Encryption Explained
How Kinu encrypts your synced data, in plain language.
Privacy is not a feature we bolted onto Kinu. It is how Kinu is built. Your people, your moments, your private notes: this is some of the most personal information you have, and it deserves to be treated that way. Here is exactly how Kinu protects it, without the jargon.
The short version
- Everything you record stays on your device first. Kinu works fully offline.
- If you turn on sync (a Kinu Plus feature), your data is encrypted on your device before it is ever uploaded.
- Our server stores only encrypted data. We do not read your relationship content as part of running Kinu.
- Photos and voice notes never leave your device.
- Private notes get an extra layer of isolation. No feature ever reads, analyzes, or surfaces them.
Sync is part of Kinu Plus and is something you choose to turn on. On the free plan, your data lives only on your device and is never uploaded at all.
How encryption works in Kinu
Think of it like putting your data in a locked box before handing it to the postal service. The courier, in this case our server, carries the box and does not open it.
When Kinu syncs your data across devices, here is what happens:
Your device encrypts everything
Before anything is sent, your app scrambles your data into encrypted form on the device itself.
The encrypted data is uploaded
That scrambled data is sent to our server purely for storage. The server never stores readable content.
Another device downloads it
When your other device needs the data, it pulls down the encrypted version.
Your device decrypts it locally
Your other device unlocks the data on the device, using your key, so you can read it.
Our server only ever handles the locked box. The readable version exists only on your own devices.
Your encryption key
Your encryption key is derived from your account when you use Kinu, and the encryption itself happens entirely on your device.
This key:
- Exists only in your device's memory while you are using the app
- Is never uploaded to our servers as a key
- Is never written down or stored permanently
- Goes out of scope when you are done using the app
Is this end-to-end encrypted?
We want to be precise here, because a lot of apps overstate this.
Today, your key is derived from your account. That means our server could, in principle, re-derive it. So we do not claim end-to-end encryption, zero-knowledge, or "not even we can read it." That would not be honest.
What we can say plainly:
- Your data is encrypted on your device before it is uploaded.
- It is encrypted in transit and at rest on our servers.
- We do not access your relationship content as part of running Kinu.
We are working toward user-held keys, derived from a secret only you know, so that one day your synced data could be readable by you alone. That is a future improvement, not something available today, and we will say so clearly when it ships.
For a side-by-side of exactly what our server can and cannot see, read What We Can and Can't See.
What gets encrypted
When sync is on, everything personal is encrypted before it leaves your device:
- Your people: names, details, everything about them
- Moments: the observations and notes you record about someone
- Important dates: birthdays, anniversaries, and any custom dates
- Private notes: your most personal reflections
- Lenses: how you group people, like Family, Friends, or Work
- Relational Compass: closeness, intention, and per-person mode
The only things our server keeps in readable form are your email address and your subscription status, because we need them to manage your account and your plan.
Photos and voice notes stay on your device
Photos and voice notes are local-only. They are never uploaded to our servers, even when sync is turned on. They live on the device where you recorded them.
Private notes get extra protection
Private notes are encrypted like everything else, and they also get one more layer: architectural isolation.
Private notes are kept out of every feature in Kinu. No part of the app reads them, analyzes them, or surfaces them in a reminder. They are not used in any analysis, and they are not folded into any feature. They exist purely for you. Read more about private notes.
What about analytics?
Kinu uses privacy-respecting analytics to understand things like how many people use a feature, never who they are or what they wrote. We identify your device with a random support id, never your name, your email, or your content. There is no cross-app tracking and no advertising identifiers.
What the server stores
Our server stores only encrypted data plus the small amount of account information needed to run your subscription. Your personal information is never stored or processed in readable form on our servers.
Learn more
Privacy at Kinu
The big picture of how Kinu protects your data.
What We Can and Can't See
A plain breakdown of readable versus encrypted data.
Sync Explained
How syncing works across your devices.
Private Notes
The space that stays for your eyes only.
Still need help? Contact support