Privacy Policy
What Take Pause collects, and what it doesn't.
Last updated 20 August 2026. This policy covers the Take Pause iPhone app and the website at takepau.se.
The short version
The timer works with no account and sends nothing anywhere. If you connect with a partner, we store a display name you choose and a notification token so the two phones can signal each other. We never record that a pause happened, when it happened, or how long it lasted. There is no database table for it. There is no analytics software in the app. We do not sell, rent, or share your information with anyone for advertising.
Using the app without an account
Take Pause works as a complete solo tool with no sign-up of any kind. In that mode your settings — your chosen sound and haptics preferences, and any pause currently running — are stored only on your device, and are removed when you delete the app. Nothing is transmitted to us.
What we collect when you connect with a partner
Pairing is the only feature that needs a server. When you begin pairing, the app creates an anonymous account for you. We do not ask for, and cannot see, your name, email address, phone number, or contacts.
What we deliberately do not collect
- Any record of your pauses — not the fact of one, not its length, not its frequency, not its outcome. The server never runs the timer and never learns about it.
- Anything you were arguing about. The app has no text field, no journal, and no notes.
- Analytics or behavioural events. There is no analytics or attribution software in the app.
- Your location, contacts, microphone, camera, photos, or health data.
- An email address or password. There is no login of that kind.
- Advertising identifiers. There is no advertising in Take Pause and no third-party ad or tracking code on this website.
Notifications
When you start a pause, your connected partner receives a notification saying that you have, and how long the pause is. The signals — I'm ready, I'm still here, I need more time — are sent only when you tap them. Nothing else is ever sent automatically, and the timer reaching zero notifies no one. Notifications are delivered through Apple Push Notification service; the message text passes through Apple in order to reach the device.
You can turn notifications off in iOS Settings at any time. The app continues to work.
The website
If you enter your email address in the signup form, we store that address and the date you submitted it, so we can email you once when the app is released. We use it for nothing else. Every email we send includes a way to unsubscribe, and you can ask us to delete the address at any time using the contact address below.
The site sets no cookies and runs no analytics, advertising, or tracking scripts. Our hosting provider records ordinary server request logs, which may include your IP address, for security and reliability purposes.
Who processes data on our behalf
These providers act as processors on our instructions. We do not sell or share personal information, and we do not use it for cross-context behavioural advertising.
How long we keep it
Pairing and profile data is kept while your account exists. Pairing codes expire after 15 minutes and are invalidated once used. When you disconnect from a partner, the connection is marked ended immediately for both of you. Waitlist email addresses are deleted once the launch email has been sent, or sooner on request.
Deleting your data
Settings → Delete Account removes your profile, ends any pairing, invalidates your pairing codes, clears your notification token, and deletes the underlying account. This is immediate and cannot be undone. Deleting the app from your device removes everything stored locally.
Your rights
Depending on where you live — including under the UK GDPR, the EU GDPR, and the California Consumer Privacy Act — you may have the right to access, correct, delete, or receive a copy of your personal information, to object to or restrict its processing, and to complain to your data protection authority. Because we hold so little, most of these requests are satisfied by the in-app Delete Account control. For anything else, write to us and we will respond within one month.
Where we rely on consent — for notifications and for the waitlist email — you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of what came before. Otherwise we process the small amount of data described above because it is necessary to provide the service you asked for.
International transfers
Our providers store data on servers in the United States. If you use Take Pause from outside the United States, your information is transferred there, protected by the standard contractual clauses or equivalent safeguards our providers maintain.
Children
Take Pause is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect information from them. If you believe a child has provided us with information, contact us and we will delete it.
Security
Data is encrypted in transit. Access to the database is restricted per-account at the database level, so one account cannot read another's records. There is no way for any user to search for, enumerate, or look up another user. No system is perfectly secure, but the most effective protection here is that there is very little to take.
Changes to this policy
If we change this policy we will update the date at the top of this page, and for any material change we will say so in the app before the change takes effect.
Contact
Questions, requests, or deletions: privacy@takepau.se.
Take Pause is a communication and pause tool, not therapy or crisis support. It doesn't determine who is right or wrong, diagnose anyone, or replace professional help. If you feel unsafe, prioritize your physical safety rather than using the app to manage the conflict.