Privacy Policy

In short

Who is responsible

Annotate Audio is developed by Marco Lüthi, the controller responsible for data processing under the Swiss Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP) and, where applicable, the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Marco Lüthi
Gutstrasse 172
8055 Zürich
Switzerland
hi@luthi-mar.co

Microphone

With your permission, Annotate Audio uses the microphone to record the sounds you teach it and, when you turn on Auto, to listen for them. It only listens while the Record tab is open or Auto is on. While Auto is on, it keeps listening when the app is in the background, and iOS shows that the microphone is in use.

Listening works like this: the incoming audio is analysed on your iPhone by your own trained sound model, using Apple's on-device SoundAnalysis framework. To make clips start before a sound, the app keeps a short rolling buffer of the last few seconds in a temporary file on your device. Audio that doesn't become a recording is discarded. Nothing is streamed or uploaded. You can turn microphone access off at any time in the iOS Settings app.

Training and recognising sounds

Sound models are trained on your iPhone with Apple's Create ML, from the recordings in your folders. Recognising sounds, checking recordings again after training, and the second opinion shown when you review a clip (Apple's built-in sound classifier) also run on your device. No audio is sent to the developer or to any server for this.

Recordings, models and iCloud

Recordings are saved as audio files in folders named after your sounds, together with the models you train and a short report for each model. If you are signed in to iCloud on your iPhone, they are stored in the app's folder in your iCloud Drive, so they sync to your other devices and appear in the Files app. If you are not signed in, they stay in the app on your iPhone. The list of clips flagged for review and your app settings are always stored only on your iPhone.

iCloud Drive is a service provided by Apple to you. The developer has no access to your iCloud Drive and never receives your recordings or models. Apple processes this data under its own privacy policy: apple.com/legal/privacy. You can delete recordings and models in the app, in the Files app, or by turning off iCloud Drive for the app in the iOS Settings app. Deleting the app deletes the data stored on your iPhone.

Export and sharing

When you export a folder as a ZIP file or share a recording, it goes only to the apps, places and people you choose in the iOS share sheet. The app does not upload it anywhere.

Legal basis

Where the GDPR applies, the processing described above is necessary to provide the features you use (Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR). Microphone access is based on your choice to allow it, which you can withdraw at any time in the iOS Settings app. Under the Swiss FADP, we process personal data only as described here and in line with its principles.

What Annotate Audio does not do

• No account, sign-up or login.
• No advertising, analytics or crash reporting.
• No tracking across apps or websites, and no selling or sharing of data with data brokers.
• No recordings or sound models are sent to the developer.

This website

This website is a static site without cookies, analytics or tracking. Fonts are served from this website itself, so your browser does not contact third-party font services. When you visit a page, the website's hosting provider (hosted in Switzerland or the EU) automatically records technical access data in server logs: your IP address, date and time, the requested page, referrer and browser type. This is needed to deliver the site and keep it secure (legitimate interest, Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR). The logs are deleted after a short period. Links to the App Store take you to Apple, where Apple's privacy policy applies.

Your rights

You have the right to request access to your personal data and to have it corrected or deleted, to object to or restrict processing, and to data portability. Because the apps store your data on your device and do not identify you, the developer usually holds no personal data about you. Most of it you can delete yourself by deleting the app.

To exercise your rights, email hi@luthi-mar.co. You can also lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority: in Switzerland the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC), in the EU the data protection authority of your country.

International transfers

Apple may process data in the United States and other countries. Apple describes the safeguards it uses for these transfers, such as the Data Privacy Framework and standard contractual clauses, in its privacy policy.

Children

Annotate Audio is not directed at children and does not knowingly collect data from them.

Changes to this policy

If the app starts handling data differently, this page will be updated before the change ships, and the date at the top will change.