Privacy Policy

Civil Service Exam Review Platform (“the Platform,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) is an independent online study platform for Filipinos preparing for the Civil Service Commission (CSC) exam. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, and the choices available to you.

By using our website, Android mobile app, and related services, you agree to the practices described here. If you do not agree, please discontinue use of the platform. This policy should be read together with our Terms of Service and Cookies Policy, which explain how cookies and similar technologies are used.

Important: Civil Service Exam Review Platform is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or operated by the Civil Service Commission (CSC). We are a private review and practice tool.

We collect information in the following ways depending on how you use the platform:

1. Anonymous visitor analytics

• A randomly generated visitor ID stored in your browser's local storage to recognize returning sessions on the same device.
• Live presence signals sent periodically while you browse (about every 30 seconds) so we can show how many reviewers are active right now.
• The first time you use the platform, you are counted once toward our total active reviewers community metric. Your first visit each day (Philippine time) contributes to daily visitor statistics shown on the site.

2. Optional account information

• If you create an account, we collect your email address, display name, and authentication details through Firebase Authentication (email/password or Google sign-in).
• If you sign in with Google, we may receive your name and profile photo URL as provided by Google.
• Optional profile details you provide in account settings, such as full name, school or institution, course or program, year level, Philippine region, and target exam level (Professional or Sub-Professional).

3. Study and performance data

• Quiz answers, scores, categories, exam levels, and session history.
• Progress summaries, streaks, rank emblems, and performance analytics when you are signed in.
• Practice credit usage (guest sessions, weekly limits, bonus buckets, and achievement rewards) linked to your account or anonymous visitor ID.
• Leaderboard submissions including display name, score, test details, and optional account linkage.
• Shared score cards and export data you choose to generate or share.
• Mistake review data — questions you answered incorrectly, saved so you can revisit and practice them later when signed in.
• PDF result exports you choose to download from your device.

4. Feedback, support, and community input

• Star ratings and optional comments about the platform.
• Messages you send to our in-app help assistant (processed to generate replies; not stored as a permanent chat history unless required for abuse prevention).
• Messages you send through signed-in support chat, including optional subject lines, your name, email, profile photo URL, and conversation status (stored so our team can respond).

5. Referral program (optional)

• A personal referral code, referral link usage, signup attribution, reward grants, and referral counts when you participate in the invite-friends program.
• A referral code from a link may be stored temporarily in your browser until you sign up or clear site data.

6. Notifications (optional)

• If you opt in to push notifications on the website or Android app, we store a device messaging token (Firebase Cloud Messaging) linked to your account or visitor session so study reminders, question-bank updates, premium confirmations, and platform announcements can be delivered.
• On Android, notification permission is requested by the operating system. You can revoke it at any time in your device settings.

7. Payments and premium access (if applicable)

• If you purchase premium access, we may process payment references, selected plan type (1-month Pro, exam-cycle, or lifetime), proof-of-payment uploads you submit for verification, activation timestamps, expiry dates, and access-grant records linked to your account. We do not store full payment card numbers on our servers.
• Card payments, when enabled, are processed by Stripe; we receive confirmation metadata needed to grant access.
• On the Android app, checkout may open in your device browser and return you to the app through a secure deep link after payment.
• If an administrator suspends an account for policy or security reasons, we may retain suspension status, related audit notes, and notification records needed to enforce that action.

8. Technical and usage data

• Basic analytics through Vercel Analytics (such as page views and performance metrics).
• Server logs, IP-derived region data, browser type, device type, operating system, app version (when using the Android app), and timestamps needed for security and reliability.
• Theme preference, guided tour completion, dismissed promo or announcement banners, and other UI dismissal flags stored locally.

9. Newsletter (optional)

• If you subscribe to our email newsletter, we collect your email address, subscription source, confirmation status, and optional unsubscribe token.
• We send a confirmation email before adding you to the mailing list. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link in our emails.

10. Mobile app and offline storage (optional)

• If you use our Android mobile app, the same account and study data described above may be accessed through a native app shell powered by Capacitor.
• If you download offline practice or flashcard packs, question content is stored on your device (IndexedDB) until you delete it from settings or clear app data.
• If you lose connectivity while signed in, progress or mistake-review updates may be queued locally on your device and synced to our servers when you are back online.
• In-progress full exam sessions may be temporarily stored in your browser or app session storage so you can resume after an interruption.

We use collected information to:

• Deliver quizzes, flashcards, full exam simulations, and review content on the web and Android app.
• Enforce practice credit limits for free tiers and unlimited access for premium plans.
• Save your progress, scores, mistake review history, and personalized study history.
• Personalize your experience using optional profile details you provide.
• Display leaderboards, shared results, and community reviewer statistics.
• Operate referral rewards, limited-time promotions, and achievement-based bonus credits.
• Send optional newsletter updates you subscribe to.
• Authenticate accounts, verify email addresses, and secure access — including native Google sign-in on Android.
• Power the in-app help assistant and, for signed-in users, human support chat.
• Send optional study reminders, question-bank refresh alerts, and platform announcements you opt into.
• Enable offline practice and flashcard downloads and sync queued data when connectivity returns.
• Improve question quality, caching, performance, and user experience.
• Respond to feedback, support requests, and abuse reports.
• Protect the platform against fraud, spam, unauthorized access, and account abuse.
• Comply with legal obligations when required.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not use your data for third-party advertising profiles.

We process information based on one or more of the following, consistent with the Data Privacy Act of 2012 (Republic Act No. 10173) and its implementing rules:

• Consent — for optional features such as accounts, notifications, newsletter subscriptions, profile details, leaderboard display names, ratings, support chat, referral participation, offline downloads, and payment submissions.
• Legitimate interest — for essential site operation, security, anonymous community metrics, and service improvement, balanced against your privacy rights.
• Contractual necessity — to provide features you actively request, such as saving progress to your account.
• Legal obligation — when retention or disclosure is required by law.

As a personal information controller for this platform, Micho A. Robledo is responsible for ensuring that processing is transparent, secure, and proportionate to the purpose.

We may share information only in these limited circumstances:

• Service providers that help us run the platform, including Google Firebase (authentication, database, storage, cloud messaging), Google Play services (when you install from the Play Store), Vercel (hosting and analytics), Stripe and manual payment verification workflows when enabled, and AI providers (such as Groq) used to generate practice questions, power the in-app help assistant, and draft optional admin support reply suggestions. These providers process data on our behalf under their own privacy terms.
• Public features you choose, such as leaderboard entries, public rating comments, or score links you share.
• Legal and safety when disclosure is necessary to comply with law, enforce our terms, or protect users and the platform.
• Business changes such as a merger or acquisition, with notice where required.

We do not share your email address publicly on leaderboards or community widgets.

We keep information only as long as needed for the purposes above:

• Visitor presence records are retained to compute live and historical community metrics; expired sessions are marked as credited and no longer counted as live.
• Account and progress data is kept while your account remains active. You may request deletion of your account data by contacting us.
• Leaderboard entries may remain visible until removed by you (where supported) or by an administrator for moderation.
• Support chat messages are retained while the conversation is active and for a reasonable period afterward for quality assurance, dispute resolution, and legal compliance.
• Referral records are kept to prevent duplicate rewards and document program participation.
• Newsletter records are kept while you remain subscribed and for a reasonable period afterward to honor unsubscribe requests and prevent duplicate sign-ups.
• Profile details are kept while your account remains active unless you update or request deletion.
• Mistake review and progress data is retained while your account is active, subject to your deletion requests where supported.
• Offline packs and local sync queues remain on your device until you delete them in settings or clear site or app data.
• Local browser data (visitor ID, theme, referral capture, dismiss flags, offline queues) stays on your device until you clear site data.
• Server logs and backups are retained for a limited period for security and disaster recovery.

We use industry-standard safeguards including encrypted connections (HTTPS), Firebase security rules, server-side validation, and access controls for administrative functions. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, but we work to protect your information against unauthorized access, alteration, and loss.

You are responsible for keeping your account credentials confidential and for signing out on shared devices.

Depending on applicable law, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal information we hold about you.
• Request correction of inaccurate information.
• Request deletion or restriction of certain processing.
• Withdraw consent for optional features (such as notifications).
• Object to processing based on legitimate interest.
• Lodge a complaint with the National Privacy Commission (NPC) of the Philippines.

You can also:

• Use the platform without creating an account for many features.
• Clear your browser's local storage and cookies to reset anonymous identifiers.
• Delete downloaded offline practice and flashcard packs from account settings.
• Decline browser or Android notification permission when prompted.
• Unsubscribe from the newsletter using the link in any newsletter email.
• Contact us at support@csereviewplatform.com for privacy requests.

We will respond to verified requests within a reasonable timeframe.

Civil Service Exam Review Platform is intended for exam takers, including young adults preparing for civil service careers. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13 without appropriate parental consent. If you believe a child has provided personal data without consent, please contact us and we will take steps to remove it.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we will revise the “Last updated” date at the top of this page. Material changes may also be highlighted on the website. Continued use after changes means you accept the updated policy.