Privacy Policy

Last updated 12 August 2026

VA Trade School is operated by V. Alexander Mechanical Inc. (“we”, “us”), 13969 96 Ave, Surrey, British Columbia. This policy explains what the app collects, why, and what you can ask us to do about it. We follow Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and British Columbia’s Personal Information Protection Act (PIPA).

What we collect

• A device ID. When you first open the app we generate a random ID and store it in your browser. It is how we remember your progress. It is not linked to your identity unless you give us more information.
• Your study activity. Which questions you answered, whether you got them right, your streaks, XP and section scores.
• Profile details you choose to enter. A display name, your region, and your apprenticeship year. All optional.
• Work hours you log. If you use the hours logbook, the dates, hours, categories and notes you enter.
• Community posts. Anything you post, comment or vote on in the community section, along with your display name.
• Purchase details. If you buy something, your email address and an order record. Card details go directly to Stripe — we never see or store them.
• Technical logs. Our server records IP addresses and request details, which we use for security and troubleshooting.

Who else is involved

Running the app means some data passes through other companies:

• Railway hosts the app and its database.
• Stripe processes payments and handles your card details under its own privacy policy.
• Anthropic receives the text of a question when you ask the AI to explain something a different way. Do not paste personal information into those requests.
• YouTube and Google Fonts serve embedded videos and typefaces, and may set their own cookies when those load.

Data may be stored or processed outside Canada, including in the United States, where local law may allow government access.

Why we collect it

To run your account and save your progress, to process purchases, to keep the community usable, to keep the service secure, and to understand which parts of the curriculum need work. We do not sell your information, and we do not use it for advertising.

How long we keep it

Study progress and profile information are kept while your account is active. Purchase records are kept for seven years because Canadian tax rules require it. Server logs are kept for up to 90 days.

Your rights

You can ask us to show you the personal information we hold, correct anything that is wrong, delete your account and study data, or send you a copy of your data. Email valexandermechanical@gmail.com and we will respond within 30 days.

Deleting your account removes your progress, profile, hours log and community posts. Purchase records are kept where the law requires. If you are unhappy with how we handled a request, you can complain to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

Your data, right now

You do not have to email us to use the two rights below — do it here. They act on the study data saved for this device.

Children

The app is intended for apprentices and tradespeople aged 16 and over. We do not knowingly collect information from children under 13. If you believe a child has given us information, contact us and we will delete it.

Security

Traffic is encrypted in transit and access to the database is restricted. No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee against every possible breach. If a breach creates a real risk of significant harm, we will notify affected users and the Privacy Commissioner as the law requires.

Changes

If this policy changes materially we will update the date above and post a notice in the app.

Contact

V. Alexander Mechanical Inc.
13969 96 Ave, Surrey, BC
valexandermechanical@gmail.com
604-652-4405