Privacy Policy

Welcome to The Knowledge ("we," "our," or "us"). We are committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring the security of your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our mobile application and services.

The Knowledge is operated by the team behind theltk.uk. For any privacy question or to exercise any of your rights described below, contact [email protected].

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Information You Provide

• Account Information: Email address, password (encrypted), and optional profile information
• Learning Data: Quiz results, progress tracking, XP earned, achievements unlocked, and study preferences
• User-Generated Content: Custom routes you create, notes, and feedback
• Appearance reports: If you report one of your Knowledge appearances, we store the date, stage, examiner, grade (if you give one) and the questions you were asked. We publish reports to other subscribers without your name. Your report stays linked to your account so that you can edit it while we review it and so that it is included if you ask for a copy of your data. It is deleted if you delete your account.
• Communication Data: Support requests, feedback, and correspondence with us

1.2 Automatically Collected Information

• Device Information: Device type, operating system, unique device identifiers (for security and account sharing prevention)
• Usage Data: App features used, session duration, interaction patterns
• Authentication Data: Login timestamps, authentication methods used (password/passkey), active sessions
• Technical Data: IP address, browser type, app version

1.3 Optional Information

• Location Data (optional): If you allow it, we use your device's location in these ways.
  • While you use the app: to show where you are on the map, to plan visits from where you are, and to find points near you. For the last of these, your position is sent to our servers to answer that request.
  • In the background, if you turn on location reminders: your device checks whether you are near London areas where you have locations due to revise, and notifies you. After you leave the Knowledge appearance test centre, it asks whether you would like to report your appearance. We send your device the list of areas and the centre's position. Your location is not sent to us for these reminders.
  • While you ride a run (Ride the run): the app follows your position along the run, also with your phone locked while the ride is open, so it can show and speak the next call. To show the way to a run's start, or back onto the run after you leave it, your position is sent to our servers for that one request; it is not stored or written to our logs. A virtual ride does not use your location. While the map follows you, the map provider (Apple Maps on iPhone, Google Maps on Android, OpenStreetMap tiles on the web) loads the map around your position, as any map app does.
  • When you open the app: if you have already allowed location, your device checks whether you are at the test centre, so that the app can suggest reporting your appearance. This check happens on your device and your location is not sent to us.
  You can turn location reminders off in Settings → Notifications, and withdraw location permission at any time in your device settings.
• Biometric Data: Face ID/Touch ID authentication data is stored locally on your device and never transmitted to our servers

2. How We Use Your Information

2.1 To Provide Our Services

• Create and manage your account
• Track your learning progress and provide personalized recommendations
• Calculate XP, levels, achievements, and leaderboard rankings
• Synchronize your data across multiple devices
• Enable quiz functionality and progress tracking

2.2 To Improve Our Services

• Analyze usage patterns to improve app features
• Identify and fix technical issues
• Develop new educational content and features
• Optimize learning algorithms and XP calculations

2.3 To Ensure Security

• Detect and prevent account sharing and unauthorized access
• Monitor for suspicious activity and security threats
• Verify device authenticity and manage trusted devices
• Maintain session security and authentication integrity

2.4 To Communicate With You

• Respond to your support requests and inquiries
• Send important updates about the service
• Notify you of significant app changes or new features
• Send achievement notifications and learning reminders (if enabled)

3. Data Sharing and Disclosure

3.1 We Do NOT Sell Your Data

We never sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for marketing purposes.

3.2 Service Providers

We may share your information with trusted service providers who assist us in operating our app:

• Cloud Hosting: UK-based servers for data storage and processing
• Maps Services: Google Maps API for displaying location data (no personal data shared)
• Analytics: Aggregated, anonymized usage statistics only

3.3 Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information if required by law or in response to valid legal requests, such as:

• Court orders or legal processes
• Enforcement of our Terms of Service
• Protection of our rights, property, or safety
• Prevention of fraud or illegal activities

3.4 Public Information

The following information may be visible to other users:

• Username and rank on leaderboards (you can opt out in settings)
• Public achievements (if you choose to share them)

3.5 Appearance Reports and Examiners

Students and our staff report which questions were asked at Knowledge of London appearances, and by which examiner. We publish these reports as daily sheets for subscribers, without the name of the student who reported them.

Reports may include the surname by which a Transport for London examiner is known at appearances, and the grade given. We record this in the examiner's professional capacity only. We never record an examiner's contact details or anything about their private life. We use it to show students which questions have been asked and how often.

Our legal basis is legitimate interests (UK GDPR Article 6(1)(f)): helping candidates prepare for a public licensing examination, as Knowledge schools have long done.

An examiner may ask us to correct or remove their name, or object to our use of it, by emailing [email protected]. We will stop showing their name on reports.

4. Data Security

4.1 Security Measures

• Encryption: All data transmitted between the app and our servers uses HTTPS/TLS encryption
• Password Security: Passwords are hashed using industry-standard bcrypt algorithms
• Session Management: Secure JWT tokens with expiration and refresh mechanisms
• Device Verification: Multi-device tracking and anomaly detection
• Access Controls: Role-based permissions and authentication requirements

4.2 Data Storage

• All data is stored on secure UK-based servers
• Regular automated backups
• Database encryption at rest
• Limited employee access to personal data

4.3 Passkey Security

When using passkey authentication (Face ID/Touch ID), biometric data is stored locally on your device and never transmitted to our servers. We only receive confirmation of successful authentication.

5. Your Rights and Choices

5.1 Access and Portability

You have the right to:

• Access all personal data we hold about you
• Request a copy of your data in a portable format
• Review your learning history, progress, and achievements

5.2 Correction and Updates

• Update your profile information at any time in the app settings
• Correct inaccurate or incomplete data
• Request manual corrections via support

5.3 Deletion

• Delete your account and all associated data from app settings
• Request data deletion via support
• Data is permanently deleted within 30 days of request

5.4 Opt-Out Options

• Disable leaderboard participation
• Turn off push notifications
• Refuse or withdraw location permission (the map will not show your position, and location reminders stop)
• Disable biometric authentication
• Opt out of analytics data collection at any time via Profile → Privacy & Analytics. The change takes effect on next app launch.

5.5 Data Retention

• Active accounts: Data retained indefinitely while account is active
• Inactive accounts: Data retained for 2 years, then anonymized
• Deleted accounts: Data permanently deleted within 30 days
• Legal requirements: Some data may be retained longer if required by law

6. Children's Privacy

The Knowledge is a study tool for prospective licensed London taxi drivers — an occupation regulated by Transport for London and open to adults only. Our service is intended for users aged 18 and over, and creating an account requires you to be at least 18 years old (see our Terms of Service). We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe we have collected information from a person under 18, please contact us immediately and we will delete it.

7. International Data Transfers

Your data is stored on UK-based servers. If you access our app from outside the UK, your information may be transferred to and processed in the UK. We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for such transfers in compliance with GDPR and UK data protection laws.

8. Cookies and Local Storage

"Cookies" and browser local storage apply when you use theltk.uk in a web browser. Our iOS and Android apps do not use browser cookies — they store your sign-in session using the operating system's own secure on-device storage instead.

8.1 Strictly Necessary (Web)

• Session cookie: One cookie (auth_token) keeps you signed in. It is httpOnly (invisible to page scripts) and secure in production, and is not used for tracking or analytics.
• Local storage: Your browser also stores your sign-in token, active-session identifiers, your chosen role (for accounts with more than one role), your remembered app preferences (theme, onboarding progress, the points list filter, analytics opt-out choice), the last app version you've seen (so we can tell you about updates), and a marker of the storage format (cutover_version) so an update can clear outdated cached data. None of this is shared with third parties or used for advertising.
• Checkout cookies (Stripe): Only if you open checkout to subscribe on the web, Stripe, our payment processor (see 9.3), sets two cookies on theltk.uk: __stripe_mid (kept for one year) and __stripe_sid (kept for 30 minutes). Stripe uses them to detect fraud on the payment. Inside the checkout form, which Stripe serves, Stripe may also set cookies on its own domains, such as m on m.stripe.com for fraud prevention, and, if you choose to pay with Stripe Link, Link's cookies, which keep you signed in to Link for faster checkout. Stripe lists these in its cookie policy. None of these are set when you browse or study without opening checkout, and we do not read them.

These are required for the app to work, or for the payment you have asked to make, and are exempt from cookie-consent requirements under UK PECR — we do not need to, and do not, ask for consent to set them.

8.2 Analytics — No Cookies, No Local Storage

Our product analytics (PostHog, see 9.5) runs in memory-only mode on the web: it sets no cookies and writes nothing to your browser's local storage. Your analytics identifier exists only for the current page — it resets the moment you reload the page or close the tab, so nothing about your visit is retained on your device between sessions. Because no cookie or local storage is used for web analytics, there is nothing here that requires a cookie-consent banner, and we don't show one. You can still turn analytics off entirely at any time (see 5.4 and 9.5).

The public pages of theltk.uk (the guides, the Blue Book, the Points List, pricing and the rest; not this policy, the terms or the support page) use PostHog's cookieless mode: like the app, they set no cookies and write nothing to your browser's storage. To count visitors without storing anything on your device, PostHog turns your IP address, your browser details and a value that changes every day into a one-way hash, so visits can be counted for a day but not linked across days. If your browser sends a Do Not Track signal, or you have turned analytics off in the web app in the same browser, these pages record nothing.

8.3 No Advertising Cookies

We do NOT use advertising cookies, marketing pixels, or third-party tracking cookies of any kind. Stripe's checkout cookies (8.1) are set only when you open checkout: to prevent fraud on the payment and, if you use Stripe Link, to keep you signed in to Link.

9. Third-Party Services

9.1 Google Maps

We use Google Maps API to display location data. When using map features, Google's privacy policy also applies. We do not share your personal information with Google beyond what is necessary to display maps.

9.2 Expo Updates

We use Expo's over-the-air (OTA) update system to deliver app improvements. Expo may collect anonymous usage data as described in their privacy policy.

9.3 Payment Processors

We do not store your payment details on our servers. Subscription purchases and billing are handled by:

• Apple — for App Store purchases. Apple receives your purchase token and transaction data. See Apple's privacy policy.
• Google — for Google Play purchases. See Google's privacy policy.
• Stripe — for web subscriptions. Stripe receives your card details, billing address and email, and sets fraud-prevention cookies during checkout (see 8.1). See Stripe's privacy policy.

We receive only what we need to link your subscription to your account: the store's subscription identifier, the product purchased, the renewal/expiry dates, the country the purchase was made in, and (for web) the email you provided at checkout.

9.4 RevenueCat

We use RevenueCat to manage subscription entitlements across iOS, Android and the web. RevenueCat receives your app user ID (a random UUID we generate, not your email), subscription events from Apple/Google/Stripe, and basic device metadata (platform, app version, country). RevenueCat does not receive your name or email address from us. See RevenueCat's privacy policy.

9.5 PostHog Analytics

We use PostHog to collect anonymised in-app usage analytics (screen views, feature interactions, and app-open events). PostHog is hosted in the EU region (eu.posthog.com) and all data is processed within the European Economic Area.

On the public pages of theltk.uk, PostHog records page views, the page that sent you, campaign tags in the link and your type of browser and device, in cookieless mode (see section 8.2). On the web app, PostHog runs in memory-only mode: it sets no cookies and writes nothing to local storage, so your analytics identifier does not persist between visits (see section 8.2). On the iOS and Android apps, PostHog stores a random, per-device identifier in the app's secure on-device storage, so your usage can be understood across app sessions in the same way any other part of the app remembers you're signed in.

What PostHog receives:

• A random, pseudonymous user identifier — not your name or email
• Screen views and feature interactions (e.g., "opened flashcard", "completed session")
• Device type and OS version
• App version

PostHog does not receive your email address, passwords, learning content, or any information about specific locations you study.

Legal basis: Legitimate interest (UK GDPR Article 6(1)(f)) — understanding how the app is used allows us to improve it for all students. You can opt out at any time via Profile → Privacy & Analytics. See PostHog's privacy policy.

9.6 Data Processors Summary

A complete list of our third-party data processors (for transparency, in line with GDPR Article 28):

• Cloudflare — CDN / tunnel for app traffic.
• Apple, Google, Stripe — payments (see 9.3).
• RevenueCat — subscription entitlement management (see 9.4).
• Google Maps — map rendering (see 9.1).
• Expo / EAS — OTA updates and build infrastructure (see 9.2).
• PostHog — anonymised product analytics, EU region (see 9.5).

All processors are contractually bound to handle your data only on our instructions and to the extent required to deliver their service.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by:

• In-app notification
• Email to your registered address
• Updating the "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy

Your continued use of the app after changes indicates acceptance of the updated policy.

11. GDPR Compliance (For EU/UK Users)

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), you have additional rights:

• Right to be informed: This privacy policy fulfills this right
• Right of access: Request access to your personal data
• Right to rectification: Correct inaccurate data
• Right to erasure: Request deletion of your data
• Right to restrict processing: Limit how we use your data
• Right to data portability: Receive your data in machine-readable format
• Right to object: Object to certain types of processing
• Rights related to automated decision-making: We do not use automated decision-making that significantly affects you

To exercise these rights, contact us using the information below.