Privacy Policy

Last updated: June 2026

Who we are

Cook With Yo is an AI cooking companion for children, built by PlatesByYo (operated by Sonya Shankar). This policy explains what personal data we collect when you or your child uses Cook With Yo at platesbyyo.ysdspace.com, how we use it, and what rights you have.

If you have any questions, email us at thebrandedit.freelancer@gmail.com. We respond within 30 days.

Who this policy applies to

This policy applies to parents and carers who use Cook With Yo on behalf of their children. Children use the app during cooking sessions but do not create accounts themselves. We do not knowingly collect personal data directly from children.

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account. By creating an account, you confirm that you are the parent or legal carer of the child using the service.

What data we collect and why

If you create an account (optional)

Creating an account is entirely optional — Cook With Yo works fully without one. If you choose to sign up, we collect:

• Your email address — so you can log in and receive confirmation and password-reset emails.
• Your display name — shown in the app so we can greet you by name. You choose what to enter here.
• Account creation date — recorded as part of our consent record.
• Consent record — the date and time you agreed to these terms on behalf of your child. We are required to keep this for 7 years under UK data protection law.

This data is stored securely in Supabase (our database provider, based in the EU). See the Third-party services section below.

Your child's data (when accounts are used)

When optional child-profile features become available, parents will be able to enter:

• Child's first name only — so Yo can greet them warmly. We never ask for a surname.
• Child's age — so Yo adapts her language and step complexity to the right level.
• Dietary notes — for example, nut allergy or vegetarian. Parent-entered only; Yo uses these to flag caution, not to give medical advice.

We store only what the parent enters. Children cannot create or edit their own profiles.

Cooking sessions

When cooking session history is available (future feature), we will record which dish was cooked and when. We will never store the text of the conversation — what your child types stays in their browser session only.

Anonymous visitors (no account)

If you use Cook With Yo without an account (which is perfectly fine), we store only:

• A session counter in your browser's local storage — so the app knows how many cooking sessions you've had this month. This never leaves your device.
• A temporary session ID in your browser's session storage — used to prevent rapid-fire message abuse. It is discarded when you close the tab.

No cookies. No tracking pixels. No advertising identifiers. Ever.

What we never collect

The following are explicitly prohibited. No Cook With Yo feature will ever collect these:

• Your child's surname, school name, address, or phone number
• Location or GPS data
• Device identifiers or IP addresses
• Browser or operating system fingerprints
• Behavioural tracking (time on page, scroll depth, click paths)
• Advertising identifiers of any kind
• Photos or images of your child
• Voice recordings
• Full chat transcripts (the conversation text is never stored by us)
• Any data from social media platforms
• Friends' names or any data about people other than your child

AI conversations

When your child chats with Yo, the messages in that session are sent to the Anthropic API (the AI service that powers Yo's responses). This is necessary for the app to work.

• We do not store chat messages. Conversations exist only in your browser during the session and are gone when the tab is closed.
• Anthropic receives the messages to generate Yo's reply, subject to Anthropic's privacy policy. Under their API terms, messages sent via the API are not used to train their models by default.
• Yo's system prompt (her personality and safety rules) is fixed and sent with every request. It never reveals your name, your child's name, or any personal information.

Third-party services

We use the following services to run Cook With Yo:

• Supabase — our database and authentication provider. Stores parent account data and (in future) child profiles and session records. Data is encrypted at rest and in transit. Supabase is EU-based and GDPR compliant.
• Anthropic — the AI service that powers Yo's responses. Receives the current session's messages only. No personal data from your account is sent to Anthropic.
• Vercel — our web hosting provider. Serves the app's HTML, CSS, and JavaScript files. Does not process personal data beyond standard web hosting (TLS, CDN).

We do not sell your data to any third party. We do not use any advertising networks.

How long we keep your data

• Account data — kept until you delete your account.
• Child profile data — kept until the parent deletes the profile.
• Cooking session records — automatically deleted after 12 months.
• Consent record — kept for 7 years as required by UK data protection law, even after account deletion.
• Inactive accounts — if no login is recorded for 24 months, we will email you a warning. If there is no response within 30 days, the account and all child data will be deleted.
• Local storage data (session counter, session ID) — stays in your browser only. You can clear it at any time by clearing your browser data or using our Delete My Data page.

Children's privacy (COPPA and UK Children's Code)

Cook With Yo is designed specifically for children cooking with a parent or carer. We take children's privacy very seriously.

• We do not collect personal data from children directly. All data about a child is entered by the parent only.
• Children under 13 in the United States are protected by COPPA. We do not collect personal information from US children without verifiable parental consent.
• Children under 16 in the EU and UK are protected by GDPR and the UK Children's Code. All data processing for children in these regions requires explicit parental consent.
• Yo is instructed never to ask children for personal information of any kind during a conversation. If a child volunteers personal details, Yo does not repeat them or act on them.
• No behavioural profiling of children takes place.

Your rights

As the parent or carer who created the account, you have the following rights under UK GDPR, EU GDPR, and COPPA:

• Right to access — you can ask us what data we hold about you and your child.
• Right to deletion — you can delete all data about your child at any time using the Delete My Data page, or by emailing us. We will delete it within 30 days (consent record excepted, see above).
• Right to correction — you can update your name or email via your account page.
• Right to withdraw consent — you can withdraw your consent at any time. This will not affect the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal, but we will stop processing your child's data going forward and delete it.
• Right to object — you can object to how we process your data by emailing us.
• Right to portability — you can request a copy of your data in a machine-readable format.

To exercise any of these rights, email thebrandedit.freelancer@gmail.com. We will respond within 30 days.

If you are based in the UK, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). If you are based in the EU, you may contact your local data protection authority.

How we protect your data

• All data is transmitted over HTTPS (TLS encryption).
• Data stored in Supabase is encrypted at rest.
• Our AI API key is stored server-side only and is never exposed to the browser.
• We follow the principle of data minimisation — we only collect what is strictly necessary.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. If we make a significant change, we will let you know by email or by displaying a notice in the app. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page always shows the most recent version.

Contact us

Cook With Yo is a product of PlatesByYo, operated by Sonya Shankar.

Email: thebrandedit.freelancer@gmail.com
Website: platesbyyo.ysdspace.com

For data protection matters, to exercise your rights, or to make a complaint, please email us at the address above. We will respond within 30 days.

Governing law

This policy is governed by the laws of England and Wales. Where you are based in the United States, COPPA also applies and takes precedence where it provides greater protection for children's data.