Privacy Policy

1. Who we are and what this policy covers

FB Publishing LLC (“FB Publishing,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) operates the Essens Books Summaries mobile application and related Essens website and streaming services (together, the “Service”). FB Publishing LLC is responsible for the personal information described in this policy.

This policy applies when you use the Service, sign in, maintain playlists, stream a summary, follow a book link, or contact support. A third-party site you choose to visit has its own privacy practices.

2. Information we collect

Category	Examples
Account and profile	Your Apple or Google account identifier and, depending on the information you provide or authorize, your name, email address, and Google profile-image URL. Apple may provide a private relay email address if you choose Hide My Email.
Authentication	Sign-in tokens and authorization information needed to verify your identity, maintain a session, and secure your account. For Apple-linked accounts, an encrypted Apple refresh token is stored so the authorization can be revoked if you delete the account.
Library and listening	Playlist names and order, books added to playlists, listening history, the current summary, playback position, duration, and related book identifiers and metadata.
Usage	Interactions such as opening the Service, playing a summary, creating or adding to a playlist, signing in or out, and selecting an affiliate link. Events may include the relevant book, source, page, or playlist name.
Network and device	IP address, approximate country or city derived from the IP address, language, timezone, referring page, session-cookie information, and basic request or diagnostic details made available by your device, browser, network, or hosting provider.
Support	Your email address, phone number if you call us, and the content and context of messages you send to support.

You can browse and play summaries without creating an account. Network and usage information is still processed when the Service communicates with our servers. If you sign in, activity generated during the signed-in session can be associated with a hashed account identifier.

3. Where information comes from

From you, when you sign in, name a playlist, choose content, request deletion, or contact support.
From Apple or Google, when you choose the corresponding sign-in option and authorize the requested account information.
Automatically, through app and server requests, session cookies, playback and feature interactions, and hosting or network infrastructure.

4. How we use information

provide the catalog and stream audiobook summaries;
authenticate you and maintain a secure session;
synchronize playlists, listening history, and playback progress;
operate playlist queues and remember where you stopped listening;
measure Service usage, understand feature performance, and improve Essens;
detect, investigate, and prevent errors, misuse, fraud, and security incidents;
record and measure outbound affiliate-link activity on Essens web pages that use the first-party redirect;
respond to questions, rights requests, and support messages; and
comply with legal obligations and protect our rights and users.

5. Legal bases where applicable

Where a law requires a legal basis, we rely on performance of our agreement with you to provide requested features; our legitimate interests in operating, securing, measuring, and improving the Service; compliance with legal obligations; and consent where the law requires it. You may withdraw consent at any time, without affecting processing that occurred before withdrawal.

6. When information is shared

We do not sell personal information, and we do not use or disclose it for cross-app advertising. We disclose information only as needed in these circumstances:

Hosting and infrastructure providers process requests and host the Service and its data on our behalf.
Apple or Google processes information when you choose its sign-in service. Google also receives requests when the app displays a Google-hosted profile image.
ipwho.is may receive an IP address when our first-party analytics tools request an approximate city or country for that address.
Amazon or Audible receives the usual browser and request information when you choose an external link to a full book or audiobook.
Professional advisers, authorities, or transaction parties may receive information when reasonably necessary to comply with law, protect rights or safety, obtain advice, or complete a business reorganization or transfer.

These third parties process information under their own terms and privacy policies when they act independently from us.

7. Affiliate links

Some Essens book pages include a link to a third-party store. On Essens web pages that use our first-party redirect, we record that the link was selected before redirecting you. In the mobile apps, an available affiliate link opens the third-party store directly and is not routed through that first-party analytics redirect. In the iOS app specifically, direct affiliate links are available only when StoreKit identifies the current App Store storefront as the United States. If you make a qualifying purchase after following an Amazon or Audible affiliate link, FB Publishing LLC may earn a commission. The affiliate relationship does not increase the price you pay. Essens does not receive your store password or payment-card information.

8. Cookies and information stored on your device

The Service uses a first-party session cookie to keep you signed in. The server configures this cookie for up to 30 days; signing out or deleting your account ends the active session. The Essens mobile apps may also use protected app storage for sign-in information and ordinary system caches for requested images and other network resources. For Sign in with Apple, the iOS app stores the Apple user identifier in the iOS Keychain so it can check whether the authorization remains valid. The iOS app removes this Keychain item when you sign out or delete your account.

9. Retention and account deletion

Account profile and synced-library information is kept while your account is active. Apple revocation credentials are kept in encrypted form while needed to support your Apple-linked account and are removed as part of account deletion. Usage, IP-geolocation, support, security, and server records are retained according to operational, analytics, security, and legal needs.

To delete an account in the Essens mobile app, open Account, select Delete Account, and confirm. This removes the profile, synced playlists, listening history, saved progress, account-linked analytics events, active authentication tokens, and the current IP-geolocation cache entry from the active Service. For an Apple-linked account, Essens also requests revocation of the Apple authorization. If an old Apple credential cannot be revoked automatically, the iOS app explains how to remove Essens from your Apple Account.

If you cannot access the app, request deletion by emailing contact@fbeditions.com from the address associated with your Essens account. We may need to verify account ownership before deleting the account and associated data listed above.

Records that are not reasonably linkable to your account, records retained in backups for a limited recovery cycle, and information that must be kept for legal, fraud-prevention, or security reasons may remain until deletion, anonymization, or expiration under the applicable retention need. Deleting Essens does not delete your Apple, Google, Amazon, or Audible account.

10. Your choices and privacy rights

Use the catalog and stream summaries without signing in.
Choose whether to sign in with Apple or Google and manage that authorization with the provider.
Sign out or delete your Essens account from the Account screen.
Choose whether to follow any external affiliate link.
Request access, correction, deletion, or a copy of personal information, subject to applicable law.
Where applicable, request restriction, object to processing, withdraw consent, or appeal a decision about a privacy request.

Send a request to contact@fbeditions.com. We may need to verify that you control the relevant account before completing a request. Depending on your location, you may also lodge a complaint with your local data-protection authority.

11. Children

Essens is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has provided personal information, contact us so we can review and delete it as appropriate.

12. International processing

Information may be processed in countries other than the country where you live. Those countries may have different data-protection laws. Where required, we use an appropriate legal mechanism or safeguard for an international transfer.

13. Security

We use administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect information. These include secure transport, protected server storage, restricted access, secure session cookies, and encrypted storage of the Apple token needed for account-deletion revocation. No internet service can guarantee absolute security.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when the Service, our practices, or legal requirements change. We will post the revised policy here and update the effective date. If a change is material, we will provide additional notice when required.