Privacy Policy

At GeneSys, we prioritize the privacy of our student users. As a research-based project, we collect the minimum amount of data necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of Game-Based Learning in General Biology.

We collect the following information for assessment and system functionality:

• Student Identifiers: Full Name, LRN (Learner Reference Number), Section, and optionally Email address (for joining quiz rooms).
• Performance Data: Quiz scores, time taken to complete assessments, answers selected, question responses (including essay and short-answer submissions), and points earned per question.
• Session Data: Quiz progress stored temporarily in your browser's local storage for session recovery, network request queue for offline support, and user agent information.
• Teacher Account Data: Email, encrypted password (using bcrypt), first and last name, school name, and department for authentication and room management.
• Anonymous Learning Analytics: Daily practice quiz statistics (correct, wrong, missed answers) stored locally on your device to track your personal progress.

Client-Side Storage (Your Device): Quiz sessions are temporarily stored in your browser`s localStorage to enable session recovery if you lose connection. This data includes your answers, time spent, and progress. It is automatically cleared upon successful quiz submission or can be manually cleared from your browser settings.

Server-Side Cache (Redis): Active room data is stored in our Redis cache for fast access. This cache automatically expires after 24 hours. Teachers must export results before expiration.

Permanent Database (MongoDB): Teacher accounts, question banks, and submitted student responses are stored in our MongoDB database for research purposes. Long-term research data is anonymized for statistical analysis in compliance with data privacy regulations.

• Academic Grading: To provide teachers with assessment results for General Biology.
• Research Analysis: To answer the research problem: `Is there a significant difference between students’ performance before and after the implementation of GeneSys?`.
• System Improvement: Aggregated, anonymous data helps us identify which biological concepts (e.g., Genetics, Evolution) students struggle with the most.

Account Security: Teacher accounts are secured using industry-standard bcrypt password hashing (10 rounds). JWT (JSON Web Tokens) with 7-day expiration are used for authentication, ensuring secure session management.

Data Transmission: All data transmission between your browser and our servers occurs over secure HTTPS channels with TLS encryption. CORS (Cross-Origin Resource Sharing) policies restrict API access to authorized domains only.

Local Data Protection: Data stored in your browser`s localStorage is domain-specific and cannot be accessed by other websites. However, anyone with physical access to your device can view this data, so always log out on shared computers.

No Third-Party Sales: We do not sell, trade, or transfer student PII (Personally Identifiable Information) to external commercial parties. Data is used solely for educational assessment and research purposes.