Legal

Cognation Privacy Policy

DRAFT v0.1, 2026-10-14. NOT YET REVIEWED BY A LAWYER. Plain-English working draft approved in outline by Alexa (via Head Hancho). A lawyer will tighten it after launch. Don't treat it as final legal text.

Last updated: [DATE AT PUBLISH]

1. The short version

  • Cognation is for people 13 and up.
  • We collect what we need to run the service, and we say what that is.
  • Feeds are transparent and don't rank posts by engagement.
  • You can ask to see, fix, or delete your data.

2. What we collect

  • Account info: name, email, birthdate, and login details.
  • What you share: profile, posts, messages, PAGES listings, and reports you file.
  • Basic technical info: device type, app version, and logs needed to keep Cognation working and secure.
  • Calling: when you use IP calling, we handle the connection details needed to place the call. [CALL DATA RETENTION: TO BE SET.]

We don't use face scanning, and we don't guess anyone's age from photos.

3. Birthdate and age

  • Everyone is asked for a birthdate at signup, in the same neutral way.
  • If someone is under 13, signup stops and we save nothing from that attempt.
  • Your birthdate is used to confirm you're old enough and to apply age-based settings, such as teen NEWS ratings and 16+ business features.

4. Children under 13

Cognation is not for children under 13. If we learn an account belongs to someone under 13:

  • we close the account and delete its data
  • we keep only a one-way, keyed fingerprint of the email address. It can't be turned back into the email, and it's used only to block that email from signing up again.

We act only on clear statements or credible reports, including the "This person may be under 13" report option, and never on appearance.

If you're a parent or guardian and think your child under 13 has an account, contact us using the path below.

5. How we use your info

  • to run, secure, and improve Cognation
  • to show your content to the people you choose
  • to review reports and keep the community safe
  • to apply content ratings and age settings

We don't use your data for engagement-ranked feeds.

6. Feeds

Feeds show posts in a way we explain to you, for example newest first. We don't secretly rank, boost, or bury posts.

7. Demo accounts

Demo seed accounts carry a visible Demo badge. They aren't real people, and we don't build profiles of you from your interactions with them beyond normal use of the service.

8. Who we share with

  • People you choose inside Cognation
  • Service providers that help us run Cognation, such as hosting and calling. They may use the data only for that work. [LIST OF PROCESSORS: TO BE ADDED.]
  • When the law requires it, or to protect someone's safety

We don't sell your personal information. [CONFIRM WORDING WITH COUNSEL.]

9. Personal and Professional are separate

We keep your Personal and Professional networks separate and don't automatically link them.

10. How long we keep things

We keep data while your account is open and for a limited time after that, for backups, safety, and legal needs. [RETENTION PERIODS: TO BE SET.]

11. Your choices and rights

You can ask to:

  • see the data we have about you
  • correct it
  • delete it or your account
  • ask questions about how we use it

Send privacy requests to: [PRIVACY CONTACT PATH: PLACEHOLDER. NO LIVE ADDRESS YET]

12. Security

We use reasonable safeguards to protect your data. No system is perfect, so please use a strong, unique password.

13. Changes

If we change this policy in a meaningful way, we'll tell you in the app before the change takes effect.

--- *Flags for counsel: children's privacy and age-assurance rules, the email-fingerprint design (keyed hash and key handling), state privacy rights and the "sale" wording, call-data retention, the processor list, international users.*