Last Updated: October 13th 2025

This Privacy Policy explains how BirdObs (“we,” “our,” or “us”) collects, uses, and protects your information when you use our application. BirdObs is a paid iOS application with subscription-based premium features. By using BirdObs, you consent to the practices described in this policy.

1. Information We Collect

  • Voice Recordings: When you use the AI transcription feature (available with premium subscription), voice recordings are temporarily stored on your device and sent to Google Gemini for transcription. These recordings are not saved on our servers.

  • Location Information: If you grant permission, the app may collect your location data at the time of creating an observation. This data is only collected if you choose to enable location services; it is not mandatory to use the app. Location is only stored in the phone.

  • Subscription Information: We process subscription data through Apple’s App Store to manage your premium features access. This includes subscription status, purchase receipts, and renewal information handled by Apple’s payment systems.

  • App Usage Analytics: We collect anonymous usage data to understand how users interact with both free and premium features of our app.

2. Use of Information

  • We process voice recordings solely for the purpose of transcribing them and extracting relevant bird-related information (e.g., bird name, quantity, location). We do not use your data for any other purposes.

  • Subscription information is used to verify your premium feature access and ensure proper functionality of paid features.

  • Usage analytics help us improve the app experience and determine which features provide the most value to our users.

3. Data Retention

  • All recordings are deleted from your device after the transcription is complete. We do not retain any recordings or transcriptions ourselves.

4. Third-Party Services

  • Google Gemini: We utilize Google Gemini for AI transcription services (premium feature). While we do not store your recordings, Google Gemini may have its own data retention policies. Please refer to their privacy policy for more information.

  • Apple App Store: All subscription payments and management are handled through Apple’s App Store. We do not process or store payment information directly. Apple’s privacy policy governs how they handle your payment and subscription data.

  • Amplitude: We use Amplitude to collect data on user interactions with our app to help us understand user behavior and improve our services. Please refer to Amplitude’s privacy policy for more information on how they handle user data.

  • Firebase Crashlytics: We use Firebase Crashlytics to collect crash reports and analyze the performance of our app. Crashlytics automatically collects information about app crashes, such as device details, app version, and stack traces. This information is used solely to identify and fix issues within the app.

5. User Rights

  • Users have the right to inquire about the data processing practices of our app. For any questions or concerns, please contact us at team@birdobs.com.

  • Subscription Management: You can manage your subscription, including cancellation and renewal settings, through your Apple App Store account settings. We do not have direct control over subscription billing or cancellation.

6. Changes to This Privacy Policy

  • We may update this Privacy Policy periodically. Users will be informed of any changes through a link within the app. We encourage you to review this policy regularly for any updates.

7. Premium Features and Regional Availability

  • Certain features, such as AI transcription and data export, may require a premium subscription in some regions (primarily United States App Store users).

  • Feature availability and subscription requirements are determined based on your App Store region and are subject to local regulations and business considerations.

  • Users in regions where premium features are available for free will not be subject to subscription requirements for those features.

8. Event Data Collection and Usage

  • We may collect additional anonymous event data to improve our services. This data may include information about how you interact with our website or app, such as the pages you visit, the features you use, and the actions you take. We may use a third-party analytics tool, such as Amplitude, to collect and analyze this data.

  • No personally identifiable information is collected.

9. Contact Us

  • If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, subscription management, or our practices, please reach out to us at team@birdobs.com.