Privacy Policy

Welcome to VectorForge LLC ("VectorForge," "we," "our," or "us"). This Privacy Policy applies to our AI-powered news aggregation services, which include mobile applications, desktop applications, web services, and related digital products (collectively, the "Platform" or "Services"). The Platform is provided and controlled by VectorForge LLC, with its registered address at 30 N Gould St, STE R, Sheridan, WY 82801, USA.

We are committed to protecting and respecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, share, and otherwise process the personal information of users and other individuals in connection with our AI-powered news aggregation services.

Please read this privacy policy carefully. If you do not agree with this policy, you should not use the Platform.

What Information We Collect

We may collect the following information about you:

Information You Provide

Your Account Information

Information you give us when you register on the Platform, including your username, password, email address, phone number (where applicable), date of birth (for age verification), profile information, and any photograph or profile image you choose to upload.

Reading Preferences and Settings

Information about your news preferences, topics of interest, reading history, bookmarked articles, saved content, notification settings, and other customization choices you make within our Platform.

User-Generated Content

Content you create or share on the Platform, including comments on articles, ratings, reviews, social sharing activities, and any other content you choose to make available through our Services.

Purchase Information

When you make purchases or payments on the Platform (such as premium subscriptions), we collect information about the purchase transaction, including payment card information, billing and contact information, and details about items purchased. We use secure third-party payment processors and do not store complete payment card information on our servers.

Communications

Information in correspondence you send to us, including when you contact us for customer support, feedback, or participate in surveys, research, promotions, or other marketing activities we conduct.

Automatically Collected Information

Usage Information

Information regarding your use of the Platform, including how you engage with our Services, such as articles you read, time spent reading, search queries, browsing patterns, content you interact with, news categories you prefer, and how you respond to our AI-generated recommendations and summaries.

Technical Information

Information about the device you use to access the Platform, including:

• IP address, user agent, and browser type
• Device identifiers, model, operating system, and app version
• Screen resolution, time zone settings, and language preferences
• Mobile carrier, network type, and connection quality
• Battery state, audio settings, and connected devices
• App usage patterns and performance metrics

Location Information

We collect information about your approximate location, including location information based on your SIM card and/or IP address. With your permission, we may also collect precise location data (such as GPS) to provide location-based news content and services.

Inferred Information

We infer your attributes and preferences, including your interests, news topics preferences, reading patterns, and demographic information for the purpose of personalizing content and improving our AI recommendation algorithms.

Information From Other Sources

We may receive information about you from other sources, including:

• Social Media Integration: If you choose to register or log in using third-party social media accounts (such as Google, Facebook, or Apple), we receive your public profile information, username, and other account details as permitted by those services
• Analytics Partners: Information from analytics providers about how you interact with our Services and advertisements, including engagement metrics and conversion data
• News Publishers: Publicly available information from news sources and publishers whose content we aggregate, to improve content categorization and recommendation accuracy
• Advertising Partners: Information about your activities on other websites and applications to help personalize advertisements and measure their effectiveness (where permitted by law)

Use of Your Information

We use the information we collect to provide, maintain, and improve our Applications and Services. Specifically, we may use your information for:

Service Provision

• Create, maintain, and secure your user accounts
• Provide core functionality and features of our Applications
• Process transactions, payments, and deliver purchased services
• Sync your data across devices and platforms
• Provide customer support and respond to your inquiries

Personalization and Improvement

• Customize content and recommendations based on your preferences
• Analyze usage patterns to improve our Applications and develop new features
• Conduct research and analytics to better understand user needs
• Optimize application performance and user experience

Communication and Marketing

• Send important updates about our Applications and Services
• Notify you about new features, products, or promotional offers (with your consent)
• Respond to your feedback and feature requests
• Conduct surveys and gather user feedback

Security and Legal Compliance

• Detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and security threats
• Enforce our Terms of Service and other agreements
• Comply with legal obligations and regulatory requirements
• Protect the rights, property, and safety of our users and third parties

Disclosure of Your Information

We may share information we have collected about you in certain situations. Your information may be disclosed as follows:

By Law or to Protect Rights

If we believe the release of information about you is necessary to respond to legal process, to investigate or remedy potential violations of our policies, or to protect the rights, property, and safety of others, we may share your information as permitted or required by any applicable law, rule, or regulation.

Business Transfers

We may share or transfer your information in connection with, or during negotiations of, any merger, sale of company assets, financing, or acquisition of all or a portion of our business to another company.

Service Providers and Partners

We may share your information with trusted third-party service providers who help us operate our Applications, including:

• Cloud hosting and data storage providers
• Payment processing and billing services
• Analytics and performance monitoring services
• Customer support and communication platforms
• Marketing and advertising partners (with your consent)
• Security and fraud prevention services

Cookies and Tracking Technologies

What Are Cookies

We and our service providers and business partners use cookies and other similar technologies (such as web beacons, pixel tags, SDKs, and local storage) ("Cookies") to automatically collect information, measure and analyze how you use the Platform, enhance your experience, improve our Services, and provide you with personalized content and advertisements.

Types of Cookies We Use

Essential Cookies

• Authentication and account management
• Security and fraud prevention
• Basic functionality and service provision
• Load balancing and system stability

Analytics and Performance Cookies

• Usage analytics to understand how users interact with our Platform
• Performance monitoring to identify and fix technical issues
• Crash reporting and error tracking to improve application stability
• A/B testing to optimize user interface and features
• Content engagement metrics and reading pattern analysis

Personalization Cookies

• AI-powered content recommendations and news personalization
• Language preferences and regional content customization
• User interface preferences and accessibility settings
• Reading history and bookmark synchronization across devices

Advertising and Marketing Cookies

We may use advertising identifiers and related technologies to:

• Deliver relevant advertisements and promotional content
• Measure advertising effectiveness and campaign performance
• Limit the number of times you see the same advertisement
• Provide interest-based advertising across platforms and devices
• Support marketing attribution and conversion tracking

Third-Party Cookies and SDKs

Our Platform may include third-party SDKs, cookies, and tracking technologies from:

• Analytics Providers: Google Analytics, Firebase, Mixpanel, and similar services
• Advertising Networks: Google Ads, Facebook Pixel, and other advertising partners
• Social Media Platforms: Integration with social sharing and login services
• Payment Processors: Stripe, PayPal, and other payment service providers
• Customer Support: Help desk and chat support services

Managing Your Cookie Preferences

You can control and manage cookies in several ways:

• Browser Settings: Most browsers allow you to view, manage, and delete cookies
• App Settings: Manage tracking preferences within our mobile applications
• Device Settings: Control advertising identifiers and limit ad tracking on iOS/Android
• Opt-Out Tools: Use industry opt-out mechanisms for behavioral advertising

Note: Disabling certain cookies may limit the functionality of our Platform, including personalized news recommendations and cross-device synchronization. Essential cookies cannot be disabled as they are necessary for the basic operation of our Services.

Third-Party Websites

Our Applications may integrate with or contain links to third-party services, websites, or applications. This includes social media platforms, cloud storage services, payment providers, and other external services. When you interact with these third parties, their own privacy policies apply. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of these external services and encourage you to review their privacy policies.

Security of Your Information

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information, including:

• Encryption of data in transit and at rest
• Secure authentication and access controls
• Regular security audits and vulnerability assessments
• Employee training on data protection and privacy practices
• Incident response procedures for potential security breaches

While we take reasonable steps to secure your personal information, please be aware that no security measures are perfect or impenetrable, and no method of data transmission can be guaranteed against interception or misuse. We encourage you to take steps to protect your account, such as choosing a strong password and keeping it confidential.

Policy for Children

Our Applications are not intended for use by children under the age of 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under age 13 without verification of parental consent, we will delete that information as quickly as possible.

Some of our Applications may have age-appropriate versions or parental controls. When such features are available, we will provide clear information about data collection practices for younger users. If you believe we might have information from or about a child under 13, please contact us at [email protected].

AI Data Processing and Training

How We Use Data for AI Training

We use aggregated and anonymized data to train and improve our AI algorithms for news recommendation, content personalization, and service enhancement. This includes:

• Reading Patterns: Anonymized data about article engagement, reading time, and content preferences
• Interaction Data: How users navigate, search, and interact with different types of content
• Feedback Signals: Aggregated ratings, bookmarks, and sharing behavior to improve recommendations
• Content Analysis: Processing of news articles to improve categorization and relevance scoring
• Performance Metrics: Technical data to optimize app performance and user experience

Data Protection in AI Training

We do NOT use personally identifiable information for AI training. All data used for training our AI models is:

• Anonymized and aggregated to remove personal identifiers
• Processed using privacy-preserving techniques such as differential privacy
• Subject to strict access controls and security measures
• Used only for improving our Services and not shared with third parties for their AI training

Opting Out of AI Training Data Collection

You can opt out of having your usage data included in our AI training datasets by adjusting your privacy settings in the application. Note that opting out may reduce the personalization and effectiveness of our content recommendations.

Your Rights and Choices

Data Subject Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Right to Access: Request copies of your personal information
• Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information
• Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal information
• Right to Restrict Processing: Request limitation on how we process your data
• Right to Data Portability: Request transfer of your data to another service
• Right to Object: Object to certain types of processing, including direct marketing
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on consent, withdraw it at any time

Privacy Controls and Settings

We provide various controls to manage your data and privacy preferences:

• Account Settings: Manage your profile, preferences, and notification settings
• Analytics Opt-out: Disable analytics and usage tracking through application settings
• Advertising Controls: Manage advertising preferences and opt out of personalized ads
• Location Services: Control location tracking through device-level permissions
• Data Sync: Choose whether to sync reading history and preferences across devices
• AI Training: Opt out of having your data used for AI model training

Do-Not-Track Signals

Some browsers and mobile operating systems include Do-Not-Track ("DNT") features. While there is no uniform standard for DNT signals, we honor privacy controls and preferences set within our applications and encourage you to review and adjust privacy settings on your devices.

Exercising Your Rights

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at [email protected]. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request. We will respond to your request within the timeframe required by applicable law.

Options Regarding Your Information

Account Management

You can manage your account and personal information through the following methods:

• Access your account settings within our Applications to update your information
• Delete your account through the application settings or by contacting us
• Export your data using our data portability features (where available)
• Contact our support team for assistance with account-related requests

Communication Preferences

You can control the communications you receive from us:

• Manage push notification settings in your device or application settings
• Unsubscribe from marketing emails using the links provided in those messages
• Update your communication preferences in your account settings
• Contact us directly to modify your communication preferences

Location and Device Settings

You can control location tracking and device permissions:

• Disable location services for our Applications in your device settings
• Manage app permissions for camera, microphone, and other device features
• Clear local application data and cache through your device settings
• Reset advertising identifiers in your device privacy settings

California Privacy Rights

California Civil Code Section 1798.83, also known as the "Shine The Light" law, permits our users who are California residents to request and obtain from us, once a year and free of charge, information about categories of personal information (if any) we disclosed to third parties for direct marketing purposes and the names and addresses of all third parties with which we shared personal information in the immediately preceding calendar year. If you are a California resident and would like to make such a request, please submit your request in writing to us using the contact information provided below.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time in order to reflect, for example, changes to our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page. You are advised to review this Privacy Policy periodically for any changes. Changes to this Privacy Policy are effective when they are posted on this page.

Regional Privacy Terms

If you are using our Services from specific regions, additional terms may apply. In the event of any conflict between these regional terms and the main Privacy Policy, the regional terms shall prevail for users in those jurisdictions.

European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, and Switzerland

If you are located in the EEA, UK, or Switzerland, we comply with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and other applicable data protection laws. Additional rights include:

• Legal Basis: We process your data based on consent, contract performance, legitimate interests, or legal obligations
• Data Transfers: International transfers are protected by appropriate safeguards
• Supervisory Authority: You have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority
• Data Protection Officer: You may contact our DPO at [email protected]

California, United States

California residents have additional rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA):

• Right to Know: Categories and specific pieces of personal information we collect
• Right to Delete: Request deletion of personal information
• Right to Opt-Out: Opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information
• Right to Non-Discrimination: Equal service and pricing regardless of privacy choices
• Sensitive Personal Information: Limit use and disclosure of sensitive personal information

Canada

For Canadian users, we comply with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and provincial privacy laws:

• Personal information is collected only for identified purposes
• Consent is required for collection, use, and disclosure
• You may withdraw consent at any time, subject to legal restrictions
• Complaints may be filed with the Privacy Commissioner of Canada

Other Jurisdictions

We endeavor to comply with applicable privacy and data protection laws in all jurisdictions where we operate. If your jurisdiction has specific privacy requirements not addressed here, please contact us for more information.

Contact Us

If you have questions or comments about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at: