Students Provide in SmartPAL

Reflections, goals, and check-ins
Messages sent to the AI assistant
Task planning or habit-building entries
Support requests

D. Automatically Collected Technical Information

Device type and browser
Log data and usage patterns
Approximate location based on IP (city-level only)

SmartPAL does NOT collect: home address, phone number, photos, camera data, microphone data, GPS location, biometric data, or sensitive personal information unless explicitly provided by the user.

3. How We Use Information

SmartPAL uses collected information for the following purposes:

To deliver personalized learning support, reminders, and nudges
To generate weekly summaries and insights for instructors
To operate and improve SmartPAL’s AI models and services
To support self-regulated learning habits (reflection, planning, goal tracking)
To maintain service reliability, security, and performance
To provide customer support

All processing aligns with institutional policies and applicable privacy laws (including FERPA when used in an educational context).

4. AI and Data Usage

AI-generated explanations and summaries are intended as learning support, not as a replacement for completing assignments.
Identifiable student content is never used to train general-purpose third-party AI models.
SmartPAL may use anonymized or aggregated data to improve product performance and conduct internal analytics.

5. Features Designed for Privacy

A. Initials-Only Leaderboard

If a leaderboard or engagement ranking feature is enabled, SmartPAL displays student initials only (e.g., “A.P.”). Full names, photos, and identifying details are never shown to other students.

B. Private Reflections

SmartPAL includes a Private Reflection mode. Entries created in this mode are visible only to the student and are not shared with instructors, administrators, or institutions.

C. Minimal Visibility to Peers

SmartPAL does not allow students to view other students’ messages, reflections, or coursework.

6. Who Can Access Your Information

Depending on institutional configuration, access may be granted to:

The student (their own data only)
The instructor(s) of the course
Authorized institutional administrators
SmartPAL technical staff with restricted, audited access

We do not share personal information with advertisers, data brokers, or unrelated third parties.

7. Data Retention & Deletion

Identifiable course and student data is retained only as long as necessary to provide SmartPAL’s services.
Institutions or users may request deletion of identifiable data at any time by contacting us at contact@smartpal.org.
De-identified data may be retained for product improvement and analytics.

8. Security Practices

SmartPAL uses industry-standard security protocols, including:

AWS-hosted infrastructure
Encryption in transit (TLS) and at rest
Strict role-based access controls
Regular security reviews and monitoring

9. Children's Privacy

SmartPAL may be used in K–12 settings. For users under 13, SmartPAL complies with COPPA through institutional authorization. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children without institutional or parental consent as required.

10. Institutional Use & FERPA

When SmartPAL is used by educational institutions, the institution controls which data is shared and acts as the primary steward of student records under FERPA. SmartPAL acts as a “school official” with legitimate educational interest, using data solely to provide educational services on behalf of the institution.

11. Third-Party Services

SmartPAL may use trusted third-party processors for hosting, analytics, or AI model serving. These processors are contractually required to protect data and may not use it for their own purposes.

12. Your Rights

Depending on your location and institutional policies, you may have rights to:

Access your information
Request correction or deletion
Request a copy of your data
Limit certain types of processing

Requests may be submitted to contact@smartpal.org.

13. Contact Us

For privacy questions, data requests, or concerns:

SmartPAL AI Inc.
Email: contact@smartpal.org