개인정보Privacy

Privacy Policy

This English version is provided for convenience. If there is any difference between this English version and the Japanese version, the Japanese version prevails. View the Japanese version (日本語版)

"Native Korean" (available in app stores as "Native Korean: Words & Hangul"; the "App"; developed and provided by HONG JISU (the "Operator," "we," or "us")) respects the privacy of its users, complies with applicable laws and regulations, and strives to protect users' personal information.

1. Information We Collect

The App may obtain and process the following information in order to make the service more convenient, to operate the App, and to deliver advertising.

(1) Information provided by users (when signing in with Google or with Apple; optional)

You may optionally sign in with a Google account or use Sign in with Apple (iPhone and iPad only), only if you wish to use the learning data backup feature (to carry over your data when you change devices, and to sync across multiple devices). When you sign in, we obtain the following information through Google's authentication service or Apple's authentication service. (If you choose "Hide My Email" with Sign in with Apple, the email address will be a forwarding address issued by Apple. The profile image is obtained only when you sign in with Google.)

Note: Even if you do not sign in, you can use the learning features in the same way, using the storage area on your device (local environment).

(2) Microphone (recording) feature

The App's pronunciation comparison feature and the "Say It" step in the Flower Path lessons may ask for permission to access your device's microphone. Recorded audio data is processed temporarily on your device solely so that you can compare your own pronunciation with native speaker audio, and is never sent to or stored on an external server. You can change whether microphone access is allowed or denied at any time in your OS (Android/iOS) settings.

(3) Information collected automatically

(4) Information sent through the contact form

If you use the contact form, in addition to the subject, the email address for our reply, and the message you enter, the App automatically attaches and sends your Support ID (an identifier used to manage purchase status), your device type, and the App version, so that we can check your purchases and gifts. This information is used only to respond to your inquiry.

(5) Notifications

Notifications such as study reminders, notices that your hearts are full, and notices before your free trial ends are notifications scheduled on your device (local notifications). No information is sent externally for notifications. You can turn notifications off at any time in your device settings.

(6) Handwriting Dictionary and Paste Dictionary

The Handwriting Dictionary recognizes the characters you write on your device (Google's ML Kit on Android, Apple's Vision on iPhone and iPad). The App does not send the strokes you write or the words you look up to any external server. On Android, the data needed to recognize characters (about 20 MB for Hangul) is downloaded from Google's servers only when you tap "Set Up & Start" the first time you use the feature. ML Kit may send Google information such as device information (device model, OS version, etc.), app information (package name and version), performance and error records, and the configured languages, to improve the feature and investigate problems (for details, see Google's "ML Kit data disclosure").

The Paste Dictionary (look up a whole sentence) reads text from your device's clipboard only when you tap "Paste Copied Text". On Android, when you choose "Look up in Native Korean" in another app, the App receives only the text you selected. In both cases, the text is looked up only on your device and is never sent externally.

(7) Downloading additional audio data

Some of the audio for words, example sentences, meanings, and so on is downloaded additionally when needed, using the systems of Google Play (Android) or the App Store (iOS). These downloads go through each store, and each store operator may process device and download information under its own policies.

(8) "Everyone's Counts"

To show "people who bloomed this flower today," "x% of everyone got this wrong," and "Everyone's Flower Field" on the Flower Path, when you finish a lesson the App sends only numbers to the Operator's server (Google's Cloud Functions for Firebase / Cloud Firestore): the flower number, the question numbers, whether your first answer was correct, and the date. It then receives the totals to display. Your name, nickname, email address, sign-in identifier (UID), device identifier, and advertising identifier are not sent. Each transmission carries a single-use number, which is used only to avoid counting the same transmission twice and is never linked to any particular user. After the numbers sent are added up, the original records are deleted, and only the totals (the number of people and the share who answered wrong for each question, and the counts for each flower and each week) are kept. Please note that, due to how internet communication works, your connection's IP address reaches the server when data is sent and may remain in Google Cloud's communication logs for a certain period; the Operator does not use it for the totals or to identify users (it is used only temporarily, on the spot, to stop too many transmissions in a short time). If you turn off "the My Page tab at the bottom of the screen → Menu → Settings → Join Everyone's Counts," nothing is sent or received.

(9) Totals of sign-in results

To find and fix problems with signing in, when you try signing in with Google or with Apple, the App sends the result to the Operator's server (Google's Cloud Functions for Firebase / Cloud Firestore). The App sends only the following: your device type (iPhone, iPad, or Android), the OS major version number (this may be unknown on iPad), the App version, the sign-in method (Google or Apple), the result (such as completed, stopped, canceled, or failed), the step where it stopped, and the rough time that sign-in and reading your cloud data took (a range such as "under 3 seconds"). Your name, nickname, email address, sign-in identifier (UID), device identifier, advertising identifier, and error details are not sent. What is sent is kept only as totals for each date (Japan time); records of individual sign-in attempts are not kept. Please note that, due to how internet communication works, your connection's IP address reaches the server when data is sent and may remain in Google Cloud's communication logs for a certain period; the Operator does not use it for the totals or to identify users (it is used only temporarily, on the spot, to stop too many transmissions in a short time). Nothing is sent if you do not try signing in. If you turn off "the My Page tab at the bottom of the screen → Menu → Settings → Join Everyone's Counts," this is not sent either.

2. How We Use Information

The information collected is used only for the following purposes.

3. Data Retention and Deletion

Learning data synced through sign-in is kept securely until the user unlinks the account or asks for it to be deleted. You can delete your account and your learning data in the cloud at any time from "the My Page tab at the bottom of the screen → Menu → Delete Account" in the App (shown only while you are signed in). You can also see the account and data deletion instructions, or contact us using the contact information in Section 6, and we will handle the deletion promptly. Please note that if you uninstall the App, data stored only on the device when you do not use sign-in (Google or Apple) (such as locally saved learning records) is deleted from the device.

4. Advertising (Google AdMob)

To keep providing the App free of charge, the App uses Google AdMob, an ad delivery service of Google LLC.

5. External Services We Use and Transfers Outside Japan

To provide a stable service and to sync data, the App uses the following service providers, and data may be processed outside Japan (mainly in the United States and other countries).

6. Contact

For inquiries about this Policy, or to request deletion of registered data or similar matters, please use the contact form (in the App: "the My Page tab (bear icon, second from the right) at the bottom of the screen → Menu → About This App → Contact Us").

Operator: HONG JISU

Last revised: November 6, 2026