Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

The Invent application ("we," "us," "our," or "Company") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our website and application.

Please read this Privacy Policy carefully. If you do not agree with our policies and practices, please do not use our services.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Personal Information You Provide

We collect information you provide directly to us, including:

• Account Registration: Username, password, full name, email address, contact information
• Profile Information: Profile picture, optional text, social media links (Facebook, Twitter), URL
• Contact Forms: Name, email address, subject, and message content when you contact us
• Communication: Any correspondence, feedback, or support requests you submit

2.2 Automatically Collected Information

When you use our application, we automatically collect:

• IP Address: For security and session management purposes
• Session Data: Information about your browsing session and activities
• Cookies and Similar Technologies: Session cookies and CSRF tokens for security and functionality
• Device Information: Browser type, operating system, and other technical details

2.3 Information from Third Parties

We may receive information about you from third parties, such as project collaborators or administrators who may provide information about you with your consent.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• Account Management: To create, manage, and maintain your account
• Service Delivery: To provide, maintain, and improve our application and services
• Communication: To respond to inquiries, send notifications, and provide customer support
• Security: To prevent fraud, ensure security, and comply with legal obligations
• User Experience: To personalize your experience and display relevant content
• Compliance: To comply with applicable laws, regulations, and contractual obligations
• Project Functionality: To manage projects, groups, and collaborations as requested

4. Cookies and Tracking Technologies

4.1 Types of Cookies We Use

• Session Cookies: These are necessary to keep you logged in (expires after 120 minutes of inactivity)
• Security Cookies: CSRF tokens to protect against cross-site request forgery attacks

4.2 Cookie Consent

Our cookies are strictly necessary for the operation and security of our application. By using our application, you consent to the use of these cookies. You can disable cookies in your browser settings, but this may limit your ability to use certain features.

5. Data Sharing and Disclosure

5.1 Third-Party Service Providers

We may share your information with third-party service providers who perform services on our behalf, including:

• Email Service Provider: For sending notifications and communications (tests.invent.york.citycollege.eu)
• Database Hosting: For secure data storage and management

5.2 Legal Obligations

We may disclose your information if required by law or when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to comply with legal obligations, enforce our terms of service, or protect the rights, property, and safety of our users or the public.

5.3 Project Visibility

Depending on your role and the project settings, some of your profile information may be visible to other users within the platform for project collaboration purposes.

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal information for the duration of your account and as follows:

• Active Accounts: While your account is active, we retain all personal information
• Closed Accounts: Upon account deletion, we remove your personal data within 30 days, except where retention is required by law
• Backup Data: Deleted data may remain in backups for up to 90 days before permanent deletion
• Legal Hold: If required by law or litigation, we may retain data for the duration of the legal requirement

7. Your Rights and Choices

Under GDPR and applicable data protection laws, you have the following rights:

7.1 Right to Access

You have the right to request a copy of your personal data. You can download your data at any time from your account settings.

7.2 Right to Rectification

You can update, correct, or modify your personal information at any time through your account settings.

7.3 Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten)

You have the right to request deletion of your account and associated personal data. Once deleted, your data will be permanently removed from our systems within 30 days.

7.4 Right to Data Portability

You have the right to obtain a copy of your data in a commonly used electronic format for transfer to another service.

7.5 Right to Withdraw Consent

You can withdraw your consent for data processing at any time by contacting us or updating your preferences.

7.6 Exercising Your Rights

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at testmail@tests.invent.york.citycollege.eu. We will respond to your request within 30 days.

8. Data Security

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction, including:

• Encryption of passwords using bcrypt (BCRYPT_ROUNDS=12)
• CSRF token protection for all state-changing operations
• Secure SSL/TLS communication for email (MAIL_ENCRYPTION=ssl)
• Regular security updates and patches
• Access controls and authentication mechanisms

However, no security system is impenetrable. We cannot guarantee absolute security of your data.

9. Data Processors

We work with the following data processors:

• Email Service Provider: tests.invent.york.citycollege.eu - Processes contact form submissions and notifications
• Database Provider: MySQL database hosted locally - Stores user accounts and project data
• Session Management: File-based sessions - Manages user authentication sessions

All data processors are required to maintain the confidentiality and security of your information.

10. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any significant changes by posting the new Privacy Policy on this page and updating the "Last updated" date. Your continued use of our application after such modifications constitutes your acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.

11. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at:

We will endeavor to respond to your inquiry within 30 days.