Privacy Policy

1Who we are

Sayholm (“the app”) is a voice recorder for Android that turns speech into text on the phone. You record audio or import audio and video files; the app transcribes them on your device, lets you play them back with the current word highlighted, edit the text, add bookmarks and speaker names, search all recordings and export transcripts, subtitles and audio. It is developed and published by Zydeno (“we”, “us”, “the developer”), an independent developer. For anything related to privacy, write to support@zydeno.com. More about us: zydeno.com.

2Scope of this policy

This policy covers the Sayholm Android app distributed through Google Play. It explains local storage, microphone use, Google Play model delivery and the files you choose to export or share. Sayholm itself has no internet access. Google Play and Android operate separately, including delivery of the app and all speech models; Google handles its own processing under the Google Privacy Policy. Browsers, e-mail apps, file providers, cloud drives and other apps you choose to use have their own policies.

Our Terms of Use explain your responsibility for the consent of the people you record.

3What the developer does not collect

Sayholm has no backend of ours. The developer does not receive or store any personal data about you or about the people you record through the app. The only exception is an e-mail you choose to send us yourself. In particular, the app:

• has no account, sign-in, e-mail or phone-number field, and no cloud storage or sync;
• never uploads audio, transcripts, bookmarks, speaker names or any other content you create; transcription runs entirely on your phone;
• never connects to a Zydeno server. The privacy and terms pages open in your browser; the app itself does not contact zydeno.com;
• contains no advertising, analytics, attribution or crash-reporting SDKs. The app has no ads and no analytics;
• does not use the Android advertising ID and does not create any device or user identifier;
• does not request location, camera, contacts, SMS, call-log, phone-state, accessibility or storage permissions, and does not read your files on its own;
• does not identify people by their voice, does not build voice profiles and does not send speech to any speech service;
• does not track you across other apps or websites and does not sell, rent or share personal information with anyone.

4Data on your device

Everything you create in Sayholm lives in the app’s private storage on your phone:

• Recordings: the audio you record (AAC or WAV, as you choose) and a small recording journal (duration, pauses, bookmarks, input device and sample rate) that lets the app recover a recording if the app is closed while it runs;
• Imported files: a copy of the audio track of the audio or video files you import (video pictures are not kept), or a reference to the file if you choose not to copy it;
• Transcripts: the recognised words with their start and end times and a confidence value, your edits, speaker changes and names, bookmarks and labels, and a search index of your transcripts;
• Speech models: speech recognition models delivered by Google Play and any local working copies (see §7);
• Settings: language, transcription and recording options, playback options, formats, theme, haptics, and the time you saw the explanation screen before your first recording;
• Working data: temporary audio prepared for transcription, playback or export, deleted after each job, at the next start or with “Storage” in the app.

To choose sensible defaults, the app reads the country code of your SIM card and mobile network (if any) and your phone’s region setting, and uses it on the phone only to preselect paper size and time format. This needs no permission, nothing is sent anywhere, and you can change every format in Settings. The app measures how fast speech recognition runs on your phone, on the phone only, to suggest a model and to decide whether text can appear live while you record.

Sayholm opts out of Android cloud backup and device-to-device transfer, so its data is not copied to your Google account or to a new phone automatically. To move your data, use “Export all” and “Import” (see §9). Demo transcripts are fictional examples written by us and bundled with the app; they do not contain real users’ recordings.

5Microphone, recording and notifications

Before your first recording Sayholm explains microphone use, local storage and recording consent, then requests Android microphone permission. You initiate capture yourself. If you refuse microphone access, importing and transcribing files still work.

• Visible capture. The recording screen shows a red REC lamp. Pausing or stopping releases the microphone. Android also provides its own microphone indicator on supported versions.
• Saved recordings require visible notifications. Every saved recording, including while Sayholm is open, requires notification permission on Android 13 and later, enabled app notifications and an enabled recording channel (and channel group, if any). A microphone foreground service displays the recording notification before capture starts. Recording can continue with the screen off or another app open while these safeguards remain enabled. The notification provides Pause, Resume, Bookmark and Stop.
• If notifications are unavailable. Refusing or revoking notification permission, disabling app notifications or blocking the recording channel or its group blocks starting a saved recording. If this happens during an existing recording, Sayholm stops capture and saves the recording. Resuming a paused recording is subject to the same check; if it fails, the recording is stopped and saved. Android’s foreground-service Task Manager entry alone is not treated as a visible recording notification.
• No automatic or call recording. Sayholm does not start recording from boot, schedules, widgets or the background, and cannot record phone or internet calls. Another app or a call taking the microphone can interrupt capture; any resume remains subject to the same foreground and notification safeguards.
• Introduction try-out. Only the optional short onboarding “say a phrase” probe can use the microphone without enabled notifications. It runs for up to eight seconds, keeps audio in memory without saving a recording, and is cancelled when Sayholm leaves the foreground or the introduction screen is closed. Microphone permission is still required.
• Transcription. Audio-to-text processing runs on your phone. Long jobs can use a foreground processing service with progress and cancellation; this does not upload audio or transcripts.

On Android 13 and later, visible notifications require notification permission. You can change microphone and notification permissions in Android Settings. Turning off notifications blocks starting saved recordings and stops and saves an existing recording.

6People you record

Recordings usually contain the voices, and sometimes the personal details, of other people. You make these recordings yourself and they stay on your device. Zydeno never receives them and is not the controller of them.

• Consent and recording laws. Laws on recording conversations differ by country and region. Some places allow a participant to record with their own consent (one-party consent); others require the consent of everyone who is recorded (all-party or two-party consent), and recording people who are not part of the conversation, or in private places, may be prohibited. Workplaces, schools, courts and venues may have their own rules. You are responsible for informing people and obtaining consent where it is required.
• Personal use and beyond. Keeping recordings for yourself is often a purely personal or household activity, which in the EU, the UK and many other places falls outside data-protection law (for example, Article 2(2)(c) GDPR). If you record for work, research, journalism or publication, or share recordings or transcripts with others, you may be the controller of that data and need a lawful basis, and research ethics rules may apply.
• Sensitive information. People may mention health, beliefs, politics or other sensitive matters in a recording. The app does not analyse what is said, does not classify speakers and does not draw conclusions from the content; it only turns speech into text for you.
• Requests from people you recorded. If someone asks you to delete or correct a recording or transcript, you can do that in the app. We cannot do it for you, because we do not have it.

7No internet access; Google Play model delivery

The Sayholm app has no INTERNET permission and opens no network connections. Recording, transcription, playback, editing, search and export run locally. Once the required model is available on the device, transcription works without an internet connection, including in airplane mode. There is no cloud speech-recognition service.

All speech models come from Google Play Asset Delivery. Sayholm does not download models from a model-hosting website or a separate HTTP endpoint. Google Play supplies and updates model asset packs as part of its own delivery processes. Delivery may require connectivity in Google Play and may use your data allowance; availability depends on Google Play, the installed app version and device storage.

Google’s separate processing. Google documents device metadata and application version for asset delivery, used to provide the appropriate asset pack and preserve packs after updates. This processing is performed by Google Play under the Google Privacy Policy and Google Play Terms of Service; it is not a direct internet connection from Sayholm. Recordings, transcripts, speaker labels and other content are not sent for model delivery. See Google’s asset-delivery data safety information. We do not receive Google’s delivery logs or control their retention.

Links to this policy and the Terms open in your browser. Support opens your e-mail app addressed to support@zydeno.com, without recordings, transcripts or device diagnostics attached. You decide whether to send a message. Your chosen browser, e-mail app or file recipient handles its own connection and processing.

8Import, export and sharing

• Import: an audio or video file is read only when you pick it in Android’s file picker, share it to Sayholm or open it with Sayholm. The app gets access only to that file.
• Export: transcripts (TXT, SRT, VTT, DOCX, PDF), audio and ZIP archives are written only to the place you choose in Android’s system “save as” picker. The app does not need, and does not have, storage permission.
• Share and copy: when you share a file or copy a quote, Android passes it to the app you pick or to the clipboard. Shared files and copied text may contain what other people said.

The pickers may offer locations provided by other apps, for example a cloud drive. If you save or share a file there, that app’s own privacy policy applies to it. Once a file leaves the app, we cannot see or control it.

9Storage, backup and deletion

• Export all saves recordings, transcripts and settings in a ZIP file in the location you choose; Import restores a supported backup. Keep that file private.
• Delete a recording or its audio in the app. Storage controls show local space use and let you clear removable working data.
• Delete everything clears your recordings, transcripts, settings, caches and removable local model copies. Model asset packs supplied as part of the installed app are managed by Google Play and can remain installed; they contain model weights, not your recordings or transcripts.
• Uninstalling removes the app and its private data. Exported files remain where you saved them; remove those copies separately. We have no copy of your local data to restore.
• Android automatic cloud backup and device-to-device transfer are disabled. Use manual export and import to move your recordings.

10Legal bases for processing

Where the EU or UK GDPR, or a similar law such as the Swiss FADP or Brazil’s LGPD, applies, these are the legal bases for the limited processing described in this policy:

The app makes no automated decisions that have legal or similarly significant effects on you, does not build a profile of you and does not analyse special categories of personal data. Recordings may capture health, beliefs or other sensitive matters that people mention; they stay on your device under your control, and we process none of them.

11Retention

Recordings and transcripts stay on your device until you delete them or remove the app. We keep nothing from the app, because we receive nothing from it. If you e-mail us, we keep your message only as long as needed to answer it and fix the problem, and you can ask us to delete it at any time.

12Your privacy rights

Privacy laws in many countries give you rights over your personal data. Because Sayholm keeps your data on your phone and the developer does not receive it, most of these rights are in your own hands: you can view, correct, export and delete everything in the app (§9) and withdraw permissions in Android Settings. For data you have sent us, such as e-mails, write to support@zydeno.com.

EU and UK representative. The individual developer does not process personal data of people in the EU/EEA or the UK except occasional e-mails you choose to send to support. This occasional processing does not involve large-scale processing of special-category or criminal-offence data and is unlikely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms. Under Article 27(2)(a) GDPR and Article 27(2)(a) UK GDPR, it does not require an EU or UK representative, so none is appointed. Contact us directly at support@zydeno.com; you can also complain to your local supervisory authority.

Rights by region. A summary; the law where you live decides the details.

• European Union, EEA, United Kingdom and Switzerland (GDPR, UK GDPR, Swiss FADP): access, rectification, erasure, restriction of processing, data portability, objection to processing based on legitimate interests, withdrawal of consent at any time, and complaint to a supervisory authority, for example in the country where you live or work (in the UK, the Information Commissioner’s Office).
• United States (California CCPA as amended by the CPRA, and the comprehensive privacy laws of other states such as Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Texas and Oregon): to know and access, delete, correct and port personal information; to opt out of its sale or sharing, of targeted advertising and of profiling; to limit the use of sensitive personal information; to appeal a refusal; to use an authorised agent; and not to be discriminated against for using these rights. Notice for California residents: in the last 12 months the developer has not collected personal information through the app, other than e-mails you chose to send us. We have not sold or shared personal information, and we do not use sensitive personal information. Global Privacy Control signals are honoured where the law requires; today there is nothing to opt out of.
• Canada (PIPEDA and provincial laws, including Québec’s Law 25): access, correction and withdrawal of consent; complaints to the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada or, in Québec, the Commission d’accès à l’information.
• Brazil (LGPD): confirmation of processing, access, correction, anonymisation, blocking or deletion, portability, information about sharing and revocation of consent; complaints to the ANPD.
• Japan (APPI): disclosure, correction, suspension of use or deletion; complaints to the Personal Information Protection Commission.
• South Korea (PIPA): access, correction, deletion, suspension of processing and withdrawal of consent; complaints to the Personal Information Protection Commission or the KISA privacy centre. The person responsible for personal information is the developer, reachable at support@zydeno.com.
• Australia and New Zealand (Privacy Act 1988, Privacy Act 2020): access and correction; complaints to the OAIC or the New Zealand Privacy Commissioner.
• Other countries (for example India’s DPDP Act, Singapore’s PDPA, South Africa’s POPIA or Türkiye’s KVKK): the rights your local law gives you. Write to us and we will respond in line with it.

How we respond. We answer within one month, or sooner or later where your local law sets another period (for example 45 days under the CCPA), and we may extend it where the law allows. We may ask for information to confirm that a request comes from you. Requests are free unless they are manifestly unfounded or excessive. If we cannot do what you ask, we explain why and how you can appeal or complain.

13International users

Sayholm is available in many countries. The developer does not receive the data you keep in the app, so we do not transfer it anywhere.

If you e-mail us, your message is processed by our e-mail provider and may be stored on servers outside your country. Where the GDPR or UK GDPR applies to such a transfer, it relies on an adequacy decision, on standard contractual clauses offered by the provider, or on the transfer being necessary to answer your request.

This policy is written in English. If a translation is offered, the English version prevails unless your local law requires otherwise.

14Security

Recordings and transcripts stay in app-private storage, protected by Android’s app sandbox and your device’s security features. Sayholm does not transmit them over a network. Google Play manages the delivery of model asset packs separately. The app does not provide a separate password or encryption layer for your local files.

Protect your phone with a screen lock, keep Android updated and store exports privately. Other apps can access copies only when you give them access, for example through Share or a file picker. No storage method is completely secure.

15Ads, purchases and future versions

Today. The current version of Sayholm is free of charge, shows no ads, has no in-app purchases or subscriptions, and contains no advertising, analytics or payment SDKs. This describes the app as it is now, not a promise about future versions. Future versions may introduce advertising, paid features, in-app purchases or subscriptions, or other optional services.

If ads are introduced. Ads would be supplied by a third-party ad network, for example Google AdMob. Ad networks typically process your device’s advertising ID, IP address, approximate location derived from the IP address, device and app information and your interactions with ads, in order to show ads, limit repetition, measure performance and prevent fraud, and, only where you allow it, to personalise ads. Ads would also require the app to connect to the internet, which the current version cannot do.

If purchases or subscriptions are introduced. They would be processed by Google Play’s billing system. Google handles your payment details under the Google Privacy Policy. We would receive only what is needed to deliver and verify a purchase, such as a purchase token, the product, its status, the country and the currency, never your full card or bank details.

Before any such change we will update this policy with a new effective date and version, describing what data is processed, by whom, why and how you can control it; update the Google Play Data safety section; mention the change in the release notes; ask for your consent where the law requires it (for example for personalised ads and non-essential access to your device in the EEA, the UK and Switzerland, through a consent tool that meets Google’s requirements); and offer the opt-outs the law requires (for example under US state privacy laws). The change applies only from the app version that introduces it. Data already stored in the app will not be used for advertising without telling you first and, where required, getting your consent. We will not knowingly show personalised ads to children (§16).

16Children

Sayholm is intended for adults and is not directed to children. We do not knowingly collect any information from children; in fact the app collects no information from anyone. If you record children, for example in a class, you are responsible for the consent of their parents or guardians where it is required. If you are under the age of majority where you live, use the app with the involvement of a parent or guardian.

17Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when we change the app (including any change described in §15), when the services the app uses change, or when the law changes. The effective date and version at the top of this page show which version applies, and the version history (§18) summarises every change.

For a material change, for example new data leaving your device, ads or purchases, we update this page and the Google Play Data safety section before the app version with that change is published, describe it in the release notes, and ask for your consent in the app where the law requires it. Changes do not apply retroactively to data processed before them. Earlier versions are available on request from support@zydeno.com.

18Version history

19Contact

• Developer (controller): Zydeno, the developer of Sayholm on Google Play
• E-mail for privacy questions and requests: support@zydeno.com
• Website: zydeno.com

We aim to answer within 30 days. If you are not satisfied with our answer, you can contact your local data-protection authority.

See also the Terms of Use.