Privacy Policy

The Short Version

Vokara is built on a simple promise: your voice audio never leaves your machine. No recordings are uploaded, stored, or transmitted anywhere. By default, the text Vokara produces also stays on your device. If you explicitly enable the optional OpenRouter integration, your text — but never your audio — is sent directly from your machine to OpenRouter. Vokara itself operates no server that receives your audio or transcripts.

The sections below describe the few, narrow exceptions where Vokara or its providers do exchange data with the outside world — and exactly what's in those exchanges.

Who's Responsible

Vokara is the data controller for the personal information described in this policy. Questions, requests, and complaints can reach us at hello@vokara.app. We respond within 1 business day.

Local Processing (Default)

Right out of the box, Vokara runs entirely locally. Audio captured from your microphone is transcribed on-device by a speech recognition model that ships with the app. The audio is discarded after transcription. The resulting text is pasted into the app you're working in — we never see it, store it, or transmit it.

Vokara collects no general-purpose analytics or telemetry from the application. The exchanges described in the next two sections are the only network calls Vokara makes.

License Validation & Update Checks

Two narrow exchanges keep your paid license working and your installation up to date:

• License validation. If you've purchased a license, Vokara periodically contacts our license-management provider, Lemon Squeezy, to confirm your key is still valid. The validation request includes your license key, a per-installation instance identifier, and your computer's hostname (the device name set in your operating system). Vokara allows a generous offline grace period so transcription keeps working without network access.
• Update checks. Vokara may contact our update endpoint to see whether a newer version is available. These requests transmit the running version number and the standard HTTP request headers your operating system sends (such as your IP address). They do not include personal data, your audio, or your transcripts.

Optional AI Enhancement

Vokara includes an opt-in feature to enhance dictation using AI via OpenRouter. The feature is off by default. If you explicitly enable it and provide your own OpenRouter API key, Vokara will send the text transcript from your local model to OpenRouter for clean-up or rewriting.

Your raw audio is never sent. Only the text transcript is transmitted. Data processed through this integration flows directly from your machine to OpenRouter and is governed by OpenRouter's privacy policy. You are responsible for reviewing and complying with OpenRouter's terms.

Payment Information

Purchases are processed by Lemon Squeezy, our Merchant of Record. Lemon Squeezy collects and processes your name, email address, billing address, payment details, IP address, and transaction information to complete your purchase, deliver your license key, send receipts, and remit any applicable VAT or sales tax.

Vokara never receives, handles, or stores your full credit card number or payment credentials. We receive only the data Lemon Squeezy passes through for fulfillment (your name, email, and order details), which we use to deliver your license and provide support. Lemon Squeezy's handling of your data is governed by their own privacy policy.

Website

This website doesn't use analytics services and doesn't set tracking cookies. Our host (Cloudflare) records standard server-side request metadata — IP address, user agent, and the path requested — for security and basic infrastructure operations. We don't combine that data into personal profiles.

If you reach the site through an affiliate link, the Lemon Squeezy affiliate script loaded on this site may set a cookie to credit the referring affiliate when you complete a purchase. This cookie identifies the referrer, not you, and is used solely to pay referral commissions.

Sub-Processors

These are the third parties involved in delivering Vokara. We've kept the list small on purpose.

• Lemon Squeezy — Merchant of Record for purchases, and the system that validates your license key.
• Cloudflare — hosts this website and the update endpoint; sees the same request metadata any web host would.
• OpenRouter — only if you explicitly enable the optional AI enhancement and provide your own API key.

No AI Training

In default local mode, your voice and transcribed text never leave your device, which means they cannot be used to train, fine-tune, or improve any AI model. We do not collect any audio or text from your sessions, full stop. If you explicitly enable the OpenRouter integration, the text you choose to send is subject to the data practices and training policies of OpenRouter and the model providers you select through their platform.

Data Retention

We retain the minimum information needed to support your purchase: your email, license key, order metadata, and any support correspondence you send us. We keep this information for as long as your license is active and for a reasonable period afterward to handle tax, accounting, and support obligations (typically up to 7 years for financial records, as required by law). License-validation logs are retained for a short period for fraud prevention and security and then discarded.

Your Rights

You have rights over your personal data, and we honor them regardless of where you live. Depending on your jurisdiction (including under the GDPR in the EU/UK and the CCPA/CPRA in California), these may include the right to:

• access the personal data we hold about you;
• correct inaccurate data;
• request deletion of your data;
• restrict or object to certain processing;
• receive a portable copy of your data;
• withdraw consent where processing is based on consent (this won't affect prior processing);
• lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority (EU/UK residents).

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@vokara.app. We don't sell personal data and never have.

International Users

Vokara is operated from the United States. If you use Vokara from outside the U.S., the limited information described in this policy may be transferred to and processed in the U.S. or other countries where our sub-processors operate. Where required, our sub-processors rely on appropriate transfer mechanisms (such as the EU Standard Contractual Clauses).

Children

Vokara is not directed to children. You must be at least 18 to purchase a license, and users must be at least 13 (or the minimum age of digital consent in your country, whichever is higher). We don't knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided us information, email us and we'll delete it.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. When we do, we'll update the effective date above and, for material changes, post a notice on this page (and where practical, in the application). Your continued use of Vokara after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

Contact

Questions about this policy? Email us at hello@vokara.app. We read every message personally and respond within 1 business day.