Book Tribe Pty Ltd ("Book Tribe", "we", "us", "our") is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information with care, transparency, and respect. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and how you can exercise your rights.
This policy applies to the Book Tribe mobile application, website (booktribe.com.au), and all related services (together, "the Platform"). By using the Platform, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.
Address: 170 Grasstree Drive, Taloumbi NSW 2463, Australia
Privacy contact: privacy@booktribe.com.au
This Privacy Policy applies to all users of the Book Tribe Platform, including:
- Users under 13 — with verifiable parental or guardian consent. We collect only the minimum information necessary from users under 13 and comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and equivalent Australian laws.
- Users aged 13 to 17 — with access to reading, shelf, and community features. Romantic matching and connection features are not available to users under 18.
- Users aged 18 and over — with full access to all Platform features.
- Visitors to booktribe.com.au who have not registered an account.
If you are under 13, your parent or guardian must read and agree to this Privacy Policy before you use Book Tribe. Parents and guardians may contact us at privacy@booktribe.com.au at any time to review, update, or request deletion of their child's personal information.
2.1 Information You Provide Directly
- Account information: full name, email address, date of birth, password (encrypted — we cannot read it), and profile photo (optional)
- Profile information: profile biography, reading preferences, favourite genres and authors
- Reading and bookshelf data: books added to your shelf including titles, authors, ISBNs, reading status, custom shelves, and reading lists
- Messages: content of messages sent between users through in-app messaging
- Support communications: emails and messages you send to us
- Indie Author Shoutout submissions: name, author name, genre, book description, buy link, social media handles, author photo, and book cover image submitted via the website form
2.2 Information Collected Automatically
- Device type, operating system, and app version
- IP address, access times, and pages or features accessed
- Reading behaviour within the app — books viewed, added, and interacted with
- Match interactions — profiles viewed, matches accepted or declined (18+ users only)
- Crash reports and error logs
- Session duration and frequency of use
2.3 Location Information
Book Tribe does not collect location data of any kind. No precise or approximate location information is gathered from your device at any point during your use of the Platform.
2.4 Payment Information
If you subscribe to a paid plan, payment is processed by our third-party payment provider. We do not store your full credit card number, CVV, or bank account details. We retain only subscription status, transaction history, and your payment provider customer reference ID.
2.5 Information from Third-Party Services
- Google Books API: book metadata (titles, authors, descriptions, cover images, ISBNs) when you search for or add books
- Supabase: our database and backend infrastructure provider. All Platform data including user accounts, bookshelf data, and messages is stored and managed through Supabase. Supabase operates under strict data processing agreements and does not use your data for any purpose beyond providing database services to Book Tribe.
- Groq AI API: powers AI features within the Platform including Reading Personality generation. Only the data necessary to generate your Reading Personality (your bookshelf data) is passed to Groq for processing. No personal identifying information is stored by Groq beyond the immediate processing request.
- Brevo: email address and subscription status when you sign up for our newsletter
3.1 Providing the Platform
- Creating and managing your account
- Displaying your personal digital bookshelf
- Generating your Reading Personality based on your shelf data
- Matching you with other readers based on reading interests and personality (18+ users only for romantic matching)
- Enabling messaging between connected users
- Processing subscription payments and managing your subscription
- Providing customer support
3.2 Improving the Platform
- Analysing usage patterns to improve features and performance
- Testing and developing new features
- Diagnosing and fixing technical issues
- Producing anonymised, aggregated insights about reading trends — no individual user data is identifiable in these reports
3.3 Communications
- Sending service-related emails (account confirmation, password reset, subscription receipts)
- Sending marketing communications if you have opted in — including app updates and reading content
- Responding to your support requests and enquiries
You may opt out of marketing communications at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in any email or updating your notification preferences in the app.
3.4 Safety and Moderation
- Monitoring for misuse and violations of our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines
- Investigating reports of inappropriate content or behaviour
- Enforcing age-based access restrictions — particularly protecting users under 18 from adult matching and connection features
- Reporting illegal content or conduct to relevant authorities where required by law
3.5 Legal Compliance
- Complying with applicable laws, regulations, and legal processes
- Responding to lawful requests from government authorities
- Protecting our legal rights and those of our users
If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or another jurisdiction where the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) or equivalent legislation applies, we process your personal data on the following legal bases:
| Processing activity | Legal basis | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Account creation and management | Contract (Art. 6(1)(b)) | Necessary to provide the services you signed up for |
| Reading Personality and shelf features | Contract (Art. 6(1)(b)) | Core service features you have requested |
| Reader matching (18+ users) | Contract (Art. 6(1)(b)) | Core service feature for adult users |
| Payment processing | Contract (Art. 6(1)(b)) | Required to fulfil subscription agreement |
| Marketing communications | Consent (Art. 6(1)(a)) | You may withdraw consent at any time |
| Platform improvement and analytics | Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f)) | To improve and protect the Platform — we have assessed that our interests do not override your rights |
| Safety monitoring and moderation | Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f)) | To protect users, particularly minors, from harm |
| Legal compliance and reporting | Legal obligation (Art. 6(1)(c)) | Where we are required to process data by law |
| Data from users under 16 (EEA) | Parental consent (Art. 8) | Verifiable parental consent required for users under 16 in the EEA |
We do not sell your personal information to third parties. We do not use your personal information for advertising profiling or targeted advertising.
5.1 With Other Users
Certain profile information is visible to other users by design — your display name, profile photo, Reading Personality, public bookshelf, and reading preferences. Messages you send to connected users are visible to those users. Users under 18 are not visible to adult users in matching or discovery features.
5.2 With Service Providers
We share information with trusted third-party service providers who assist us in operating the Platform. All providers are required to protect your information under data processing agreements and may only process your data for the specific purpose for which it was shared:
| Provider | Purpose | Data shared | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| VentraIP | Web and app hosting | All Platform data stored on provider servers | Australia (Sydney & Melbourne) |
| Stripe | Payment processing | Email address, subscription details, transaction data | United States (SCCs apply) |
| Brevo (Sendinblue) | Email marketing and transactional emails | Email address, name, subscription status | European Union (GDPR compliant) |
| Google (Books API) | Book data and metadata | Search queries for books only — no personal account data | United States (SCCs apply) |
| Google Analytics | Website analytics | Anonymised usage data, device information, IP address | United States (SCCs apply) |
| Supabase | Database and backend infrastructure | All Platform data — user accounts, bookshelf data, messages, app content | United States (SCCs apply) |
| Groq AI API | AI-powered Reading Personality generation | Bookshelf data only — processed to generate Reading Personality, not stored beyond the immediate request | United States (SCCs apply) |
| Apple / Google Play | App distribution and in-app purchases | Purchase data as required by platform billing systems | United States (SCCs apply) |
SCCs = Standard Contractual Clauses — the GDPR-approved mechanism for transferring data outside the EEA.
5.3 International Data Transfers
Our primary servers are located in Australia (Sydney and Melbourne). Some of our service providers are located in the United States and European Union. Where we transfer personal data outside Australia or the EEA, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place, including Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission, and compliance with Australian Privacy Principle 8 on cross-border disclosure.
5.4 Legal Disclosure
We may disclose your personal information if required to do so by law, court order, or lawful government request, or where we reasonably believe disclosure is necessary to protect the rights, property, or safety of Book Tribe, our users, or the public. We will report to the Australian Federal Police, the eSafety Commissioner, and relevant international authorities any content or conduct involving the exploitation or sexualisation of minors.
5.5 Business Transfers
If Book Tribe Pty Ltd is involved in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction. We will notify you prior to any such transfer and ensure equivalent privacy protections apply.
We take the privacy of children under 13 seriously and comply with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and equivalent Australian laws.
- We require verifiable parental or guardian consent before a child under 13 can create a Book Tribe account
- We collect only the minimum personal information necessary to provide the reading and shelf features to users under 13
- We do not use personal information of users under 13 for advertising, commercial profiling, or marketing purposes
- We do not share personal information of users under 13 with third parties except as required to operate the service or as required by law
- Users under 13 cannot access messaging, matching, or connection features
- Parents and guardians may contact us at privacy@booktribe.com.au at any time to review, correct, or request deletion of their child's personal information
If we discover that we have collected personal information from a child under 13 without verifiable parental consent, we will delete that information promptly.
7.1 Where Your Data is Stored
Your personal information is stored on secure servers operated by VentraIP, located in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia. This means your data is stored on Australian soil and is subject to Australian privacy law. Some data is also processed by our third-party service providers as described in Section 5 — where this occurs outside Australia, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.
7.2 Security Measures
- Encryption of data in transit using TLS/SSL
- Encryption of passwords using industry-standard hashing — we cannot read your password
- Access controls limiting which staff and systems can access personal data
- Regular security assessments
- Secure deletion of data when no longer required
No method of electronic transmission or storage is 100% secure. If you become aware of any security issue relating to your account, please contact us immediately at privacy@booktribe.com.au.
7.3 Data Breach Notification
In the event of a data breach that is likely to result in serious harm to any individual, we will notify affected users and the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) as required under the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme. For users in the EEA or UK, we will notify the relevant supervisory authority within 72 hours of becoming aware of a breach as required under GDPR Article 33, and notify affected individuals without undue delay where the breach is likely to result in a high risk to their rights and freedoms.
7.4 Data Retention
| Data type | Retention period |
|---|---|
| Account and profile information | Retained for the life of your account. Deleted within 30 days of account deletion request. |
| Bookshelf and reading data | Retained for the life of your account. Deleted within 30 days of account deletion request. |
| Messages | Retained for the life of your account. Deleted within 30 days of account deletion request. |
| Payment records | Retained for 7 years as required by Australian tax law, even after account deletion. |
| Usage logs and analytics | Anonymised after 90 days. Anonymised data may be retained for aggregate analytics. |
| Data of users under 13 | Deleted promptly upon request from parent or guardian, or upon discovery that parental consent was not obtained. |
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at privacy@booktribe.com.au. We will respond within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.
Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you. Under GDPR this is known as a Subject Access Request.
Request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information. You can update most details directly in the app settings.
Request deletion of your personal information ("right to be forgotten" under GDPR). Delete your account through app settings or contact us.
Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format (GDPR Article 20). Contact us at privacy@booktribe.com.au.
Request that we restrict processing of your data in certain circumstances (GDPR Article 18).
Object to processing based on legitimate interests or for direct marketing purposes (GDPR Article 21).
Withdraw consent for marketing communications at any time via the unsubscribe link or app notification settings.
Lodge a complaint with the OAIC at oaic.gov.au (Australia) or your local data protection authority (EEA/UK).
The Book Tribe website (booktribe.com.au) uses cookies and similar tracking technologies. For full details of the cookies we use and how to manage your preferences, please read our Cookie Policy.
The Book Tribe mobile application does not use browser cookies but uses equivalent device-level technologies including local storage and analytics SDKs to understand app usage. You can reset your device's advertising identifier through your device settings.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes we will update the 'Last updated' date, notify you by email, and display a prominent notice within the Platform. For changes that significantly affect your rights, we will provide at least 30 days notice. Your continued use of the Platform after any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.
For any privacy-related questions, requests, or complaints, please contact us:
| Data controller | Book Tribe Pty Ltd |
| ABN | 32 325 147 355 |
| Address | 170 Grasstree Drive, Taloumbi NSW 2463, Australia |
| Privacy enquiries | privacy@booktribe.com.au |
| General contact | hello@booktribe.com.au |
| Website | booktribe.com.au |
| Response time | We aim to respond to all privacy enquiries within 30 days |
| Australian supervisory authority | Office of the Australian Information Commissioner — oaic.gov.au |