1. Summary
Kanji Aloud is designed to work without a Kanji Aloud account, advertising, analytics, or a developer-operated backend. Local study works immediately. Optional Apple services provide speech processing, private iCloud progress sync, and Game Center achievements.
2. Microphone and speech recognition
The app requests microphone access only to listen to Japanese answers and hands-free commands during a study session.
- On-device answer matching: CTC means Connectionist Temporal Classification. Kanji Aloud uses a bundled Core ML neural network and CTC scoring to compare the captured speech sound with the Japanese reading expected for the current card. Answer scoring runs on the iPhone; it is not speaker identification or unrestricted conversation transcription. The app does not save the microphone recording.
- Hands-free commands: Japanese commands such as pause, meaning, and skip use Apple’s Speech framework. Depending on device support and service availability, Apple may process command speech on the device or using Apple’s network service.
- The developer does not receive a separate recording or transcript from Apple’s speech service.
Apple’s handling of Apple-service data is governed by Apple’s terms and privacy practices.
Optional Pitch Practice
Pitch Practice temporarily analyzes the relative pitch contour of a short microphone capture on the iPhone. The app does not save or upload pitch recordings, and practice feedback does not change reading or spaced-review grades.
3. Local progress and private iCloud sync
Card history, scheduling state, daily activity, unlocked units, preferences, counters, and streak information are stored locally on the iPhone so study can continue offline.
When iCloud is available, the app stores a versioned copy in the user’s private CloudKit database to synchronize and restore study progress. Learning state is not placed in a public CloudKit database and is not transmitted to a developer-operated server.
Local and cloud data are merged conservatively so completed and unlocked learning does not move backward and counters are not silently lost.
4. Optional Game Center sharing
The achievement Board works locally. Kanji Aloud does not start Game Center authentication or upload achievements or leaderboard scores until you choose Enable Game Center in the app after reading the sharing explanation. Signing into Game Center in iPhone Settings alone does not enable sharing in Kanji Aloud.
If you enable sharing, the app sends milestone completion percentages and aggregate scores, including weekly XP, mastered-card count, current streak, and N5 completion, to Apple Game Center. Scores may appear with your Game Center player identity on leaderboards, including global leaderboards. Apple manages player identity, visibility, friends, achievements, and leaderboards.
Raw microphone audio, transcripts, individual card answers, meanings, and complete spaced-repetition records are not submitted to Game Center. You can decline sharing and continue studying with the local Board.
You can disable Game Center sharing in Kanji Aloud Settings. This stops future uploads from the app; it does not erase scores already submitted to Apple. Manage your Game Center profile and visibility through Apple’s Game Center settings. The sharing choice is stored on this device and is not synchronized through the app’s CloudKit progress record.
Who can see shared leaderboard scores?
Apple associates shared scores and achievements with your Game Center player identity. Authorized members of the Kanji Aloud developer team can view top leaderboard scores and player names in Apple’s management tools and may manage fraudulent scores. We do not export those records into a separate learner database or use them for advertising or tracking. Leaderboards show the latest score a player reported; an offline player’s displayed score may be out of date.
5. Information collected by ActiveVision
Our App Store privacy label includes Gameplay Content and User ID for optional Game Center scores and their associated player identity. The app does not send microphone recordings, transcripts, or detailed study history to ActiveVision.
Kanji Aloud version 1.1 includes N5 through N1 without in-app purchases. It has:
- no Kanji Aloud account or Sign in with Apple flow;
- no advertising SDK;
- no analytics SDK;
- no developer-operated database or API for learner data;
- no sale of personal data.
If a user contacts support by email or phone, ActiveVision receives the information the user chooses to provide and uses it to answer the request.
App Store purchases and earlier free access in version 1.2
Version 1.2 uses Apple StoreKit for optional, one-time N4–N1 purchases; N5 remains free. Apple handles payment and Apple-account authentication. Kanji Aloud does not receive your card number, bank details or Apple-account password.
On the device, the app verifies Apple’s purchase records and original-app-download record to determine course access, including access retained from the earlier free release. It keeps a local cache of verified product identifiers, verification time, and original-download information such as the app identity, original build, download date and app-transaction identifier. This cache is separate from study progress and is not included in the app’s CloudKit progress sync or sent to a developer-operated server.
Restore Purchases asks Apple to refresh access records and may require Apple-account authentication. Apple’s handling of transactions, sales reports and refunds follows Apple’s terms and privacy practices. Purchase or account changes do not erase your saved learning progress.
6. Retention and deletion
Local study data remains until the user resets progress or deletes the app. Private CloudKit data may restore progress after reinstalling while iCloud access remains enabled. Users can manage the app’s iCloud access and stored iCloud data through Apple’s system settings.
Kanji Aloud does not retain microphone recordings. Apple’s processing and retention, if network speech recognition is used, are governed by Apple.
7. Your choices
You can choose Precise or Flexible on-device answer matching, study locally without iCloud or Game Center, reset local study progress, disable Game Center sharing in the app, manage microphone, Speech Recognition, iCloud, or Game Center access in system settings, or delete the app. Declining leaderboard sharing does not restrict access to lessons. A Game Center request already sent to Apple may finish after you turn sharing off.
8. Children
The app is not designed to collect personal information from children and does not provide a developer account, advertising, or a developer-operated social network. Optional achievements and leaderboards require the in-app sharing choice and remain subject to Apple’s Game Center availability, parental controls, and privacy settings.
9. Changes to this policy
Material changes will be published at this URL with a revised effective date. If app behavior changes, App Store privacy answers and in-app disclosures will also be updated.
10. Contact
ActiveVision
Developer: Abdul Rahman Ghani
activevision2021@gmail.com
+971 58 112 1629