Privacy Policy

1. Who We Are

TECH COMPETENCE INSTITUTE is an online skill assessment and certification platform that allows users to take structured exams, validate their knowledge, and earn verifiable certificates. We are committed to protecting your personal information and your right to privacy.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, please contact us at: privacy@knowledgebase.com

2. Information We Collect

We collect information that you provide directly to us and information that is automatically generated when you use our platform.

Information you provide:

• Full name (first name, other name, surname)
• Email address
• Password (stored in encrypted form)
• Profile photo (optional, uploaded to Cloudinary)
• Phone number (optional)
• Bio (optional)

Information collected automatically:

• Exam attempt records including answers, scores, and timestamps
• Payment transaction references and amounts
• Certificate issuance records
• Login and activity timestamps

3. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

• To create and manage your account and provide our certification services
• To send OTP verification emails and important account notifications
• To process payments securely through Paystack
• To generate and issue certificates upon passing exams
• To maintain exam attempt records for your personal history
• To improve our platform and courses based on usage patterns
• To comply with legal obligations

4. How We Share Your Information

We do not sell your personal data. Ever. We only share your information in the following limited circumstances:

• Cloudinary: Profile photos and certificate PDFs are stored on Cloudinary's secure cloud storage
• Paystack: Payment processing is handled by Paystack. We share only the minimum information required to process your payment
• Certificate Verification: When someone verifies your certificate using your certificate ID, they can see your name, course, and issue date. This is intentional and necessary for verification
• Legal Requirements: We may disclose information if required by law or to protect our legal rights

5. Data Security

We implement industry-standard security measures to protect your personal information:

• Passwords are hashed using bcrypt — we never store plain-text passwords
• All API communications are secured using HTTPS/TLS encryption
• Authentication is handled using JWT tokens with expiration
• OTP codes expire after 10 minutes
• Payment data is never stored on our servers — it is handled entirely by Paystack

6. Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide our services. Specifically:

• Account data is retained while your account is active
• Certificate records are retained indefinitely as they are part of the verification system
• Exam attempt records are retained for your personal history and our quality assurance
• If you request account deletion, we will delete your personal data within 30 days, except where retention is required by law or for legitimate business purposes such as certificate verification records

7. Your Rights

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right to Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
• Right to Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate personal data
• Right to Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data under certain circumstances
• Right to Data Portability: Request your data in a structured, machine-readable format
• Right to Object: Object to certain processing of your personal data

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at privacy@knowledgebase.com

8. Cookies

TECH COMPETENCE INSTITUTE uses minimal browser storage. We use localStorage to store your authentication token and theme preference. We do not use advertising cookies or third-party tracking cookies.

9. Children's Privacy

Our platform is not directed at children under the age of 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe we have collected information from a child under 13, please contact us immediately.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of any significant changes by email or by posting a prominent notice on our platform. Your continued use of TECH COMPETENCE INSTITUTE after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or your personal data, please contact us: