Alif

Alif Privacy Policy

Effective 23 September 2026

This Privacy Policy explains how Deen Studios L.L.C-FZ processes information when a parent or child uses Alif, an educational app designed to help children learn Arabic letters and Quranic foundations. Alif is designed to minimise data collection and does not require a child account or a child’s name.

A parent or guardian should review this policy and supervise a child’s use of Alif.

1 Who we are

Alif is provided by Deen Studios L.L.C-FZ (we, us or our).

Registered address: Meydan Grandstand, 6th Floor, Meydan Road, Nad Al Sheba, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Privacy contact: [email protected]

2 Who Alif is for

Alif is designed primarily for children aged 4 to 8 and is intended to be set up and supervised by a parent or guardian. During onboarding, the adult can indicate whether Alif will be used with a child or is being previewed by an adult. If used with a child, the adult may select a broad age band. Alif does not ask for the child’s name or exact date of birth.

3 Information we process

Information sent to our analytics service

We use limited, pseudonymous analytics to understand whether Alif works reliably and whether children can progress through its learning activities. Depending on how the app is used, this may include:

a randomly generated installation identifier and session identifier;
platform, app version, over-the-air build version and app language;
whether the app is being used with a child or previewed by an adult;
a broad child age band selected by the parent: 4–5, 6–7 or 8+;
session starts, session ends and foreground session duration;
onboarding completion and duration;
levels started or completed, learning progress, activity type, response attempts, accuracy, time spent and audio replay taps;
milestones, settings changes and mosque or garden progress interactions; and
microphone permission status and limited Speak diagnostics, such as whether speech input was detected, failed or bypassed. These diagnostics do not contain the child’s voice or an assessment of pronunciation.

The installation identifier is not an advertising identifier and is not intended to identify the child or parent directly. It may be reset from Alif Settings. Reinstalling the app may also create a new identifier.

Information that remains on the device

Microphone audio used for the Speak activity is processed for the activity and is not uploaded to our servers or retained by us.
A name chosen for the in-app mosque remains on the device and is not included in analytics.
Local progress and preferences are stored on the device as needed to operate the app.

Optional parent communications

Alif may invite a parent to contact us, provide feedback or request updates. If the parent chooses to do so, we may receive the parent’s email address and the content of the message. This is optional and is kept separate from the child’s learning activity.

Information we do not seek

Alif does not require a user account and does not seek the child’s name, exact date of birth, postal address, precise location, contacts, photos or advertising identifier. Alif does not use behavioural advertising or sell personal information.

4 How we use information

provide and maintain Alif and preserve learning progress;
understand onboarding, engagement, retention and learning-flow performance;
identify crashes, errors, confusing activities and technical failures;
improve accessibility, age suitability and educational design;
protect the security and integrity of the service; and
respond to optional parent communications.

We do not use children’s information for targeted advertising, profiling for commercial purposes or unrelated marketing.

5 Legal basis

Where data-protection law requires a legal basis, we process limited app analytics as necessary for our legitimate interests in operating, securing and improving Alif, provided those interests do not override the rights and best interests of the child. We will rely on consent where local law requires it. Optional parent communications are processed to respond to the parent’s request and, where applicable, with the parent’s consent.

We may use carefully selected service providers to host Alif’s backend and analytics data, monitor reliability or support communications. They may process information only on our instructions and for the purposes described in this policy. We do not sell personal information or share it for cross-context behavioural advertising.

Hetzner Online hosts Alif’s analytics servers and database in Helsinki, Finland.
Cloudflare supports the security, delivery and operation of Alif’s online services.
Google Apps Script and Google Sheets receive and store optional parent feedback and email opt-ins. The feedback sheet is held in a Deen Studios work account and access is limited to authorised team members who need it for their work.
Expo provides over-the-air app updates. When Alif checks for an update, Expo may receive technical request information such as the IP address, platform and app runtime version.

We may disclose information where required by law, to protect the rights or safety of users, or as part of a corporate transaction subject to appropriate safeguards.

7 Retention

We retain pseudonymous analytics data and parent feedback for up to 24 months, after which it is deleted or aggregated so that it no longer identifies an installation or person. Parent email opt-ins are retained until the parent unsubscribes, withdraws consent or makes a valid deletion request. Backup copies are removed through our normal backup-rotation process.

Information waiting to be sent from the device is limited to a queue of up to 300 analytics events and is removed after the server accepts it. App information stored locally is normally removed when Alif is uninstalled. A parent can also reset the analytics identifier in Settings, which clears events still waiting on the device.

8 International transfers

Alif’s analytics servers and database are hosted by Hetzner in Helsinki, Finland. Other providers, including Cloudflare, Google and Expo, may process technical or parent-submitted information in other countries. Where required, we use appropriate safeguards for international transfers of personal information.

9 Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures designed to protect information against unauthorised access, loss, misuse or alteration. No system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

10 Children’s privacy

Alif is designed for young children, so we apply data minimisation and high privacy settings by default. The app does not require a child account, avoids precise age collection, keeps voice recordings on-device and limits analytics to information used to operate and improve the service. Parents may contact us if they believe information has been collected improperly or wish to exercise privacy rights on behalf of their child.

11 Your choices and rights

Reset the anonymous analytics identifier from Alif Settings.
Control microphone access through the device operating-system settings. Speak can be bypassed if the child cannot or does not wish to use it.
Contact us to request access, correction, deletion, restriction or objection where applicable under local law.
Withdraw consent where processing relies on consent. Withdrawal does not affect processing that occurred before withdrawal.

Because Alif does not create named accounts, we may need limited information to verify and locate a request, and in some cases we may not be able to connect analytics records to a particular person.

12 App store disclosures

Our answers in Google Play Data safety and Apple App Privacy are intended to match this policy. Those disclosures may use store-specific categories and terminology.

13 Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when Alif, our providers or legal requirements change. We will post the updated policy at the same public URL and update the date above. Where required, we will provide additional notice or obtain consent.

14 Contact us

Questions or privacy requests may be sent to [email protected].