Scope
This policy covers the Better Notes mobile app: recording a voice note, its transcription and AI formatting, local storage on your device, and optional sync across your own devices when you're signed in. Better Notes is built and operated by a single independent developer — there is no company, no ad network, and no data broker involved.
What we collect
Each row below is a category of data the app handles, and the tag on the right shows where it travels — kept on your device, synced to your private cloud storage, or sent to a service that helps process it.
Your email address, or the identifier Google/Apple share when you use their sign-in — used only to authenticate you. Passwords are handled by Firebase and never seen by us in plain text.
The audio you record (up to 15 seconds per press-and-hold) is uploaded over an encrypted connection to our transcription service to produce your note's text. It is processed and not retained afterward.
The transcript, title, markdown body, and type/tags generated for each note are saved in a local database on your device first, before anything is uploaded.
If you're signed in, saved notes are mirrored to your private Cloud Firestore space so they appear on your other signed-in devices. Only you can read this data.
A random ID generated on-device and held in secure storage — sent with each processing request so a retry isn't billed or counted twice. It does not identify you as a person on its own.
Requested only while you hold the record button. Better Notes does not listen in the background and has no ambient or always-on listening mode.
How it's used
- Turning your recording into a transcribed, formatted, titled note — the app's entire purpose.
- Keeping your notes available offline and syncing them between your own signed-in devices.
- Authenticating you and keeping your account and notes separate from everyone else's.
- Diagnosing failed uploads (e.g. matching a retry to the original request via the device identifier and idempotency key), so a flaky connection doesn't create duplicate notes.
We do not use your recordings, transcripts, or notes to train any model, and we do not sell or rent any of your data to anyone.
Who processes it
A small number of services do work on our behalf. We don't run our own servers for authentication or storage — those run on Google's infrastructure, under Google's own privacy terms.
| Service | Purpose | Data involved |
|---|---|---|
| Firebase Authentication (Google) | Sign-in, password reset, session tokens | Email, password hash, or Google/Apple sign-in identifier |
| Google Sign-In / Sign in with Apple | Optional one-tap sign-in | Name and email as shared by Google or Apple |
| Cloud Firestore (Google) | Cross-device note sync | Your saved notes, scoped to your account only |
| Transcription backend (betternotes.devhric.com) | Speech-to-text and AI note formatting | Audio recording, device identifier, Firebase ID token |
These providers act strictly as data processors for Better Notes — they don't independently use your data for their own advertising or analytics purposes.
Retention & deletion
While you use the app
Notes live in your local database and, if you're signed in, in your Cloud Firestore space, for as long as you keep them. Deleting a note removes it from both places immediately.
Voice recordings
Audio is transmitted for processing and is not stored by Better Notes beyond what's needed to generate your note. The audio file itself never leaves your device except for that one upload.
Signing out
Signing out deletes your entire local database and recorded audio from that device — it isn't just hidden. Your synced notes remain in your cloud account for when you sign back in.
Deleting your account
To have your account and all associated cloud data permanently removed, email devhric@gmail.com from the address on your account. We aim to complete deletion requests within 30 days.
Your rights
Wherever you're located, you can ask us to:
- Access — get a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Correct — fix inaccurate account information.
- Delete — erase your account and cloud data (see above).
- Export — receive your notes in a portable format.
- Object or restrict — ask us to stop or limit a specific processing activity.
If you're in the EU/EEA or UK, these map to your rights under the GDPR/UK GDPR; if you're in California, to your rights under the CCPA. Send requests to devhric@gmail.com — we'll respond directly, no support ticket required.
Security
All traffic between the app and its backend runs over HTTPS. Requests are authenticated with a short-lived Firebase ID token rather than a static password, and the on-device identifier is kept in encrypted secure storage, not plain preferences. No system is perfectly secure, but no third-party analytics or advertising code runs inside the app to widen that exposure.
Children
Better Notes is not directed at children under 16, and we don't knowingly collect data from them. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we'll delete it.
Changes to this policy
If this policy changes in a way that materially affects how your data is handled, we'll update the effective date above and, where the change is significant, notify you in the app before it takes effect.
Contact
Better Notes is a solo project. For privacy questions, data requests, or anything else, write to devhric@gmail.com — a person reads and answers it.