Attune is a spiritual formation app operated by Eric Shonebarger (“we”). This page explains what we collect, who can see it and the choices you have. Questions: [email protected].
Attune is for adults 18 and over.
What we collect
- Your account: email address, name, preferred name, date of birth, time zone and how you sign in (email or Google, through Google Firebase).
- What you write: weekly check-in scores and answers, journal entries, chat conversations, messages to your church’s pastors and acts of service you record.
- How you use Attune: which days you open it, which practices you complete and which pages you visit.
- Reminders: your reminder choices and, if you turn on notifications, a device address from your browser’s push service.
- Research surveys: your answers to the study questionnaires, if the study applies to you.
How AI is used
Your check-in answers, journal entries, chat messages and messages to pastors are sent to OpenAI to prepare your weekly plan, write chat replies and check for safety concerns. OpenAI processes this data under its API terms.
Safety checks
An automated check reads what you write for signs that someone may be at risk (for example of self-harm or abuse). When it finds a serious concern it creates a safety flag. The flag shows a category, a severity and a one-sentence AI summary; it does not show your words. Flags are seen by your church’s administrators and pastors (for church entries) and by Attune’s administrator, who is alerted. Attune is not an emergency or monitoring service and the check can miss things. If you are in danger, call 911, or call or text 988 in the U.S.
Who can see what
- You can see everything you write.
- Attune’s administrator and researcher (Eric Shonebarger) can access all data in Attune, including journal entries and chat conversations, to run the service, keep people safe and carry out the research study.
- Your church’s administrators can read journal entries you write while using Attune with that church, and see safety flags, check-in scores and plan titles.
- Your church’s pastors cannot read your journal entries. They see safety flags and, if the church turns it on, check-in summaries and plan titles.
- Messages to pastors are read by your church’s pastors and administrators.
- Journal entries and conversations you write in personal mode are not shown to any church.
The research study
Attune is part of a study about how people use a digital app in their spiritual life. The study is part of a Doctor of Ministry project at Pentecostal Theological Seminary. Taking part is required to use Attune; you can withdraw at any time. If it applies to you, you answer short questionnaires when you start and again after six weeks, and we record how you use the app. Survey answers are linked to your account number, analyzed by account number rather than name and never shown to your church. You can withdraw at any time from your Profile; after that you get no more surveys and your data is left out of the study. Study contact: [email protected].
Shared devotion links
You can create a public link to one of your devotions. Anyone with the link can read that devotion’s title, scripture and reflection until you stop sharing it. The page shows nothing about you: not your name, journal, check-in answers or church. Previews already copied by other sites (for example when a link is posted on social media or in a message) can’t be recalled after you stop sharing. Links stay live after you delete your account unless you stop sharing them first; manage them under Shared devotions in your Profile.
Emails and notifications
If you choose email reminders we send at most one a day; every email has a link to turn them off. We also send account emails such as address verification. Push notifications are sent only if you turn them on.
How long we keep data
- Your account details (name, email, picture, date of birth) are kept while your account exists.
- What you write is kept for the research study, during your account and after you delete it (see below).
- Journal entries you delete are permanently removed after 30 days.
- Records of how you use the app are kept for up to two years.
- Database backups keep earlier copies for a limited time.
Deleting your account
You can delete your account from your Profile. We remove your name, email address, picture, date of birth and sign-in, end your church memberships and stop all emails and notifications. What you wrote is kept for the research study without your name or contact details. Because journal entries can mention people or places, this is de-identification rather than complete erasure. To ask for something different, contact us.
Your choices
- Download a copy of your data from your Profile.
- Turn reminders and notifications on or off in your Profile or from any reminder email.
- Use Attune as Personal (not with a church) when you don’t want a church to see an entry.
- Withdraw from the research study from your Profile.
Service providers
We use Google Firebase (sign-in), OpenAI (AI features), DigitalOcean (hosting and database), Resend (email) and your browser’s push service (notifications). They process data on our behalf to run Attune.
Changes
If we change this policy we will update the date above and, for important changes, tell you in the app. See also the Terms of Use.