Privacy Policy

The short version

Checkmate Mind is an educational platform built for high school students aged 13 and older. We collect the minimum data needed to help you learn: your username, password (stored securely as a hash, never as plain text), your quiz history, your notes, and anything you choose to share in stories or decisions.

We don't sell your data. We don't run ads. We don't share your personal information with third parties for marketing. We use AI (Anthropic's Claude) to generate quizzes and tutoring responses; that processing happens through Anthropic's API and is governed by their privacy practices.

You can request deletion of your account and your data at any time by emailing us at hello@checkmatemind.com.

Who we are

Checkmate Mind is operated by Sibi Mathivanan, based in San Diego, California. Iniya Mathivanan is co-founder. Checkmate Mind LLC is in the process of formal incorporation in California; until that completes, the platform is operated as a personal project with the same care and protections.

Contact: hello@checkmatemind.com

Children and parental consent

A student aged 13 or older may create their own account. A student under 13 may only have an account created for them by a parent or legal guardian, who gives consent as part of signing up.

When a parent or guardian creates an account for a child under 13, we record their full name, the date and time they gave consent, and the IP address it came from, so the consent can be evidenced later. We also require a parent or guardian email address for that account so we can reach you about it.

For accounts belonging to a child under 13 we collect only what the service needs to work: the information listed below, and nothing more. We do not require a child to disclose more than is reasonably necessary in order to take part.

As a parent or guardian, you may at any time:

• Review the personal information we hold about your child. Signed in to the account, use Download my data, or email us.
• Ask us to delete it and close the account, from the same place or by email.
• Refuse to permit further collection or use of your child's information, by asking us to close the account.

Students between 13 and 17 are still minors in many jurisdictions and we take the same care with their information.

If we learn that we have collected personal information from a child under 13 without a parent or guardian's consent, we will delete it.

What we collect

When you create an account, we collect:

• Your chosen username
• A cryptographic hash of your password (we cannot recover your actual password, so even we don't see it)
• An optional email address (only used for password reset)
• Whether the student is 13 or older, or under 13
• For a student under 13: the parent or guardian's name, their email address, and the date, time and IP address of their consent
• Acceptance of this Privacy Policy and our Terms of Service

As you use the platform, we collect:

• Profile information you provide: grade level, goals, interests, schedule, bio (all optional)
• Quizzes you take and your answers
• Topics where you struggle (to help us suggest better practice)
• Notes you upload for AI tutoring
• Stories you choose to share
• Decisions you ask the AI to simulate (kept private to your account)
• Chess games you save
• Your study plans and cheatsheets

We also collect routine technical data:

• Login times
• Pages you visit on the site
• Server logs (IP address, browser type) for debugging and security

How we use your data

• To run the platform and personalize your learning experience
• To generate AI-powered quizzes, tutoring responses, and decision simulations
• To show you progress reports and dashboards
• To prevent abuse and keep the platform secure
• To communicate with you about your account (rare; we don't send marketing emails)

Who sees your data

• You. You can see all your own data on your dashboard.
• Site administrators. A small number of founders (currently Iniya and Sibi Mathivanan) have technical access to all data for support and platform management. They do not browse data without reason.
• Anthropic. Your prompts and AI tutoring conversations are sent to Anthropic's Claude API for processing. Anthropic's privacy practices are at anthropic.com/privacy.
• Public viewers (only if you choose): stories you publish are visible to anyone visiting the stories page. The leaderboard shows your username and quiz stats. Other parts of your data are private.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not share it with advertisers. We do not share it with data brokers. If we ever needed to share data for legal reasons (e.g., a court order), we would do so only as required by law.

How long we keep your data

We keep your account and data as long as you have an active account. If you ask us to delete your account, we will delete your personal data within 30 days. Some data may persist briefly in backups; backups roll over within 7 days on our hosting platform.

Anonymized aggregate data (e.g., "students struggle most with AP Bio Unit 4") may be retained for platform improvement.

Your rights

You can:

• See all data we have about you (request via email)
• Correct inaccurate data (most fields you can update yourself in your profile)
• Delete your account and your data
• Export your data in a portable format (request via email)
• Withdraw consent for AI processing (this means you can't use the AI features, but you can still use the chess and basic quiz features)

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@checkmatemind.com. We will respond within 30 days.

For California residents

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA), you have additional rights:

• The right to know what personal information we have about you
• The right to delete your personal information
• The right to correct inaccurate information
• The right to opt out of the sale or sharing of your information (we do not sell or share, but the right exists)
• The right to non-discrimination for exercising these rights

To exercise these rights, email us at the address above. We do not sell personal information. We do not use sensitive personal information for purposes other than providing the service.

Security

We take security seriously. Passwords are hashed with industry- standard algorithms. The site uses HTTPS encryption. Database access is restricted to authorized personnel and protected by multi-factor authentication. We continue to improve our security practices over time.

No system is perfectly secure. If you believe your account has been compromised, contact us immediately at the email above.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will notify users via the platform and ask for re-acceptance of the new policy. The current version and date are at the top of this page.

Contact us

Questions about this policy or about your data?
Email: hello@checkmatemind.com
Mail: 13120 Lumen Way, San Diego, CA 92130