Ello complies with the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and Kenya's Data Protection Act. Here's how to manage your child's data in Ello.
What is Help Improve Ello, and how do I turn it off?
Help Improve Ello (General Service Improvement in our policies) is an optional Ello 2.0 setting, offered when you create your account and used only with your explicit verifiable parental consent. It lets Ello use your child's audio recordings and transcripts to improve speech recognition and how well the AI tutor teaches. It isn't required to use Ello.
Turning it off withdraws your consent and deletes your child's data. They're the same request, and your child can keep using Ello 2.0 with it off. In the Ello 2.0 app:
Tap the menu icon (three lines) in the top left.
Tap the gear icon.
Tap Manage Settings.
Turn off the Help Improve Ello toggle.
Only you, the parent, can change this setting, at any time. Our support team can't switch it off for you, but can help you find it. Withdrawal doesn't affect anything we processed lawfully before.
What did I consent to at sign-up? You confirmed in the app, entered a code we texted to your mobile number, then got a confirmation text with a link to our COPPA Notice and instructions to revoke consent. Consent covers the AI tutor, processing by large language models, and using audio and interaction data to improve Ello for your child (and more generally, if Help Improve Ello is on).
How long does Ello keep my child's data?
Ello doesn't keep any data indefinitely. When it's no longer needed, we securely delete or anonymize it.
Raw audio recordings: 30 days after the session.
Help Improve Ello on: audio recordings, transcripts, and Learner Profiles are kept 5 years of inactive subscription. Off: your child's data is deleted.
Safety-flagged session: its raw audio and transcript are kept 5 years after the session.
Everything else (child profile with name, age, and grade; parent contact details; consent and payment records; support conversations; adult and child usage analytics; app performance analytics): 5 years of inactive subscription, after which identifying analytics are anonymized or deleted.
Inactive means no active subscription and no login or meaningful use of Ello for 24 continuous months. The clock starts then.
Some data may be kept after our relationship ends, to prevent fraud or abuse, analyze anonymous aggregated data, recover your account, meet legal obligations, or resolve disputes. Classroom Mode collects no child-identifying information, so these periods cover the at-home app. See Does Ello Offer Classroom Mode or School Subscriptions?
How do I review, get a copy of, correct, or delete my child's data?
To use any of these rights over your or your child's personal information, message our support team (see Contact Support and Response Times) and a member of our team will take care of your request personally. We aim to respond within 30 days, or within 7 days in Kenya. You can:
Know what we've collected and what we've shared with third parties
Access a copy, correct anything inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated, or export it in a format transferable to a third party
Object to processing, including for direct marketing or related profiling
Restrict processing if you contest its accuracy
Request deletion, or ask us to stop further collection or processing of your child's data
Withdraw consent by turning off Help Improve Ello (above)
Delete your Ello account: see How Do I Cancel Ello Unlimited or Delete My Ello Account?
Include the right you're exercising, your child's first name as shown in the app, your account email or phone number, and which app (Ello 2.0 or Read with Ello). We confirm every request against the account before acting or releasing anything, and may ask you to confirm your identity. You can also write to Ello Technology, Inc., 24 Shotwell St, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA.
Deleting data may end your account, membership, or service. We'll tell you what will be removed first. Complete removal isn't always possible because of technical or legal limits.
Kenya: Ello is registered as a data controller with the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner (ODPC). You can complain to the ODPC about a decision we make.
California: you can ask for a notice of the categories of personal information we share with third parties for marketing, with their contact details.
Just want to see your child's progress? Open the Parent Dashboard in the Ello 2.0 app: tap the menu icon, then the gear icon, then Manage Settings, then Parent Dashboard. It's part of Ello Unlimited. For more detail, no formal request is needed: see How Do Learning Levels, Subjects, and Progress Work in Ello 2.0? To stop marketing messages, use the unsubscribe link in our emails or reply STOP to a text.
Where can I read the full policies?
Ello is operated in the United States, and your information may be processed and stored there or wherever we or our service providers operate. Read our Privacy Policy, Children's Privacy Policy, and COPPA Notice. Other questions? See Contact Support and Response Times.