Privacy Policy

Last updated: 2026-06-25

Quietoak is a mental-health-adjacent app, so we hold your data to a careful standard: your practice stays on your device by default, there are no ads or third-party trackers on your diary or chat, and we collect as little as we can.

Who we are

Quietoak is an iOS app created by an independent developer (Daniel Muskin). There is no account and no login — the app identifies your install with a random, on-device identifier, not your name or email. Contact: hi@quietoak.app.

What stays on your device

By default, your diary card entries, mood and urge logs, chosen companion, and practice history are stored locally on your device and are not uploaded to us. If you have iCloud Backup enabled, they are included per your iOS settings. We do not keep a copy of your diary on our servers. Any health conditions or focus areas you choose to share — and how sure you are about each — are also kept on your device, and are optional, editable, and clearable at any time. If you chat with your companion, that context is included with your messages so replies can fit you (see below).

What is sent off the device — and why

1. Your messages to your companion

When you chat with your companion, the messages in that conversation are sent to our backend and forwarded to an AI provider to generate a reply. If you've chosen to share any conditions or focus areas — which otherwise stay on your device — that context is included with your messages so the reply can be tailored to you. When you mention a mood in chat, your companion may also save a brief mood note (an emotion and a 0–5 intensity) on our backend, tied to the same random device identifier, so it can keep gentle track with you — this is separate from your on-device diary card. We use Anthropic (Claude) as the primary provider and OpenAI as a fallback and for optional voice. Under these providers' current API terms, your content is not used to train their models — we don't control their policies, so please also see their privacy links below. We don't sell or share your conversations. To power your saved chats and the continuity you'd expect — your companion remembering what you're working on between conversations — your messages are stored on our backend, tied only to a random device identifier (we hold no name, email, or login). You can have them permanently deleted at any time (see "Your choices & rights" below).

2. A minimal safety log (so help works when it matters)

Quietoak runs an independent safety check on chat messages so it can surface crisis resources reliably. When a message is flagged, we record a minimal, pseudonymous safety event tied only to your random device identifier — not your name. This exists to keep the safety system honest and to meet our obligations under California's SB 243 (companion-chatbot safety law). These events are kept briefly and auto-purged on a short schedule. Crisis resources are never gated, metered, or paywalled.

3. Purchases

If you subscribe to Quietoak Plus, the App Store sends us a signed transaction (JWS) that we verify on our backend. We store only the entitlement state needed to unlock Plus features. The App Store handles billing, refunds, and your Apple ID — we never see your payment method.

4. Voice dictation (optional)

If you tap to dictate a diary entry, the microphone is used only during that recording. The audio is sent to our backend and on to OpenAI for transcription, used only to produce the text, and is not stored after transcription.

What we do not collect

Your name, email, or login credentials (the app has no account).
Your location, contacts, photos, or calendar.
Any advertising identifiers. There are no ad SDKs and no third-party analytics trackers attached to your diary or chat.
Data from outside Quietoak.

How your health-related content is treated

Your diary and conversations may include sensitive mental-health information. We treat that content with care, encrypt it in transit (TLS), keep what we store on infrastructure that encrypts data at rest, and minimize what leaves your device.

Quietoak is not a HIPAA-covered entity, and we do not claim to be. We are a self-help wellness app, not a healthcare provider.
The U.S. FTC Health Breach Notification Rule may apply to apps like ours. If a breach affecting your health-related data ever occurs, we will — within the timeframes the Rule sets — post notice here and in the App Store update notes, surface an in-app notice the next time you open Quietoak, and notify the FTC (and the media where the Rule requires). Because we hold no email or contact details for you, those are the most direct ways we can reach you.

Third parties

Apple App Store — purchases and Apple ID. apple.com/legal/privacy
Anthropic — primary AI provider for companion replies. anthropic.com/legal/privacy
OpenAI — fallback AI provider, optional companion voice, and voice-dictation transcription. openai.com/policies/privacy-policy
Fly.io — hosts our backend. fly.io/legal/privacy-policy

Your choices & rights

Delete your data: "Delete all my data" in the app erases your diary, chats, and chains on your device, and asks our backend to delete your saved conversations, mood logs, and safety log tied to your device identifier (subject to minimal retention required by law). Deleting the app removes all on-device data, and you can always email hi@quietoak.app with any request.
Manage Plus: iOS Settings → Apple ID → Subscriptions.
EU/UK (GDPR) & California (CCPA): you may request access to or deletion of data tied to your device identifier, and you can object to or withdraw consent for processing at any time. We do not sell or share your personal information, and we will not discriminate against you for exercising these rights. The categories we hold are limited to: your random device identifier, your companion messages and saved conversations, any chat-logged mood notes, minimal pseudonymous safety events, and your Plus entitlement state. Our legal bases (GDPR) are your consent for the AI processing and our legitimate interest in operating and securing the service. Email hi@quietoak.app to access or delete any of it.

Children

Quietoak is intended for adults 18 and older and is not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If you believe a minor has used the app, contact hi@quietoak.app.

Changes

If we change this policy we will update the date above and post the new version here. Material changes will be noted in the App Store update notes.

Contact

Questions about privacy: hi@quietoak.app

If you're in crisis: Quietoak is not an emergency service. Call or text 988 (US Suicide & Crisis Lifeline), text HOME to 741741, or call your local emergency number. The in-app Crisis Survival Kit is always free and works offline.