Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

Hocam Academy is an independent educational marketplace where university students can browse and purchase video courses taught by approved instructors. We process personal information only as needed to operate the platform, process purchases, support teaching and learning, and keep the service secure.

This policy applies to account holders (students, instructors, and administrators) and visitors who use the platform. It does not cover independent websites or services that we do not control.

2. Information We Collect

Account information. When you register, we collect your first name, last name, email address, password (stored only as a one-way hash), and language preference (English or Turkish). You may later add optional profile details such as phone number, biography, and profile image URL in settings.

Instructor application information. If you apply to teach, we collect your application biography, academic affiliation (university, faculty, and program), graduation status, optional GPA and graduation year, teaching languages, a teaching demo video, optional CV and transcript files, and the academic courses you propose to teach (including grades and qualification details). Administrators may add review notes when approving or rejecting an application.

Purchase and payment information. When you buy a course or chapter, we store purchase records (what you bought, amount, payment status, and timestamps). For paid checkout we use manual bank transfer confirmation: you provide a transfer reference, optional notes, and an optional payment receipt file. We store the platform bank details shown to you for payment (account holder, IBAN, and related instructions). We do not process card payments on the live platform.

Course and learning information. We store courses, chapters, lessons, lesson videos, lesson resources, progress, reviews and ratings, and related content metadata needed to deliver learning. For lesson video playback we may show a dynamic watermark that includes your account email when watermarking applies to that lesson.

Technical and operational information. We store authentication session data managed by our authentication system, email verification and password-reset tokens (hashed), notifications, instructor payout bank details that instructors submit for receiving earnings (such as IBAN and account holder name), and server logs needed to operate and troubleshoot the service. We also store onboarding cookie values used for selected university program context and related preferences.

3. How We Use Information

We use personal information to create and secure accounts; verify email addresses; reset passwords; show program-relevant course catalogs; process and review bank-transfer purchases; grant access to purchased content; notify users about account, course, payment, and video-processing events; enable instructor applications and course review by administrators; calculate instructor earnings; and send important operational emails.

We also use information to prevent abuse, investigate suspicious payment submissions, enforce platform rules, improve reliability, and comply with legal obligations that apply to us.

4. Service Providers and Sharing

We do not sell personal information. We share data with service providers that help us run Hocam Academy, under contracts or terms appropriate to their role.

Cloudinary. Course videos, thumbnails, lesson resources, instructor application files (such as CV, transcript, and demo video), and payment receipt uploads are stored and delivered through Cloudinary. Processed lesson videos may include a platform intro clip and logo watermark generated during video processing. Protected course media is delivered using secure access controls to help prevent unauthorized access.

Database hosting. Application data is stored in a secure PostgreSQL database hosted by our infrastructure providers and accessed through our application infrastructure.

Email delivery. Transactional and operational emails are sent using trusted email service providers (for example email verification, password reset, purchase confirmation, bank-transfer approval notices, instructor application or course review outcomes, and high-priority admin alerts). Admin operational alerts may also be sent to support@hocamacademy.com and to administrator account emails. Platform operators (administrators) can access personal information needed to review applications, courses, payments, users, and support requests.

5. Cookies

We use essential and preference cookies for authentication, security, onboarding, and language preference. We also use Vercel Web Analytics and Speed Insights for privacy-focused traffic and performance measurement; those products are not traditional advertising cookies. Details are described in our Cookie Policy.

6. Security

We implement technical and organizational measures designed to protect personal information, including hashed passwords, signed authentication sessions, email verification, role-based access controls for student, instructor, and admin areas, and secure delivery controls for protected video assets.

No method of transmission or storage is completely secure. You are responsible for keeping your password confidential and for using a device and network you trust.

7. Data Retention

We retain account, purchase, course, learning, payout, and application records for as long as needed to operate the platform, maintain purchase access history, resolve disputes, meet legal and accounting needs, and enforce our terms. Data may also be retained where required by applicable law.

Email verification and password-reset tokens are stored in hashed form and are intended for short-lived use. Server logs and media assets are retained according to operational needs and our hosting providers' practices unless we remove them earlier.

8. Account Status and Deletion

Administrators may suspend or reactivate accounts when needed for safety, policy enforcement, or operational reasons. Suspended users may lose the ability to use protected areas of the platform.

The platform stores a soft-deletion marker for accounts, but self-service account deletion is not currently available in the product interface. If you want your account closed or personal data reviewed for deletion, contact us using the email below. We will review your request and delete or anonymize personal information where possible while retaining information we are legally or operationally required to keep.

9. Your Choices and Requests

Depending on where you live and laws that apply to you, you may be able to request access to the personal information we hold about you, ask us to correct inaccurate information, or ask us to restrict or delete certain data. You can update many profile fields in settings. To make a privacy request, email us. We may need to verify your identity before responding.

10. International Data Transfers

Your information may be processed and stored in countries where our service providers operate. We take reasonable measures to ensure your personal information is protected when transferred internationally.

11. Contact

For privacy-related questions or requests, contact support@hocamacademy.com.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy when our practices or platform features change. The Last updated date at the top will change when we publish revisions. Your continued use of the platform after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.