The Short Version
Your prayers are encrypted on your device. We cannot read them. We do not sell your data. We do not show ads. We do not use your prayer content for any purpose — because we don't have it.
What We Collect
- Email address — for authentication and newsletter delivery
- Name (optional) — for personalized greetings
- Subscription status — for billing (via Apple, Google, or Stripe for church plans)
- Usage metadata — entry counts, streak data, login timestamps (never content)
- Device information — for push notifications and app compatibility
What We Cannot Access
- Journal entry content (encrypted with your personal key)
- Bible Chat conversation history (stored on your device only)
- Photos and voice notes (encrypted before upload)
- Church prayer feed posts (encrypted with group key — readable by church members, not by us)
- Small group discussions (group-encrypted)
- Encouragement messages (end-to-end encrypted)
This is not a policy choice — it is an architectural decision. We do not possess the encryption keys needed to decrypt your private or group content.
Three Levels of Content Privacy
Not all content on the platform has the same privacy level. The level depends on what you choose to do with it:
- Private (journal, Bible Chat) — encrypted with your personal key. Only you can read it. Zero-knowledge: we cannot decrypt it under any circumstances.
- Group (church feeds, small groups) — encrypted with a group key shared among members. Church members can read it. We (the platform) cannot. This works like an encrypted group chat.
- Public (Prayer Wall) — when you choose to post a prayer request to the public Prayer Wall, you are choosing to share it with the community. This content is readable. You can post anonymously (your name is hidden) but the prayer text is visible to other users. This is the only content on our platform that is not end-to-end encrypted — because sharing is the purpose.
You always choose the level. We never make private content public or share group content outside the group.
Bible Chat & AI
When you use Bible Chat, your question is sent to an AI model (Amazon Bedrock / Claude) for processing. The AI generates a response and returns it to you. We do not store your conversation after the response is delivered. Conversation history is stored encrypted on your device only.
Newsletter
If you subscribe to our newsletter, we store your email address and subscription preferences. We use Amazon SES to deliver emails. You can unsubscribe at any time from any email.
Payment Processing
We use the Apple App Store and Google Play for Personal and Family subscriptions (mobile only) and Stripe for Church subscriptions (web). We never see or store your credit card details — Apple, Google, and Stripe handle all card processing and invoicing on their own infrastructure.
Data Retention & Deletion
Your encrypted data is stored as long as your account exists. You can request complete account deletion at any time from Settings. Upon deletion, all data (encrypted entries, metadata, and profile) is permanently removed within 30 days.
We Do Not
- Sell, rent, or share your personal data with third parties
- Show advertisements
- Use your data for AI training
- Purchase data from data brokers
- Track you across other websites or apps
Contact
Questions about privacy? Email us at hello@praying-app.com