Privacy Policy

Effective November 2, 2026. This notice covers the hOWLd website, beta waitlist, and account sign-in, including verification texts.

Information we use

For the waitlist, we store your email address, signup time, email-consent version, and subscription and delivery status. Joining the waitlist does not create an app account.

For account creation and sign-in, we process the email address or phone number you provide, or the account identifier and profile information returned by your chosen sign-in provider. We use verification and session records to sign you in, protect accounts, and prevent abuse. Technical data such as IP addresses and request timing may be processed for security and rate limits.

Phone numbers and SMS consent

When you request a text code, we use your phone number to deliver the code and, after verification, identify your account. We keep a record of the request's time, number, consent wording, and method separately from the short-lived code. These records help us demonstrate consent and investigate abuse; a request alone does not establish ownership of a number.

We don't sell your phone number or SMS opt-in information. We do not share mobile information or SMS consent with third parties or affiliates for their marketing or promotional purposes. We share information with service providers only as needed to operate and protect the service, including delivering and verifying the texts you request. Requesting a code does not subscribe you to marketing texts.

Service providers and disclosures

The public website uses Fly.io for hosting, Neon for waitlist storage, and SendGrid for email delivery. Account services use hosting and database providers, SendGrid for email sign-in, and Twilio Verify for phone verification. If you choose Apple or Google sign-in, that provider processes your sign-in under its own privacy policy.

We may also disclose information when legally required or necessary to investigate fraud or protect users and the service. We do not transfer SMS consent to another business for its own messaging.

Cookies and tracking

We use essential session and security cookies for forms and sign-in. The landing page does not use advertising trackers, and our waitlist and login emails disable open and click tracking. We do not use these pages to track you across third-party websites for advertising; Do Not Track signals do not change their behavior.

Retention and your choices

We retain information as needed to provide the service, secure accounts, honor communication preferences, and meet legal obligations. Code validity is short-lived; account and consent records can remain longer. Unsubscribing from the waitlist keeps a suppression record so we do not email you again.

Use the unsubscribe link in waitlist emails to leave the list. For SMS, reply STOP to stop texts or HELP for help. Stopping texts may prevent phone sign-in; another method works only if it is available for your account. You can revoke account sessions from the account dashboard.

For privacy questions or requests to access, correct, or delete information, contact hello@howld.app. We may need to verify your identity and retain information required for security, legal obligations, or suppression. Please do not send passwords or verification codes.

Changes and scope

We will post revisions here with a new effective date and provide additional notice where required. This notice describes website and authentication data; it is not a complete description of audio uploads, recording, transcription, or sharing features in the app.

See also our Terms of Service, including the SMS program terms.