Privacy Policy

Last updated: September 29, 2026

1. Data controller

PrivateTranscribe is developed and operated by:

2. What PrivateTranscribe does

PrivateTranscribe converts your speech into text. By default, all processing happens locally on your device using open-source Whisper models. No audio is sent to external servers unless you explicitly enable a cloud transcription provider.

That is a claim, so we measured it. See the measurement, including the method, the connections we did find, and where the test is weak.

3. Data we collect

Using the app

By default, the app sends no usage analytics. PrivateTranscribe runs on your device. Local transcription audio and transcript content stay on your machine unless you explicitly enable a cloud provider. Optional app analytics are collected only if you opt in.

Cloud transcription (optional, disabled by default)

If you enable a cloud provider (e.g. OpenAI Whisper API), audio is sent directly to that provider. PrivateTranscribe does not store or intercept this audio. Each provider has its own privacy policy.

Optional analytics (opt-in)

If you opt in during setup, PrivateTranscribe sends a pseudonymous random per-install identifier, app version, operating system, setup and feature milestones, and constrained aggregate properties such as onboarding step, transcription engine source, output behavior, and broad word-count and duration buckets. The identifier lets us group events from the same installation, but it does not contain your hardware identity, account, or email.

No audio, transcript content, window titles, filenames, file paths, API keys, email addresses, or hardware identifiers are included. You can withdraw or restore consent at any time under General settings, in Privacy & History.

Feedback you send from the app

If you use Send Feedback in the app, we receive your message, its category, any contact details and screenshots you add, the app version, and basic machine specs such as the Windows version, processor, memory, and graphics card. It also carries a random per-install identifier, which the server hashes and uses only to limit how often one install can send feedback. No audio, transcripts, logs, hostname, or username are sent.

We store feedback on Supabase in the EU. So we see it quickly, the message, the machine specs, and any screenshots are also posted to Discord, where we get notified. Your contact details are not posted there.

Download measurement on this website

When you request the Windows installer, we record a pseudonymous visitor hash derived from your IP address, browser user agent, app release, and a private salt. We do not store the raw IP address or full user agent. We also record the app release, referring website hostname, country code, campaign or referral parameters, timestamp, and whether the request is a duplicate within 24 hours.

We use this limited server-side measurement to count genuine downloads, avoid duplicate and bot traffic, understand which guides or campaigns lead to downloads, and maintain reliable download delivery. It does not use cookies or track you across other websites.

Visits to this website

This website counts page views with Vercel Web Analytics. For each view, Vercel records the page address, the referring website, campaign parameters, an approximate location down to the city, and your browser, operating system, and device type. Vercel tells visits apart with a hash made from the request and discards the visitor session after 24 hours. It sets no third-party cookies and does not track you across other websites.

Earlier programs

Before PrivateTranscribe became free, we sold a license and ran a tester program, a creator program, and a waitlist. If you took part, we still hold the email address and details you gave us then, such as your license or creator records. We no longer use them for anything new.

4. Data we do NOT collect

• We do not collect or transmit your transcriptions.
• We do not sell personal data, and we share it only with the services named on this page.
• We do not use your data to train AI models.
• We do not track you across websites or apps.

5. Where data is stored

• Optional analytics: hosted on Supabase in the EU and tied only to a pseudonymous random per-install identifier.
• Download measurement: hosted on Supabase in the EU.
• Website page views: counted by Vercel, under Vercel's own retention rules.
• Feedback: hosted on Supabase in the EU, with a copy posted to Discord as described above.
• Records from earlier programs: hosted on Supabase in the EU.
• Everything else: stays on your device.

6. Legal basis for processing (GDPR)

We process personal data on the following legal bases:

• Legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f)) - limited website download measurement to understand demand, prevent duplicate or bot counts, and maintain download delivery.
• Legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f)) - counting page views to see which pages help people.
• Legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f)) - keeping records from earlier programs so we can answer questions about them.
• Consent (Art. 6(1)(a)) - optional analytics, where applicable, and feedback you choose to send.

7. Your rights

Under GDPR, you have these rights.

• Access the personal data we hold about you.
• Correct inaccurate data.
• Delete your data - email support@privatetranscribe.com.
• Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
• Withdraw analytics consent from within the app under General settings, in Privacy & History.
• Lodge a complaint with the Danish Data Protection Authority (Datatilsynet) at datatilsynet.dk.

8. Data retention

Raw download measurement events are deleted automatically after 90 days. Optional app analytics events are deleted automatically after 12 months. Feedback is kept as long as it helps us fix or answer what it reports. Records from earlier programs are kept only as long as we need them to answer questions about those programs. Upon a valid deletion request, we remove associated personal data within 30 days unless we must retain it for legal reasons.

9. Contact

For privacy questions or data requests, email support@privatetranscribe.com