Privacy policy

About this policy

This draft covers the Steno desktop app and website. “Steno” refers to the app’s operator; its legal name and address are to be confirmed. Messaging platforms, AI providers and Team accounts may have separate privacy terms.

For privacy questions or requests, email contact@steno.chat.

The conversations on your computer

When you connect WhatsApp or Telegram, Steno reads the conversations available through that connection and stores an archive on your computer. This can include message text, attachments, sender names, conversation details, timestamps and contact information made available by the messaging service.

Steno uses this information to organize conversations, search for details, link people across apps and provide context to agents you authorize. Connection credentials, settings and access permissions are also stored locally so these features can work.

Steno cannot send, edit or delete messages in your connected WhatsApp or Telegram accounts. Changes to the local archive are separate from changes to those source conversations.

Agents and optional AI features

Connected agents. An authorized agent can request information from your archive. Retrieved messages, attachments and related context leave your computer when sent to the agent or its provider. Remote-agent approval currently grants read access to the whole archive, rather than selected chats. The provider’s policies and your account settings govern its use and retention of this information.

Built-in assistant. When you send a message to Steno’s assistant, your assistant conversation and current page category are sent to the AI provider configured in the app, such as OpenRouter or Groq. The assistant does not automatically read your archived conversations. Information you paste into it is sent to that provider.

Images and voice notes. If you enable image or voice processing and configure a provider, the relevant attachments are sent to that provider to extract searchable text. These features are off by default and have separate controls in Settings.

Remote connections. When you enable remote access, relay and certificate services help an approved agent reach your computer. They can receive IP addresses, route identifiers, timing and traffic sizes. Public certificate records can include a randomly generated device hostname. The agent receives the archive content it requests. Relay transport is not a guarantee that data can never be accessed by a service operator.

App usage information

The current app sends limited usage events to PostHog to help understand which features are used. Reporting is enabled by default. Switch it off under Anonymous usage in Settings.

Events include a feature name, limited categories such as the messaging platform, the app version and a randomly generated installation identifier. They do not include message text, search queries, chat titles, contact names, phone numbers, attachments or access keys. The identifier links events from the same installation, so this is not a promise that events are completely unidentifiable.

PostHog receives event timing and network information needed to receive the request, including an IP address. The current reporting endpoint is in the United States. Provider retention and applicable consent requirements remain to be confirmed for this policy.

Updates, the website and email

If you choose to check for or download a desktop update, release and download services receive your IP address, request timing and the requested version or platform. These requests do not include your message archive.

Website hosting and delivery services may process your IP address, browser information, requested pages and request timing to deliver and protect the site. The landing page does not load an advertising or analytics script or store a motion preference in your browser.

If you email us, we receive your address and the information you include so we can respond. Avoid sending chat archives, account credentials or other sensitive information unless needed to resolve your request.

If you submit an email address to register interest in Steno, the website stores your address, submission time, referring page and basic browser information in private hosted storage. The current landing page has no registration form or active checkout.

Your choices and deletion

• Disconnect an account to stop new messages arriving. Existing archived messages remain available until you delete them from Steno.
• Revoke an agent’s access or disable remote access to stop future access through that permission. This does not remove copies already received by a provider.
• Disable optional AI processing and usage reporting in Settings.
• Use the app’s deletion controls to remove the relevant local archive data. Manage your own exports and backups separately.

A deletion received from WhatsApp or Telegram stops the affected message from being shown or returned by Steno, but does not necessarily erase the underlying data or attachment from disk. Disconnecting, hiding a message and removing local data are different actions. Database files, backups and provider copies can have separate lifecycles.

Retention and security

Your local archive remains on your computer until removed through the app or your device’s storage controls. Steno stores connection and provider credentials using local encryption, but this does not mean the entire archive or your backups are encrypted. Protect your device, disk, backups and access credentials.

Information sent to an agent, AI provider, messaging service or other provider is subject to that service’s retention and security practices. Retention periods for Steno-managed email, usage reporting, website logs, relay records and interest submissions are to be confirmed. No specific deletion deadline is promised in this draft.

International processing and your rights

Providers may process information outside the country where you live. Applicable transfer arrangements and legal grounds for each processing activity will be confirmed before this policy is finalized.

Depending on your location, you may have rights to access, correct, delete or obtain a copy of personal information, object to or restrict processing, or withdraw consent where processing relies on it. You may also be able to complain to your local data-protection authority. These rights and exceptions depend on applicable law.

We cannot remove a local archive directly from your computer or delete data held by an independent provider on your behalf. We can help explain the controls and assess requests concerning information held by Steno.

Questions and policy updates

Email contact@steno.chat for privacy questions or requests. Describe the information or feature involved; do not include passwords or access keys. We may need enough information to verify a request before acting on it.

This draft will be updated as the app’s services and operating details are confirmed. A finalized policy will state its effective date and explain material changes.