Legal & Compliance

Privacy Policy

We respect your privacy and try to collect only what the platform actually needs to run. This section explains what we collect, why, and what control you have over it.

1. Information We Collect

When you register an account or use the platform, we may collect:

• Account details: your email address, username, and a securely hashed password (we never store your password in plain text) — or, if you sign up with a code we email you, that verification alone.
• Profile information: anything you choose to add — full name, bio, location, nationality, institution, field of study, and your profile/banner/professional photos.
• Content you create: cogitoes, articles (with figures and references), homeworks, photos, videos, podcasts, to-dos, comments, likes, and direct messages (including any files attached to them).
• Security data: if you enable it, a hashed record of your two-factor authentication (TOTP) or passkey/WebAuthn credential — never the credential itself.
• Technical data: IP address, browser/device information, and session cookies needed to keep you signed in and to protect the platform from abuse.
• Communications with us: anything you send through the contact form or a job application.

2. How We Use Information

We use your information to operate, secure, and improve the platform: creating and authenticating your account, displaying your content and profile to other members as you've configured, delivering direct messages and notifications, verifying your email address, responding to support requests, and reviewing job applications submitted through the Careers page. We do not sell your personal data.

3. Signing In With Google, GitHub, Apple, or Microsoft

If you choose to sign up or log in through a third-party provider, that provider shares your name, email address, and profile photo with us so we can create or match your account — nothing more, and nothing is posted back to that provider on your behalf without your action. You can review and remove connected accounts at any time from your account's Connections settings.

4. Cookies

We use strictly-necessary cookies to keep you signed in (session cookies) and to protect forms against cross-site request forgery. We don't use third-party advertising or cross-site tracking cookies.

5. Data Retention & Deleting Your Account

We keep your data for as long as your account is active. You can delete your account at any time from your account settings; doing so removes your profile and personal details. Content you've posted publicly (such as cogitoes or articles) may persist in a de-identified form where removing it entirely isn't practical (for example, a comment thread other users depend on), the same way most social platforms handle this.

6. Your Rights

Wherever you're located, you can ask us to access, correct, export, or delete your personal data by contacting us (see "Contact Us" below) or by using the tools already built into your account settings for editing your profile and deleting your account.

7. Children's Privacy

SierraLustra is intended for users aged 13 and older (see "Eligibility" below). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child under 13 has created an account, please contact us and we'll remove it.

8. Data Security

We rely on Django's built-in protections against common vulnerabilities (CSRF, SQL injection, and XSS), encrypt passwords with a salted hash, and support optional two-factor authentication and passkeys for signing in. No system is completely secure, but we work to keep your account and content protected.

Direct messages are also encrypted at rest in our database as an added safeguard against unauthorized access to stored data (for example, a stolen backup). This isn't end-to-end encryption: SierraLustra can still access message content when needed to operate the service, respond to a support request, or comply with the law, the same as most messaging features on the platform today. We're planning true end-to-end encryption for direct messages — where only the participants in a conversation, not SierraLustra, can read message content — for a future release, and we'll update this page when that ships.

Terms and Conditions

By creating an account or otherwise using SierraLustra, you agree to the terms below.

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years old to create an account. If you're under the age of majority where you live, you confirm that a parent or guardian is aware of and consents to your use of the platform.

2. Your Account

You're responsible for the activity that happens under your account and for keeping your credentials confidential. New accounts must verify their email address before they're usable, and we strongly encourage enabling two-factor authentication or a passkey for extra protection.

3. User Conduct & Community Standards

SierraLustra is a hub for high-level knowledge sharing. Members agree to:

• Maintain civil, respectful, and rigorous intellectual discourse.
• Refrain from posting spam, harassment, hate speech, or plagiarized material.
• Only upload content they own or have the right to share.
• Engage constructively when answering STEM challenges or reviewing scientific articles.
• Not use the platform's messaging or upload features to distribute illegal or harmful content.

4. Your Content & License

You retain ownership of the original articles, research, cogitoes, photos, videos, and other content you publish on SierraLustra. By posting content, you grant SierraLustra a non-exclusive, worldwide license to host, display, and distribute it within the platform for the purpose of operating the service (for example, showing it to your friends in a feed).

5. Content Moderation & Reporting

We may review, remove, or restrict access to content that violates these terms, and may suspend accounts responsible for it. If you encounter content that breaches these standards or infringes your rights (including copyright), contact us with a description and a link, and we'll review it.

6. Direct Messaging

Direct messages, including any attached files, are private between the participants and are stored so your conversation history is available when you return — see "Data Security" above for how message content is protected in storage today, and what's planned. The same conduct rules above apply to direct messages — harassment or illegal content sent privately is still a violation of these terms and may be reported to us.

7. STEM AI Assistant

The STEM AI assistant provides automated help with academic problems. Its answers are generated by an automated system, may be incomplete or incorrect, and are not a substitute for guidance from a qualified teacher or professional. You're responsible for verifying any solution before relying on it, and prompts you submit may be processed to generate a response.

8. Third-Party Sign-In Accounts

If you sign in using Google, GitHub, Apple, or Microsoft, your use of that provider remains subject to that provider's own terms. We're not responsible for the availability or practices of third-party sign-in providers.

9. Job Applications

Information you submit through our Careers page (such as your resume and contact details) is used only to evaluate your application and communicate with you about it, and isn't shown to other members of the platform.

10. Suspension & Termination

We may suspend or terminate an account that violates these terms, without notice where the violation is serious (for example, a security threat or illegal content). You may stop using the platform and delete your account at any time.

11. Disclaimers & Limitation of Liability

Educational assistance and scientific discussions provided on the platform are for informational and collaborative purposes. The platform is provided "as is," without warranty of any kind. To the fullest extent permitted by law, SierraLustra isn't liable for errors in user-submitted academic material, AI-generated answers, or content posted by other members.

12. Governing Law

These terms are governed by the laws applicable in SierraLustra's place of establishment, without regard to conflict-of-law principles, except where local law requires otherwise for consumer protection.

13. Changes to These Terms

We may update this page from time to time. If we make a material change, we'll update the "Last updated" date above and, where appropriate, let members know through the platform. Continuing to use SierraLustra after a change means you accept the update.