Privacy Policy
How we handle information in Farsi Doost, in plain language.
Farsi Doost is a Persian (Farsi) learning app for iPhone, made by Work and Play LLC, a California company based in Woodland Hills, California ("we," "us," "our"). This policy explains, in plain language, what information we collect through the Farsi Doost app and the farsidoost.com website (together, "Farsi Doost"), why we collect it, and the choices you have.
Farsi Doost is for learners aged 13 and older, including teens and adults reconnecting with family through Persian, so we have kept this policy short, clear, and easy to read.
The short version
- We do not show ads, and we never will in the app.
- We do not sell your personal information, and we do not "share" it for targeted advertising.
- We do not use third-party advertising or tracking tools, and we do not track you across other companies' apps or websites.
- Voice recordings are used to give pronunciation feedback. They are never sold or used for ads.
- Farsi Doost is for people aged 13 and older. We don't create accounts for children under 13, and teens 13 to 17 use the app with a parent's or guardian's permission.
- You can delete your account inside the app at any time, or by emailing hello@farsidoost.com.
Information we collect
We only collect what we need to teach Farsi, save progress, and run the service.
Account information
When you create an account, we may collect a name or nickname, an email address, a sign-in identifier (for example, if you use Sign in with Apple), your age or age range, and your settings (such as whether Finglish transliteration is on). We also ask you to confirm that you are 13 or older. See "Age requirement and children's privacy" below.
Learning progress
We keep track of things like lessons and scenario packs completed, flashcard reviews, answers to exercises, pronunciation scores, streaks, XP, and your learning goals. This is how Farsi Doost remembers where you left off and decides what to review next.
Voice recordings
Speaking practice is at the heart of Farsi Doost. When you tap the microphone, the app records a short clip of you saying a word or phrase. Here is how that works:
- The app asks for microphone permission first. It only records while you are doing a speaking exercise, and it does not listen in the background. You can turn microphone access off anytime in iPhone Settings. Speaking exercises won't work without it, but the rest of the app will.
- To score your pronunciation, the clip may be sent securely to a speech-processing provider that works for us. The provider analyzes the clip and sends back a result.
- We keep the result, such as a score, a transcript of what was heard, and Doost's feedback, as part of your learning progress.
- We design Farsi Doost so that raw recordings are not kept after they are processed, unless a feature clearly tells you otherwise and asks first. Our speech provider may keep audio briefly under its own security and abuse-prevention rules, as set out in our agreement with it.
- We never sell voice recordings. We never use them for advertising or to identify who you are (voiceprints). We do not let our providers use them to train their own AI models, and we do not use them to train public AI models.
Purchase and subscription information
Doost Plus subscriptions are sold and billed by Apple. We never receive your credit card number. Apple, and our subscription-status provider, tell us things like which plan you have, whether you're in a free trial, renewal or expiration dates, refund status, a transaction ID, and your App Store country. We use this to unlock Doost Plus and to help if something goes wrong.
Device and diagnostic information
To keep the app working, we may collect basic technical information such as device model, iOS version, app version, language and region settings, crash reports, error logs, and performance data, along with an app-specific identifier. We use this to fix bugs and keep things running smoothly, not to build advertising profiles. We do not collect your precise location.
Messages you send us
If you email us, we receive your email address and whatever you include in your message.
The website
farsidoost.com is a simple informational site. It uses no cookies, no analytics, and no advertising or tracking tools, and its fonts are served from our own site. Our web host may keep standard server logs (such as IP address, browser type, and pages requested) to deliver and protect the site.
How we use information
We use information to:
- Create and manage accounts, including confirming that users meet our minimum age
- Deliver lessons, save progress, and sync it across your devices
- Score pronunciation and give feedback from Doost
- Schedule flashcard reviews and keep track of streaks and XP
- Unlock Doost Plus, run free trials, and restore purchases
- Send reminders or notifications you have turned on (you can turn them off in iPhone Settings)
- Answer support questions and handle privacy requests
- Find and fix bugs, keep Farsi Doost secure, and prevent fraud or misuse
- Improve our lessons and features, using information that is aggregated or de-identified wherever possible
- Meet our legal, tax, and accounting obligations
We do not use personal information for targeted advertising. We do not make automated decisions about you that have legal or similarly significant effects.
How information is stored and secured
Farsi Doost data is stored with reputable cloud providers, generally in the United States. We use reasonable safeguards to protect it, including encryption in transit, access controls, limiting staff access to people who need it, and choosing providers with strong security practices. No system is perfectly secure, so we can't promise that information will never be accessed without permission. If a data breach affects you, we will notify you as the law requires.
Who we share information with
We do not sell personal information. We share it only in these situations:
- Service providers that help us run Farsi Doost. They may use the information only to provide their service to us, under contracts that require them to protect it. The categories are:
- App Store payments and subscriptions: Apple
- Subscription status and entitlements: may include RevenueCat
- Speech recognition and pronunciation scoring: may include providers such as Microsoft Azure Speech, Google Cloud, or Apple speech services
- Lesson audio (text-to-speech): may include providers such as Google or Microsoft. These providers generate our lesson audio from our own scripts and do not receive learners' personal information.
- Hosting, database, and sign-in: may include providers such as Supabase, Google Firebase, Amazon Web Services, or Cloudflare
- Crash reporting and diagnostics: may include providers such as Sentry or Expo
- Email and customer support tools
- Legal reasons. We may share information if the law requires it, for example in response to a valid subpoena or court order, or when it's needed to protect the safety, rights, or property of our users, the public, or Work and Play LLC.
- Business changes. If Work and Play LLC is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, information may be transferred as part of that deal. It will stay protected by this policy or one that is at least as protective, and we will notify you.
- With your permission. We may share information in any other way you specifically agree to.
Age requirement and children's privacy
Farsi Doost is for ages 13 and up
Farsi Doost is not directed to children under 13. When you sign up, you must confirm that you are 13 or older. We don't create accounts for anyone who says they are under 13, and we don't 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 it promptly and close the account. If you are a parent or guardian and think a child under 13 has given us information, please email hello@farsidoost.com and we will take care of it.
Teens 13 to 17
Teens can use Farsi Doost with a parent's or guardian's permission. Teens get the same protections as everyone else: no ads, no selling or sharing for advertising, and no tracking. California residents under 18 can ask us to remove content they provided. Email hello@farsidoost.com.
Users outside the United States
Some countries, including EU member states under the GDPR, set a higher age (between 13 and 16, depending on the country) below which a parent's consent is needed before personal data can be processed. Where those rules apply, we will ask for that consent or will not offer Farsi Doost to users below that age.
How long we keep information
We keep personal information only as long as we need it:
- Account and learning progress: while your account is active. If you delete your account, we delete or de-identify this information, normally within 30 days, and remove it from backups on their regular schedule.
- Raw voice recordings: not kept after the speaking exercise is processed. Scores, transcripts, and feedback are kept with your progress.
- Purchase and transaction records: as long as needed for tax, accounting, and legal requirements.
- Support emails: generally up to two years after your question is resolved.
- Diagnostics and crash logs: for a limited time, usually no more than 90 days.
We may keep limited records longer when the law requires it, such as a record that a deletion request was completed.
Deleting your account
You can delete your account from inside the app under Settings → Account → Delete account, or by emailing hello@farsidoost.com.
Important: deleting your account or the app does not cancel a Doost Plus subscription. Apple manages billing, so cancel in iPhone Settings → [your name] → Subscriptions → Farsi Doost.
Your rights and choices
Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:
- Know what personal information we have about you and get a copy
- Correct information that is wrong
- Delete your information
- Get your information in a portable format
- Withdraw consent you previously gave, such as microphone access or notifications
- Object to or limit certain uses
- Not be treated differently for using any of these rights
To make a request, email hello@farsidoost.com. We may need to confirm your identity first. You can also have an authorized agent make a request for you, with your written permission. We will respond within the time the law requires, normally within 45 days.
California residents
Work and Play LLC is a California company, and we offer these protections to California residents under the California Consumer Privacy Act as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CCPA/CPRA):
- What we collect: identifiers (such as name or nickname, email, and account ID), commercial information (subscription status), internet or device activity (app usage and diagnostics), audio (voice clips for pronunciation feedback), and education-related information (learning progress). The sources, purposes, and recipients are described above.
- No selling or sharing: we do not sell personal information or "share" it for cross-context behavioral advertising, including for anyone under 16.
- Sensitive information: we do not use or disclose sensitive personal information for any purpose that would require offering a right to limit it.
- Your rights: to know, delete, correct, and not be discriminated against, as listed above.
- Shine the Light: we do not disclose personal information to third parties for their own direct marketing.
- Do Not Track and Global Privacy Control: because we don't track you across sites or apps, there's nothing for these signals to turn off. We treat a Global Privacy Control signal as a valid opt-out request where the law requires it.
Users in other U.S. states
Residents of other states with consumer privacy laws may have similar rights. Email hello@farsidoost.com and we will honor them as required. If we deny a request, you can appeal by replying to our decision.
International users
Farsi Doost is run from the United States, and your information is processed and stored there. U.S. data protection laws may differ from those where you live. If you are in the EU, the UK, or another region with similar laws, we process your information to provide the service you asked for (contract), to keep it secure and improve it (legitimate interests), with your consent (such as microphone access), and to meet legal obligations. Where required, we use appropriate safeguards, such as standard contractual clauses, for international transfers. You may also have the right to complain to your local data protection authority.
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy, we will post the new version here and update the effective date. If the changes are significant, we will tell you in the app or by email before they take effect. Where the law requires it, we will ask for your consent again.
Contact us
Questions, requests, or concerns about privacy:
Work and Play LLC
Woodland Hills, California, USA
Email: hello@farsidoost.com
Please put "Privacy" in the subject line so we can find your message quickly.