Privacy Policy
Who we are
TakeSermon turns sermons you record into notes. In this policy, "we" means TakeSermon. If you have any question about your data, email hello@takesermon.com.
Key points
- TakeSermon records sermons and talks on your phone and turns them into written notes for you.
- Your data is encrypted in transit and at rest.
- We do not sell your data or use it for advertising.
- We do not allow third parties such as OpenAI or Anthropic to use your Personal Data to train AI models.
- Notes are written by AI and can contain mistakes.
- You can delete any note, or your whole account, from the app at any time.
1. Scope of this policy
This policy explains how we handle personal data when you use the TakeSermon app and website (together, the "Services"). We are the data controller for your data.
When you continue past the sign-in screen, you confirm you have read this policy and our Terms of Use, and you consent to us processing your recordings, transcripts and notes as described here, including any religious content they contain. You also confirm you are 16 or over. You can withdraw consent at any time by deleting your notes or your account.
2. Information we collect
Information you give us
- Account information: your name, email address and an account ID from Google or Apple.
- Recordings and transcripts: audio you record and the transcripts made from it.
- Notes: content we create from your transcripts.
- Session details: information you add about a recording, such as a title.
- Messages to us: anything you send when you contact us.
Information collected automatically
- Device and usage information: device type, app version and performance data, used to keep the Services reliable.
- Usage limits: records of your use, so we can apply usage limits.
We do not use advertising, analytics or tracking tools, and we do not collect your location or contacts.
Information from others
- Google and Apple: the sign-in details above, and information needed to manage your sign-in.
- People you record: recordings may include other people's voices. Our Terms of Use make you responsible for having permission to record.
Children
The Services are not for anyone under 16. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 16. If we learn we have, we delete it. If you think a child under 16 has an account, contact us.
3. How we use your data
| Purpose | Lawful basis (UK and EU GDPR) |
|---|---|
| Create and run your account | Contract |
| Transcribe recordings and write your notes | Contract, plus explicit consent for religious content (section 10) |
| Keep the Services working, find and fix faults | Legitimate interests: reliable Services |
| Apply usage limits and prevent misuse | Legitimate interests: fair use and security |
| Reply to you and send essential service messages | Contract or legitimate interests |
| Meet legal obligations | Legal obligation |
We do not sell your data, share it for advertising, or send you marketing. If we ever want to send marketing, we will ask first.
4. How we share your data
Service providers. We use a small number of companies to run the Services. They receive only what they need to do their job, without your name or email address, and process it only on our instructions, under written agreements. They may not use it for their own purposes or to train AI models. We do not allow third parties to use your Personal Data to train AI models.
| Category | What they do |
|---|---|
| Hosting and infrastructure | Store data and run the Services |
| Transcription | Turn recordings into transcripts |
| AI processing | Write notes from transcripts |
Sign-in providers. Google and Apple handle sign-in under their own privacy policies.
Legal reasons. We may share data if the law requires it, or to protect the rights, property or safety of our members, the public or us.
Business transfers. If TakeSermon is sold or merged, your data may pass to the new owner, who must respect this policy.
Anonymous information. We may share statistics that cannot identify you, such as how many recordings were made in a month.
5. International transfers
Some providers process data outside the UK and EU. When they do, we use approved safeguards, such as adequacy decisions or standard contractual clauses. You can ask us for a copy of these safeguards.
6. Managing your data
Deleting a note. You can delete any note in the app. Its content is deleted from our systems.
Deleting your account. You can delete your account in Settings at any time. Deletion is permanent: we delete your account, recordings, transcripts and notes, keep only anonymous records, and remove the app's link to your Google or Apple account. If you cannot use the app, contact us and we will delete it for you.
Cookies and tracking. We do not use advertising or tracking tools. Our website uses only cookies needed for it to work.
Emails. We only email you about your account or important changes to the Services.
7. Data retention
We keep personal data only as long as we need it for the purposes in section 3.
- Audio is deleted from our servers once it has been transcribed.
- Your account and content are kept until you delete them.
- Anonymous records that cannot identify you may be kept.
- Service providers keep data only as long as they need to provide their service.
If you stop using the Services, we keep your account and notes until you delete them.
8. Your rights
Under UK GDPR and EU GDPR you have the right to:
- access the personal data we hold about you
- correct data that is wrong
- have your data deleted
- restrict how we use it, or object where we rely on legitimate interests
- receive your data in a common format (portability)
- withdraw consent at any time, without affecting what happened before
- not be subject to decisions based only on automated processing that have legal or similarly significant effects
Email hello@takesermon.com to use any of these rights. We reply within one month and may ask you to confirm your identity, for example by writing from the email address you sign in with.
If you have a concern, please contact us first. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office in the UK (ico.org.uk) or the data protection authority in your EU country.
9. Information security
We use industry-standard measures to protect your data, including encryption in transit and at rest and strict access controls.
No system is perfectly secure. If a breach puts your data at risk, we will tell you and the regulator as the law requires.
10. Religious information
Sermons, and your notes on them, can reveal religious beliefs. UK and EU law treat this as a "special category" of personal data that needs extra protection. We process it only:
- with your explicit consent, given on the sign-in screen (section 1)
- to make and keep your notes, and for no other purpose
We never use it to profile you, for advertising, or to make decisions about you. You can withdraw consent at any time by deleting your notes or your account.
11. AI and automated processing
We use AI to provide parts of the Services, such as transcription and notes. This happens automatically, without human review.
- Accuracy: AI output can be wrong or incomplete, including Bible references. Check anything important before relying on it.
- No training: we do not train AI models on your data, and we do not allow third parties to use your Personal Data to train AI models.
- No automated decisions: we make no decisions with legal or similarly significant effects on you using AI or any other automated processing.
12. Changes to this policy
We will update this policy when the Services or the law change. Changes take effect when we post them. For important changes, we will tell you in the app or by email at least 30 days before they take effect, where we can.