Privacy & Cookie Policy

This Policy applies to visitors to our website, Purchasers, Storytellers, gift recipients, book recipients, Legacy Recipients, and other individuals whose personal information is processed through the Services.

A "Purchaser" is a person who buys a GodStory experience. A "Storyteller" is the person whose recordings, responses, transcripts, chapters, or other story materials are collected and developed through GodStory. The Purchaser and Storyteller may be the same person or different people.

A "Legacy Recipient" is a person the Storyteller designates to receive certain preserved Storyteller Content after the Storyteller's verified death or qualifying incapacity, subject to the process described in this Policy and applicable law.

Storytellers retain ownership of the recordings, written responses, edits, stories, and other original content they submit to GodStory (collectively, "Storyteller Content"). GodStory does not claim ownership of that original content. The limited rights GodStory needs to host, process, transcribe, edit, format, preserve, print, support, and otherwise provide the Services are addressed in the Terms of Service.

When a Purchaser buys GodStory for another person, payment does not give the Purchaser access to the Storyteller's recordings, transcripts, drafts, approved chapters, completed manuscript, or other private Storyteller Content. The Storyteller controls the substance of the project, including story submissions, chapter review and approval, deletion requests, printed-copy recipients, and Legacy Recipient designation. The Purchaser controls payment-related matters and may receive limited non-content project status, such as whether an invitation was accepted, whether the project is active, and whether the project is complete.

During beta, GodStory does not provide customer-facing functionality for adding family members, collaborators, or other people to a Storyteller account to view or listen to private Storyteller Content. GodStory also does not provide public story links.

We collect personal information that you provide directly, information another person provides in connection with a purchase or gift, information generated through use of the Services, and limited information collected automatically when the Services are accessed.

• Contact and account information, such as name, email address, telephone number if provided, and information needed to create or access an account
• Purchase and transaction information, such as products purchased, order status, amount paid, billing contact information, transaction identifiers, refund or dispute information, and limited payment details provided by our payment processor
• Shipping and fulfillment information, including names, mailing addresses, delivery instructions, and recipient information needed to deliver a privately printed book
• Gift-recipient information supplied by a Purchaser, such as the recipient's name, email address, relationship to the Purchaser, and personal gift message
• Storyteller Content, including voice recordings, audio files, transcripts, written responses, notes, edits, chapter drafts, approved chapters, final manuscripts, prayer content, and other information the Storyteller chooses to submit
• Sensitive personal information that may appear in Storyteller Content, including religious or philosophical beliefs, health information, trauma, abuse, family history, relationships, financial experiences, legal matters, and other intimate life experiences
• Information about other people that a Storyteller includes in a recording, response, transcript, chapter, or manuscript
• Communication and preference information, including reminder schedules, email or SMS preferences, consent and opt-out records, support requests, survey responses, and communications with our team
• Technical and security information, such as Internet Protocol address, browser type, device type, operating system, referring page, access time, session activity, error logs, and security-related information
• Approximate geographic information that may be inferred from an Internet Protocol address, such as a general city, state, region, or country. GodStory does not intentionally collect precise GPS location through the Services
• Cookie and similar-technology information described in the Cookie Policy below

We collect information directly from you when you make a purchase, create or access an account, respond to a Story Spark or other reflection question, record audio, review or edit a chapter, approve a manuscript, order a printed copy, select a Legacy Recipient, contact support, choose communication preferences, or otherwise use the Services.

We may receive information from a Purchaser when the Purchaser buys GodStory for another person. We may also receive limited information from service providers that support payments, hosting, authentication, communications, security, printing, fulfillment, and delivery.

Our public marketing website is not intended to receive voice recordings, transcripts, private Storyteller Content, or authenticated-account data. Users should submit Storyteller Content only through the authenticated GodStory experience or another method we expressly designate for that purpose.

GodStory seeks to collect, use, retain, and disclose only the personal information reasonably necessary and proportionate for the purposes described in this Policy.

• Create, authenticate, administer, and support accounts
• Provision and administer a GodStory purchase or gift
• Send invitations, secure sign-in links, account notices, Story Sparks, reminders, chapter notifications, production updates, and other service communications
• Receive, store, transcribe, organize, edit, preserve, and process recordings and written submissions
• Generate reflection questions, follow-up questions, transcripts, chapter drafts, edits, summaries, titles, and book-ready content
• Allow Storytellers to review, correct, edit, and approve chapters and manuscripts before printing
• Format, produce, print, ship, and deliver privately printed books
• Provide customer service, troubleshoot problems, respond to privacy or legal requests, and administer Legacy Recipient requests
• Prevent fraud, abuse, unauthorized access, security incidents, and violations of our Terms
• Maintain records needed for accounting, tax, contractual, insurance, fraud-prevention, security, legal, or regulatory purposes
• Understand how the Services function and improve their reliability, usability, accessibility, and existing storytelling and book-creation functions
• Send marketing communications only where permitted by law and consistent with the recipient's choices
• Comply with legal obligations and protect the rights, safety, property, and integrity of GodStory, our users, and others

A Purchaser may provide another person's name, email address, relationship to the Purchaser, and optional personal gift message so that GodStory can deliver and administer a gift. The Purchaser should provide only information that is accurate and reasonably necessary for the purchase.

When GodStory contacts the intended Storyteller, the invitation will identify the Purchaser by name and may include the Purchaser's email address and the Purchaser's personal gift message. We will explain that the Purchaser provided the Storyteller's contact information for purposes of delivering and administering the gift. The Purchaser's identity or email address does not make the Purchaser a Legacy Recipient and does not give the Purchaser access to private Storyteller Content.

A gift recipient is not automatically enrolled in general marketing merely because a Purchaser provided the recipient's email address. If the recipient declines the gift or asks us not to contact them, we will stop optional reminders and marketing communications to that person, subject to service, transaction, fraud-prevention, or legal records we may need to retain.

A Purchaser may request one reassignment of an unused GodStory experience within 12 months after the original purchase by emailing support@godstory.co. For reassignment purposes, an experience is unused if the intended Storyteller has not submitted a voice recording or written story response and no book has entered production. Refund and reassignment rights are also governed by the Terms of Service and applicable law.

GodStory collects and retains voice recordings and related Storyteller Content so that we can transcribe, organize, edit, preserve, support, reproduce, and produce the Storyteller's book. We do not automatically delete Storyteller Content simply because the storytelling experience has been completed or a book has been printed. Original recordings, transcripts, approved chapters, final manuscripts, and related project materials may remain associated with the account without a preset expiration date unless deletion is requested. This does not constitute a guarantee of permanent or lifetime storage or availability.

During beta, GodStory does not provide a customer-facing self-service feature for downloading or exporting original audio recordings, transcripts, chapters, or manuscripts. Storytellers can review approved chapters and the completed manuscript inside GodStory. A Storyteller may request a copy of available Storyteller Content by emailing support@godstory.co. We will respond subject to reasonable identity verification, technical availability, security considerations, applicable law, and any legitimate retention limitations.

During beta, GodStory does not provide general in-account family sharing or collaborator access. A printed book may be privately shared by the Storyteller outside GodStory, but that does not create digital account access for the recipient.

Legacy Access After Death or Incapacity

A Storyteller may designate one or more Legacy Recipients. During beta, a Storyteller may contact support@godstory.co to record, change, or remove a Legacy Recipient designation. The Purchaser may be designated, but is never a Legacy Recipient automatically merely because they paid for the service.

After GodStory reasonably verifies the Storyteller's death or qualifying incapacity and the Legacy Recipient's identity and authority, a validly designated Legacy Recipient may be permitted to access preserved Storyteller Content and request copies of available original recordings, transcripts, approved chapters, and final manuscripts through GodStory's support process. Approved Storyteller Content remains intact and is not treated as editable by the Legacy Recipient as though the Legacy Recipient were the Storyteller.

A spouse, child, executor, Purchaser, next of kin, or other person who was not designated does not automatically receive access solely because of that relationship, except where applicable law requires otherwise. GodStory may request reasonable documentation and may delay or decline access where identity, authority, documentation, or competing claims cannot reasonably be verified.

GodStory will not use Storyteller Content for a materially different purpose from those described in this Policy without providing additional notice and obtaining separate affirmative consent where required by applicable law.

GodStory uses third-party artificial-intelligence and machine-learning service providers to support parts of the storytelling, transcription, editing, and book-creation process. Depending on the function, those providers may receive raw voice recordings, transcripts, written responses, relevant prior story context, chapter drafts, prompts, and instructions needed to transcribe recordings, identify themes, generate limited follow-up reflection questions, organize stories, draft or revise chapters, correct grammar, create summaries, or prepare content for Storyteller review.

GodStory seeks to send only the information reasonably necessary for the requested function. Storyteller Content may contain names, family details, places, and other identifying information because those details are part of the Storyteller's narrative. GodStory does not intentionally send complete payment-card information, account credentials, or shipping addresses to AI providers for transcription or story-generation purposes.

GodStory does not authorize third-party AI providers to use Storyteller Content to train their general-purpose AI models, except where a Storyteller separately provides affirmative permission for a different use. GodStory also will not create a permanent identifiable training library or train or fine-tune a general-purpose GodStory model using identifiable private recordings, transcripts, chapters, or testimonies without separate affirmative permission.

AI-generated text may be incomplete, inaccurate, or inconsistent with the Storyteller's meaning. GodStory provides the Storyteller an opportunity to review, correct, edit, and approve chapters before printing. Storytellers should review names, dates, quotations, factual claims, sensitive disclosures, and other important details before approving a manuscript for production.

GodStory uses automated systems to assist with transcription, reflection questions, organization, editing, and chapter creation. GodStory does not use those automated systems to make decisions about a person that produce legal or similarly significant effects.

Limited Human Review and Internal Quality Assurance

Authorized GodStory personnel may access limited portions of Storyteller Content when there is a legitimate service-related reason, including customer support, troubleshooting, revision or production assistance, security, legal compliance, and internal quality assurance of GodStory's existing core storytelling and book-creation functions.

Quality assurance may include evaluating transcription accuracy, determining whether generated text preserves the Storyteller's intended meaning, identifying or correcting errors, evaluating reflection questions and editing methods, and improving the accuracy, reliability, and usability of the existing service. This limited review is part of providing and improving the core GodStory service and is not an optional marketing program.

Access is limited to authorized personnel and providers who need the information for a legitimate purpose and are expected to protect its confidentiality. GodStory does not permit casual internal browsing of private Storyteller Content and does not use private Storyteller Content for advertising, public promotion, publication, or sales materials without separate permission.

For broader research and product development, GodStory seeks to use aggregated, de-identified, synthetic, technical, or operational information where reasonably practicable. When GodStory treats information as de-identified, we will maintain and use it in de-identified form and will not attempt to re-identify it except where reasonably necessary to test the effectiveness of de-identification measures or as otherwise permitted by law.

GodStory is designed for the preservation of Christian testimony and may therefore process information that reveals religious or philosophical beliefs. Storytellers may also choose to disclose health information, trauma, abuse, family conflict, financial matters, legal matters, or other sensitive information.

Before a Storyteller begins submitting Storyteller Content, GodStory will request a separate affirmative consent to process religious beliefs and other sensitive personal information the Storyteller voluntarily includes. That consent covers processing reasonably necessary to transcribe, organize, edit, quality-check, preserve, privately print, produce, and support the GodStory project, including automated processing and limited review by authorized personnel and service providers. Marketing, public use, general-purpose AI model training on identifiable Storyteller Content, and future synthetic voice, avatar, or digital-likeness features are outside this required consent and require separate permission where applicable.

A Storyteller may withdraw consent for future processing as described in Section 16. Withdrawal does not affect processing that was lawful before withdrawal and may prevent GodStory from continuing or completing the affected project. Withdrawal of consent does not, by itself, create a right to a refund, subject to the Terms of Service and applicable law.

Information About Other People

GodStory helps Storytellers create privately preserved and privately printed accounts of their own lives and experiences. Storytellers retain ownership of their original Storyteller Content, subject to any rights another person may have in material included in that Content.

A Storyteller's account of their life may naturally include information about family members, friends, coworkers, and other people. Being mentioned in another person's privately held Storyteller Content does not, by itself, give the person mentioned ownership of the Storyteller's Content or a right to access, edit, approve, or delete the Storyteller's account of their experiences.

Storytellers should use reasonable judgment and should not knowingly submit material they do not have the right to use, unlawful or defamatory content, unnecessary highly sensitive information about another person, threats, or information subject to professional or other confidentiality obligations.

If you believe a GodStory project contains personal information or material about you that GodStory is not legally permitted to process, you may contact support@godstory.co. We may verify your identity and will evaluate the request based on applicable law, the Storyteller's rights, the nature of the information, safety considerations, and the status of the project. GodStory will not disclose the remainder of a Storyteller's private Content merely because another person submits such a request. Copies of privately printed books that have already been produced or delivered cannot be retrieved, altered, or deleted by GodStory.

GodStory uses communications service providers to send transactional and service-related messages needed to administer purchases, authenticate accounts, deliver gift invitations, provide Story Sparks and reminders, notify Storytellers about chapter drafts, respond to support requests, and provide printing or shipping updates.

During onboarding, Storytellers may select reminder preferences and a reminder schedule. Storytellers may change or stop nonessential email reminders by using available preference controls or by emailing support@godstory.co. SMS reminders will be sent only after the Storyteller personally provides a phone number and gives clear consent to receive them. A Purchaser cannot provide SMS consent on the Storyteller's behalf. Stopping reminders does not stop communications necessary to complete a transaction, protect an account, respond to a request, or provide legally required notices.

General promotional or marketing communications are sent only where permitted by law and consistent with the recipient's choices. A purchase, gift invitation, or service reminder does not automatically enroll a Purchaser, Storyteller, or gift recipient in general marketing. Recipients may unsubscribe using the method provided in the communication or by contacting support@godstory.co.

GodStory seeks to limit information shared with communications providers to what is reasonably needed for the communication, such as name, email address, private customer or project identifier, account-access status, high-level project status, reminder schedule, communication preferences, and consent or opt-out status. Communications providers are not intended to receive voice recordings, transcripts, written story answers, chapter text, or final manuscripts for reminder and messaging purposes.

GodStory does not make private Storyteller Content public merely because a person participates in the Services. During beta, GodStory does not provide public story links, collaborative project access, or general family-viewing access.

We may disclose personal information to categories of service providers and other parties that help us operate the Services, subject to applicable contracts, confidentiality expectations, security measures, and law. These categories may include:

• Cloud hosting, data storage, authentication, security, and technical infrastructure providers
• Artificial-intelligence, transcription, and automated-processing providers
• Email, SMS, customer-communications, and support providers
• Payment-processing and fraud-prevention providers
• Printing, fulfillment, shipping, and delivery providers
• Professional advisers such as lawyers, accountants, auditors, insurers, consultants, and security professionals
• Government authorities, regulators, courts, law-enforcement agencies, or other parties when disclosure is required or permitted by law
• A buyer, investor, successor, lender, or other relevant party in connection with a merger, financing, acquisition, reorganization, bankruptcy, sale of assets, or similar business transaction
• A validly designated Legacy Recipient after the verification process described in this Policy
• A book recipient selected by the Storyteller, but only to the extent needed to complete the requested shipment

GodStory does not sell private Storyteller Content. GodStory also does not currently sell personal information or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising.

GodStory books are privately produced rather than publicly published through the Services. When a Storyteller approves a book for printing, GodStory provides the completed manuscript and the shipping information reasonably necessary to a printing or fulfillment provider so that the requested book can be manufactured and delivered.

During beta, only the Storyteller may place an order for additional printed copies of the completed GodStory book. The Storyteller may direct GodStory to ship an ordered copy to another person by providing that recipient's name, mailing address, and other information reasonably necessary for delivery. Shipping a book to another person does not give that person access to the Storyteller's account or private digital Storyteller Content.

Printing and fulfillment providers may retain manuscript files, production files, shipping data, and order records for the period reasonably necessary to complete the order, support reprints or fulfillment questions, maintain security, meet legal or accounting obligations, or as otherwise permitted by their terms and any applicable agreement with GodStory. GodStory does not currently promise a fixed deletion period for a printer's systems unless that period has been verified.

Once a book has been printed or shipped, GodStory cannot retrieve or alter physical copies. A later digital deletion request does not affect copies that have already been produced, delivered, gifted, photographed, copied, or otherwise distributed by the Storyteller or recipient.

Payments are processed by a third-party payment processor. GodStory does not directly store complete payment-card numbers or card security codes. The payment processor may provide GodStory with limited billing and transaction information needed to confirm payment, provide access, manage refunds or disputes, prevent fraud, and maintain accounting or legal records.

The payment processor processes payment information under its own terms and privacy practices. Purchasers should review the information presented during checkout.

GodStory is based in the United States. During beta and initial launch, purchases and Storyteller accounts are available only to customers in the United States. People outside the United States may be able to view the public website, but cannot currently purchase or create a GodStory project.

GodStory uses service providers for hosting, storage, authentication, artificial intelligence and transcription, communications, payment processing, printing and fulfillment, security, and other functions necessary to provide the Services. Personal information may be processed in the United States and in other countries where those providers or their subprocessors operate. Those locations may have privacy laws different from the laws in the user's state or country. Where applicable law requires particular safeguards for a transfer, GodStory will use appropriate contractual or other lawful measures.

GodStory does not promise that all data remains in a particular cloud region or country unless we expressly state otherwise. Exact infrastructure regions and service-provider identities are maintained internally and may be disclosed where required by law, contract, or a specific feature notice.

Subject to valid deletion requests and applicable law, GodStory retains personal information for as long as reasonably needed for use of the Services, preservation and support of a Storyteller's project, fulfillment of purchases, approved communications, security, accounting and tax obligations, dispute resolution, legal compliance, and protection of GodStory's or another person's rights and interests.

Original recordings, transcripts, approved chapters, final manuscripts, account information, and other Storyteller Content may remain associated with the account without a preset expiration date so that GodStory can preserve the project, support future private book orders, and maintain the Storyteller's voice archive. GodStory does not guarantee permanent or lifetime storage or availability.

A Storyteller may request deletion of the entire account, original audio recordings, or other eligible personal information by emailing support@godstory.co. Account deletion requires verification of control of the email address associated with the account, unless a different legally sufficient verification process applies. GodStory may request additional information where reasonably necessary to verify identity, authority, or the scope of the request.

GodStory will process a valid deletion request within the period required by applicable law or, where no specific period applies, within a reasonable period. Information deleted from active systems may remain temporarily in encrypted backups, security logs, archived systems, or service-provider systems until those systems are overwritten, rotated, or otherwise deleted in the ordinary course, unless applicable law requires earlier deletion. During that period, deleted backup information will not be used for ordinary business purposes and, if restored for disaster recovery, will remain subject to the applicable deletion request.

GodStory may retain limited transaction, accounting, tax, fraud-prevention, consent, opt-out, dispute, security, and legal records where retention is required or reasonably permitted. Printed books already produced or delivered cannot be retrieved or deleted through an account-deletion request.

A Storyteller may request deletion of original audio without necessarily deleting related transcripts, approved chapters, or the final manuscript. If deleting recordings or other necessary Storyteller Content before the project is complete prevents GodStory from finishing or supporting the project, deletion may result in cancellation or inability to complete the affected service. A deletion request does not, by itself, create a right to a refund, subject to the Terms of Service and applicable law.

If GodStory discontinues a material part of the Services that stores Storyteller Content, we will, where reasonably practical and legally permitted, provide advance notice and a reasonable opportunity for Storytellers to request copies of available recordings and project materials before access is discontinued. This does not guarantee permanent or lifetime availability.

GodStory uses reasonable administrative, technical, and organizational safeguards designed to protect personal information from unauthorized access, use, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. Safeguards used for sensitive Storyteller Content are intended to include encryption in transit and at rest through core infrastructure, private storage, restricted or time-limited access to recordings, role-based administrative access, strong authentication for sensitive administrative systems, secure server-side storage of credentials and secrets, protected backups, logging or auditing of sensitive administrative actions, vendor protections where appropriate, and procedures for responding to suspected security incidents.

No method of transmission or storage is completely secure. GodStory cannot guarantee that unauthorized access, loss, misuse, or disclosure will never occur. Users should protect access to their email accounts and devices because GodStory may use email-based authentication or secure sign-in links.

Depending on applicable law, you may have rights to request access to personal information, correction of inaccurate information, deletion, restriction of certain processing, objection to certain processing, a copy or portability of information, withdrawal of consent, or review of a privacy decision. Some state privacy laws apply only to businesses that meet particular thresholds or other conditions.

Regardless of whether a specific state privacy law applies, GodStory generally accepts reasonable requests from Storytellers to access, correct, delete, or request a copy of eligible personal information and Storyteller Content, subject to identity verification, technical availability, security, legitimate retention needs, the rights of others, and applicable law.

During beta, GodStory does not provide a complete self-service privacy portal or self-service download/export feature. To make a privacy request or request a copy of available Storyteller Content, email support@godstory.co. We may verify your identity and authority before completing the request. Account deletion requires verification of control of the email address associated with the account, unless a different legally sufficient verification process applies.

We will respond to verified privacy requests within the period required by applicable law or, where no specific period applies, within a reasonable period. If applicable law permits an extension, we may use that extension and provide any notice the law requires.

Where GodStory relies on consent, a Storyteller may withdraw that consent at any time by contacting support@godstory.co. Withdrawal applies prospectively and does not affect processing that was lawful before consent was withdrawn. If withdrawal prevents GodStory from processing information necessary to provide the Services, GodStory may be unable to continue or complete the affected project. Withdrawal does not, by itself, create a right to a refund, subject to the Terms of Service and applicable law.

GodStory will not discriminate against or provide a materially different level of service to a person solely because the person exercised a privacy right. However, if the requested deletion, restriction, or withdrawal prevents GodStory from processing information necessary to provide the Services, we may be unable to continue or complete the affected project.

An authorized agent may submit a request on another person's behalf where permitted by law. We may require proof of authorization and independent verification of the person whose information is involved. If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact us to request reconsideration and may have additional complaint or appeal rights under applicable law.

The Cookie Policy below explains how GodStory and providers supporting the website and platform may use cookies, browser storage, session identifiers, web beacons, and similar technologies. During beta, GodStory does not intentionally use Google Analytics, advertising pixels, retargeting tools, behavioral-advertising technologies, or advertising cookies.

Some technologies are reasonably necessary to host, secure, authenticate, operate, and provide the Services. If GodStory later adds nonessential analytics, advertising, personalization, or tracking technologies, we will update this Policy and provide any consent or preference controls required by applicable law before or when those technologies are used.

Some browsers and devices provide Do Not Track or Global Privacy Control signals. GodStory does not currently sell personal information or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising, and we do not intentionally permit third parties to collect personal information through the Services for cross-site behavioral advertising. As a result, these signals generally do not change how the Services operate today.

Where applicable law requires GodStory to recognize a supported privacy signal for a particular processing activity, we will take reasonable steps to honor it. We will review this practice if our technology or legal obligations change.

During beta and initial launch, Purchasers and Storytellers must be at least 18 years old to create an account, purchase GodStory, or independently participate in the Services. GodStory does not knowingly create Storyteller accounts for people under 18. If we learn that an under-18 person has independently created or used an account contrary to this rule, we will take reasonable steps to address the account and associated information.

An adult Storyteller may include information about children or other minors in a family story. Storytellers should use care and avoid including unnecessary sensitive or private details that could create a foreseeable risk to a child.

The Services may link to third-party websites or services that operate independently from GodStory. GodStory is not responsible for the privacy, security, or content practices of those independent third parties. Users should review the notices presented by those services.

We may update this Policy as the Services, technology, providers, laws, and business practices change. We will post the revised Policy and update the date at the top. If a change materially affects how we use previously collected personal information, we will provide additional notice or obtain consent where required by applicable law.

For questions, concerns, privacy requests, requests for copies of available Storyteller Content, account deletion, gift reassignment, or Legacy Recipient matters, contact GodStory, Inc. at support@godstory.co.