Before we hold anything at all about a child, children's privacy law asks us to know that an adult set up the account. We check that with a card. The same card starts your free days, so it is one step rather than two, and there is no way to a free book that does not pass an adult first.
Why the check comes first
We enforce the check at the point where a child's record would be written, not only by hiding a page. Until it is done, nobody can add a reader to the account, and the page for adding one sends you back to the check.
Reading the notice to parents comes just before the card. The notice says what we collect about a child and what we do with it, and the card check is how you consent to it, so we ask you to read it first.
What happens when you press the button
- On the page headed "One step before you add a reader", under "Use a card", press "Start 3 free days".
- Our payment provider's page opens, and you enter your card there. Your card details go to the provider and never to us.
- Your bank authorizes the card while you are present. No payment is taken at this point.
- We start your free trial on that same card, record that an adult checked the account, and bring you back to add your first reader.
The first payment is for your plan when the free days end, unless you cancel before then. How the free trial works explains the rest.
What we keep
We never see or keep your card number. From the check, we keep:
- that the check was done, the way it was done, and when
- our payment provider's reference numbers for the check and for your plan
- a one-way hash of a fingerprint that the provider makes of the card, which cannot be turned back into a card number
- the month the card expires, so we can tell you before it stops working
The companies that help us run the service, including our payment provider, are listed in the privacy notice.
One card on more than one account
Two households sharing a card is ordinary, so we never turn a card away for having been used before. If the same card has already been used to check two other accounts, the new account is flagged for one of us to look at. Nothing about your account changes while we do.
Where to see that it is done
- Go to Settings > Account and security.
- Look at the card called "Checked as a grown-up".
- Once the check is done, it shows "Done", then "With a card" and the date.
Settings > Your data and agreements shows it too. In the "What you have agreed to" card, the "Checked as a grown-up" line says "By card" and the date, above the notices you agreed to.
If the check is not done yet, both pages say "Not yet". On Account and security, "Do this now" takes you to the card step; on Your data and agreements, "Not yet" is itself the link.
If you would rather not use a card
The card is the usual way. We also have a check made of questions, but it is only offered while we have it switched on. When it is, you see "Answer a few questions" next to the card: there are five questions, you need four right, and you can try three times a day. That check does not start the free days, so they start instead when you first choose a plan on Plan and books, on the plan you chose.