Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

We collect only what we need to run the Service:

• Account information — your name, email address, and date of birth, collected when you create an account or are invited to a family. Sign-in and authentication are handled by our authentication provider (Clerk).
• Mobile phone numbers — when you add your own number to your account profile while signed in. Providing a phone number is not, by itself, consent to receive text messages. SMS activity alerts require a separate, explicit opt-in on the in-app consent screen (see “Text Messaging (SMS)” below). A family member may also enter a phone number when inviting someone, but that number is used only to recognize that person and to avoid sending them duplicate invitations — we do not send text messages to invitee numbers or to any number provided by anyone other than its owner.
• Content you create — the stories, recordings, transcripts, photos, and captions you add, together with the people, families, and relationships you choose to record.
• Google Photos you select — when you choose to import from Google Photos, we receive only the specific photos you pick (see “Google User Data” below).
• Technical and usage data — basic, privacy-preserving analytics (such as page views and aggregate usage) and standard server logs used to keep the Service secure and reliable.

Text Messaging (SMS)

Tell Me Again values your privacy. This section describes our SMS activity-alert program, which is available only to signed-in account holders who complete a separate opt-in step in the app. If you choose to opt in, the following terms describe how we handle your data for that program:

Data Collection: To deliver SMS activity alerts, we use the name, email address, and mobile phone number on your signed-in account. You must create an account and sign in before you can opt in. Providing a phone number elsewhere in the Service — such as on your profile or in an invitation form — does not enroll you in SMS.

Data Usage: Your information will be used solely for sending activity alerts from your family — when someone shares a story, answers your question, asks you something, tags you in a photo, or comments on your story. No marketing or promotional messages. Your phone number is shared with our SMS service provider, Twilio, when you opt-in and consent to our SMS alerts system.

Data Security: We implement industry-standard encryption and secure storage measures to protect your data from unauthorized access.

Data Retention: When you opt out of SMS, we stop sending you text messages immediately. Opting out is not a request to delete your account or remove your phone number from the Service — we keep a record of the opt-out itself so that we can continue to honor it and never text you again by mistake. To delete your account and personal content, see “Data Retention and Deletion” below.

Message Frequency: Event-driven; frequency varies.

Message and Data Rates: Standard message and data rates may apply. Check with your carrier for details.

Opt-Out Instructions: To opt out of receiving SMS messages, reply with "STOP" to any text message. After processing your request, you will no longer receive messages from us.

Help Instructions: For assistance, reply with "HELP" or contact us at support@tellmeagain.app.

Non-Sharing Clause: We do not share your information with third parties for marketing purposes. Your data is only shared with our SMS service provider for messaging purposes.

Contact Information: For questions about this policy, please contact us at support@tellmeagain.app.

Google User Data

Tell Me Again offers an optional feature that lets you add photos from your Google Photos library to your family album. This feature uses the Google Photos Picker API and requests a single, read-only scope: photospicker.mediaitems.readonly.

When you use this feature, Google opens its own photo picker. We never see your full Google Photos library. We receive only the individual photos you explicitly select in that picker, and only for as long as it takes to copy them into your family album.

We use the Google data we receive solely to:

• Download the specific photos you selected and add them to your Tell Me Again family album, at your request.

We do not use Google user data for advertising, and we do not sell it or transfer it to third parties except as needed to provide this feature (for example, our storage provider). We do not use Google user data to train machine-learning or AI models.

Tell Me Again's use and transfer of information received from Google APIs to any other app will adhere to the Google API Services User Data Policy, including the Limited Use requirements.

You can disconnect Google Photos at any time from within the app, and you can revoke Tell Me Again's access to your Google Account at https://myaccount.google.com/permissions. Photos you already imported remain in your album until you delete them.

How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect to:

• Provide the Service — save your stories and media, and show them to the family members you have chosen to share them with.
• Enable voice capture and story features — transcribe recordings and render them into readable stories using vendor services acting on our behalf.
• Keep the Service secure — authenticate you, prevent abuse, and diagnose problems.
• Communicate with you — send account, security, and Service-related messages by email, including invitations to join a family; and, where you have separately opted in on the in-app SMS consent screen with your own mobile number while signed in, SMS activity alerts about family activity in the Service.

How Your Information Is Shared

Sharing within your family is controlled by you. A story is visible to others only after you approve it for sharing and choose an audience (for example, your whole family or a chosen branch). Until then, only you can see it.

We share information with service providers who process it on our behalf under confidentiality obligations — including hosting, database, storage, authentication, email, SMS delivery, transcription, language-model, evaluation, and observability providers. They may use your information only to provide services to us.

We may disclose information if required by law, to protect the safety of people, or as part of a business transfer, and we will act to protect your information in any such event. The above excludes text messaging originator opt-in data and consent; this information will not be shared with any third parties.

Third-Party Services We Use

We rely on trusted providers to run the Service, including:

• Vercel — application hosting and web analytics.
• Neon / Supabase — database hosting.
• Cloudflare R2 — storage of media files (recordings and photos).
• Clerk — account authentication.
• Twilio — SMS text message delivery, when a consented phone number is provided.
• Resend / Zoho — email delivery and business email.
• Google — the Google Photos Picker, when you choose to import photos.
• Groq, Anthropic, and ElevenLabs — transcription, story rendering, and voice features.

Data Retention and Deletion

We keep your information for as long as your account is active or as needed to provide the Service. You can delete individual stories, photos, and recordings at any time.

You may request deletion of your account and associated personal content by contacting us. When content is erased, the underlying media is removed from storage. Some records may be retained where required for legal, security, or audit reasons. If you opt out of SMS, we retain enough information to honor that opt-out and avoid messaging you again.

Your Choices and Rights

• Access and correct — view and update your account details in the app.
• Delete — remove stories, photos, and recordings, or request account deletion.
• SMS opt-out — reply STOP to any Tell Me Again text message, or contact support@tellmeagain.app.
• Revoke Google access — disconnect Google Photos in the app or at myaccount.google.com/permissions.
• Control sharing — decide what is shared, with whom, and withdraw consent by removing or unsharing content.

Depending on where you live, you may have additional rights under laws such as the GDPR or CCPA. Contact us to exercise them.

How We Protect Your Information

We use industry-standard measures to protect your information, including encryption in transit, encryption of stored access tokens, and access controls that ensure content is only served to authorized viewers. No system is perfectly secure, but we work to safeguard your family's memories.

Children's Privacy

Tell Me Again is intended to be used by adults. Stories about children may be recorded by the adults responsible for them. We do not knowingly allow children to create their own accounts, and we do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children. If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we will remove it.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we make material changes, we will update the “Last updated” date above and, where appropriate, notify you. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect means you accept the updated policy.

Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, SMS text messaging, or how we handle your information, contact us at support@tellmeagain.app.