This policy explains what information Tutornet collects when you use our app and website, why, who we share it with, and the choices you have. Tutornet is operated by Youssef Hamdan in Lebanon (“Tutornet”, “we”, “us”). If you have questions, email admin@tutornet.app.
The short version
- We collect what you give us (profile, courses, messages, notes, files) and what the app needs to work (location if you allow it, device and error data).
- We don’t sell your data and don’t use it for ads.
- Other users see your profile and what you share with them. Tutors don’t see a student’s name or photo until they unlock it.
- We use trusted services to run the app — for hosting, video calls, payments, email, maps, ID checks and AI features — and only share what each needs.
- You can see, correct, download or delete your data. Delete your account from Settings at any time.
1. Information we collect
We collect information you give us, information created when you use Tutornet, and limited technical information from your device.
| Category | What it includes |
|---|---|
| Account | Name, email, password (stored encrypted by our sign-in system), role (student or tutor), and sign-in details from Google or Apple if you use them (your name and email only — we don’t access Gmail, Drive, contacts or other content). |
| Age and consent | Whether you are 18+ or 13–17, a parent or guardian’s permission for 13–17 year-olds, and which version of our Terms you accepted and when. |
| Profile | Photo, school or university, campus, major, grade level, bio, courses and subjects, rates, availability, session format, intro video link, and reviews you receive. |
| Location | If you allow it, your device location to show nearby tutors and distances, the area name we derive from it, the campus you select, and meeting places you choose. You can turn location off in your phone settings. |
| Sessions | Booking requests, dates and times, subject, format, meeting place, price, group participants, attendance, cancellations and reviews. |
| Messages and calls | Chat messages, photos, files and voice messages; messages in a live session; and technical call quality data. Live video, audio and screen sharing pass through our video provider in real time — Tutornet does not record sessions. |
| Study tools | Notes, drawings and shared notes (and who can access them), your class schedule, exams and reminders, timetable photos you import, and the shared board used in online sessions. |
| Folios | Documents tutors upload and the page images we create from them, sales, reviews, and the ownership statement the tutor accepts. |
| Payments and payouts | Purchases of Keys and Folios (product, amount, status, transaction ID) and, for tutors, the Whish phone number used for payouts. Card and wallet details are handled by Apple, Google or Whish — we never see them. |
| Verification (tutors) | If you verify with Persona: the result and inquiry ID (Persona keeps the ID scan and selfie, not us). If you upload proof of enrollment instead: that image, stored privately. |
| Friends and invites | Friend codes, friend requests and connections, and invite or referral codes. |
| Safety and support | Reports you make or that are made about you, blocks, support requests and replies, and moderation actions taken on your account. |
| Device and diagnostics | Push notification token, device model, operating system, app version, “last seen” time used to show when you’re online, and error and crash reports (including which screen you were on). |
We don’t ask for and don’t want sensitive information (such as health, religion or political views). Please don’t put it in your profile, messages or notes.
2. How we use your information
- To run Tutornet: create your account, show profiles, match students with tutors, handle bookings, messages, online sessions, notes and Folios.
- To keep people safe: verify tutors, review reports, prevent fraud, spam and abuse, enforce our Terms and Guidelines, and protect minors.
- To process payments: credit Keys and Folio purchases, calculate tutor earnings and send payouts.
- To communicate with you: send booking notifications, security and account emails, support replies and important changes. We only send marketing if you agree, and you can unsubscribe any time.
- To improve the app: find and fix errors and crashes, and understand which features are used.
- To meet legal obligations: keep required records and respond to lawful requests.
We process your information because it is necessary to provide the service you asked for, because you consented (for example to location or notifications), to meet legal obligations, or for our legitimate interest in keeping Tutornet safe and working. We do not sell your information and do not use it for advertising.
3. What other users can see
- Tutor profiles are public in the app: name, photo, university, courses, rates, bio, reviews, verified badge, general area and distance.
- Student details are private by default. A tutor sees a student’s name, photo and university only after unlocking that student with a Key, or after the student shares them in a chat or session.
- People you message, book with, join a session with, or share a note with see what you send them, your name and photo.
- Reviews you write are shown on the tutor’s profile.
- Other users may see when you were last active — for example a green dot when you’re online — and your friends can see that you’re connected.
- Anyone in an online session can see and hear what you share in it. Recording or screenshots by others is against our Guidelines, but we can’t technically prevent it.
5. AI features
When you import a timetable photo, the image is sent to OpenAI to read your courses and times. Course search sends the course name you type to OpenAI to find matching courses. We don’t send your name, messages or notes. Under OpenAI’s business terms, data sent through its API isn’t used to train its models. You can always enter your courses by hand instead.
6. Children and teens
Tutornet is not for children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect their information. Students aged 13–17 may use Tutornet only with the permission of a parent or legal guardian, who agrees to these policies for them. Tutors must be 18 or older.
For users under 18 we keep the student’s details hidden from tutors by default and recommend that sessions take place online or in public places, with the parent or guardian aware. A parent or guardian can ask us to see, correct or delete their child’s information by emailing admin@tutornet.app. If you believe a child under 13 has an account, tell us and we’ll delete it.
7. Where your data is stored
Our database and files are stored on servers we control, hosted by a cloud provider, and some providers above process data in other countries (including the European Union and the United States). When data leaves Lebanon we rely on providers that apply appropriate security and contractual safeguards.
8. How long we keep it
| Information | How long |
|---|---|
| Account, profile, courses, schedule and notes | Until you delete them or your account |
| Messages and shared notes | Until deleted; copies in other people’s conversations and shared notes stay with them |
| Verification proof uploads | Until you delete your account (Persona keeps its own records under its policy) |
| Purchases, payouts and tax records | As long as accounting and tax laws require, even after account deletion |
| Records of agreements you accepted (Terms, guardian permission, Folio ownership statements) | For as long as needed to establish or defend legal claims, even after account deletion |
| Reports, blocks and moderation records | As long as needed to keep people safe and handle disputes |
| Error reports and support requests | As long as needed to fix problems and help you |
Backups are overwritten on a rolling basis, so deleted data can take a short time to disappear from them.
9. Your rights and choices
Depending on where you live (including under Lebanon’s Law No. 81 of 2018 on electronic transactions and personal data), you can:
- see the information we hold about you and get a copy;
- correct inaccurate information (most of it you can edit in the app);
- delete your account and information (Profile → Settings → Delete account, or see how to delete your account);
- object to or restrict some uses, and withdraw consent (for example turn off location or notifications in your phone settings);
- complain to a data protection authority.
To make a request, email admin@tutornet.app from the address on your account. We reply within 30 days and may need to confirm it’s you.
10. Security
We use encryption in transit, access controls, private storage for sensitive files, and limit who on our team can access data. Admin actions are logged. No system is perfectly secure, so please use a strong password and tell us right away if you think your account was accessed without permission.
12. Changes to this policy
We’ll update this page when our practices change and change the date at the top. If a change is significant, we’ll tell you in the app or by email before it takes effect.
13. Contact
Tutornet, operated by Youssef Hamdan, Lebanon. Email admin@tutornet.app or use Settings → Customer Support in the app.