Privacy Policy

Effective October 9, 2026 · Last updated October 21, 2026

Hanal teaches you to read and write Korean. To do that, we need a small amount of information about you. This page explains what we collect, why, who helps us handle it, and what you can ask us to do with it.

1. Who we are

Hanal (한알) is operated by K-Wave (케이 웨이브), a sole proprietorship registered in the Republic of Korea (“K-Wave”, “we”, “us”). K-Wave is responsible for your personal data under this policy. Our business details are listed at the end of this page.

This policy covers hanalkorean.com, app.hanalkorean.com, and the emails we send about Hanal (together, the “Service”).

2. What we collect

Information you give us

Information that stays on your device

The Hanal app saves some information in your browser’s local storage so it works quickly. This includes your lesson progress and settings. When you are signed in, your progress is also copied to your account so it follows you to other devices.

Voice recordings. In Two Sentences a Day you can record yourself and compare your rhythm with HANA’s. The recording and the comparison happen entirely in your browser. We do not upload, store, or listen to your recordings. They disappear when you leave the page.

Speech check (optional). In Two Sentences a Day you can turn on “Check my Korean with speech recognition.” It is off unless you tick the box. When it is on and you tap the microphone, your browser uses its own built-in speech service (for example, Google in Chrome or Apple in Safari) to turn what you say into text. Depending on your browser, your voice may be sent to that company’s servers for this, under that company’s privacy policy. Hanal never receives, stores, or listens to your voice. The text your browser gives back is used only on your screen to suggest a grade, and is not saved or sent to us. We keep a record of your choice (on or off, the date and time, and the version of this notice) on your device and, when you are signed in, in your account, so we can show that you agreed and ask again if anything changes. You can turn it off at any time by unticking the box.

Information collected automatically

Like any website, our hosting and infrastructure providers receive technical information when you load a page, such as your IP address, browser type, and the time of the request. They use it to deliver the page and keep the Service secure. We do not use third-party analytics tools, advertising trackers, or tracking cookies.

Anonymous visit steps. To understand where new visitors get stuck, we count a few steps: opening our website, scrolling down past the first screen, playing a sound on the first screen, tapping through to the app, opening the sign-in screen, asking for a sign-in email or tapping Google sign-in, creating a new account, and starting or finishing Day 1 and opening Day 2. Each count records only the step, the link you came from (such as an Instagram ad), whether the page was opened inside an app such as Instagram, and the time. It does not include your name, email address, IP address, or any identifier for you or your device, so we cannot connect it to you. Your browser remembers which steps it has already counted today (in local storage) so the same step is counted at most once a day.

Learning emails. We keep a record of which learning emails we have sent you and when, so we never send the same one twice, and whether you have unsubscribed.

Signing in creates a session token that your browser stores so you stay signed in. It is required for the Service to work.

3. Why we use it

How we use AI. To answer you faster, we use an AI assistant, Claude by Anthropic, to read your question together with your learning record (your nickname, progress, quiz scores, and your answer to “What brings you to Hangul?”, if any) and to draft a reply. We also use it to summarize new sign-ups, purchases, and questions for our team. A person on our team reads and approves every reply before it is sent. We do not use AI to make decisions about your account, your access, or refunds. We have turned off the setting that allows our AI provider to use these conversations to improve its models. On our free name card page (hanalkorean.com/name), if your name is not in our built-in list, we send the name you type, and nothing else, to Claude by Anthropic to write it in Hangul. We save the result so the same name appears instantly next time.

We do not sell your personal data, and we do not use it for advertising.

4. Who helps us

We use a small number of service providers. They may process your data only to provide their service to us.

When your browser loads fonts or code files from these networks, they can see your IP address, as with any website request.

We may also share information if the law requires it, or to protect the rights and safety of our users or of K-Wave.

5. International transfers

K-Wave is based in South Korea, and our database is in South Korea. Some of our providers process data in other countries, including the United States. Where the law requires it, we rely on appropriate safeguards for these transfers, such as the providers’ standard contractual clauses.

6. How long we keep it

• Account, nickname, and progress: until you delete your account or ask us to.
• Questions to HANA and our replies: until you delete your account or ask us to.
• Learning-email records: until you delete your account.
• Waiting lists: until the product opens and we have told you, or until you ask us to remove you.
• Name card emails (given before October 21, 2026): until you unsubscribe or ask us to delete them.
• Purchase records: for as long as tax and consumer protection laws require (in Korea, generally five years).
• Emails to us: for as long as we need them to help you, then deleted.

7. Your rights

You can ask us to:

• show you the personal data we hold about you
• correct it
• delete it, including your whole account
• give you a copy in a common format
• stop or limit certain uses of it
• stop sending you emails (every non-essential email also has an unsubscribe link)

Email hello@hanalkorean.com from the address on your account. We will reply within 30 days. We may ask you to confirm that the request is really from you. If you are in the EU or UK, you can also complain to your local data protection authority. If you are in Korea, you can contact the Personal Information Protection Commission.

8. Children

Hanal is made for adults and teens aged 14 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 14. If you believe a child under 14 has created an account, please contact us and we will delete it.

9. Security

All connections to Hanal are encrypted (HTTPS). We do not use passwords: you sign in with a one-time email link or with Google. Our database only lets each account read its own progress. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to protect your data. If a breach affects your data, we will tell you as the law requires.

10. Changes to this policy

If we change this policy, we will update the date at the top of this page. If a change is significant, we will also tell you by email or in the app before it takes effect.

11. Contact and business information