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Is Aqua Voice safe?

Aqua Voice is a legitimate company with SOC 2 Type II and ISO 27001 reports, but every dictation is processed on its servers, and transcripts may be stored there unless you turn on Privacy Mode. For sensitive material, turn Privacy Mode on, or use a Business plan or an on-device app.

Updated October 27, 20263 min read16 cited facts, each traced to its source

It is reasonably safe for ordinary use, but only if you turn on Privacy Mode. Aqua Voice is a real company that says it holds a SOC 2 Type II report, ISO 27001 certification, and GDPR and HIPAA compliance 1. But it is cloud dictation: the desktop app has no offline mode 2, and with Privacy Mode off, Aqua "may securely store transcript data" on its servers 3. We read these policies on Aqua's own pages on October 27, 2026.

This is the short answer from our guide to Aqua Voice.

Your audio always leaves your device

Whatever you set, recognition happens on Aqua's servers. On iPhone, the keyboard sends audio and relevant text context to Aqua 4, and the iPhone keyboard needs Allow Full Access, the permission that lets a keyboard use the network. On Android, transcription runs on Aqua's servers as well 5. If your rule is that audio never leaves the machine, Aqua cannot meet it. Our guide to on-device vs cloud speech recognition explains the tradeoff.

Privacy Mode decides what is kept

DataWhat Aqua says
Transcripts, Privacy Mode offMay be stored on its servers to improve the product 3
Transcripts, Privacy Mode onNot collected; session metadata may be 6
AI trainingNot without your explicit agreement 7
AdvertisingTranscripts and audio never shared with ad platforms 8
Local History audioKept on your computer, deleted after 3 days 9

The pages we read do not say whether Privacy Mode is on by default for individual accounts, and the policy gives no number of days for stored transcripts. Do not assume it is on: open the settings and check, including after updates.

Deep Context reads your screen once per dictation

When Deep Context is on, Aqua takes one screenshot as each dictation starts, and nothing between dictations 10. It keeps the words it found, not the image, and Privacy Mode redacts those words 11. It exists only in the desktop apps 12. If a confidential document or a password manager is often on screen, turn it off.

It depends on what you dictate

  • Everyday writing, notes, code prompts: fine with Privacy Mode on.
  • Health information: Aqua asks you to contact it about a Business Associate Agreement before dictating protected health information 1. Compliance claims do not replace a signed agreement.
  • Teams and regulated work: Business plans add Zero Data Retention 13.
  • Compared with rivals: Wispr Flow also transcribes only in the cloud 14, and its two data switches default to on unless restricted 15. Willow's default Private Mode retains nothing 16.

What to do

  1. Turn on Privacy Mode and recheck it after each update.
  2. Turn off Deep Context if sensitive material is on screen.
  3. For patient or client data, get a signed agreement first (see our guide to HIPAA-compliant dictation).
  4. For anything that must stay offline, use an on-device app. Yap, which we make, runs recognition on your Mac or PC; see our page on an Aqua Voice alternative.

For cost, see Is Aqua Voice free?, and for the head-to-head, Aqua Voice vs Wispr Flow. More privacy detail is in our guide on whether dictation apps train AI on your voice, part of dictation software.

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