chapture
Security
chapture is built to hold some of your most private thoughts. This page explains, in plain terms, how we protect your account and your writing — and the one thing only you can protect.
Contents
How We Protect Your Data
Encryption in Transit
All communication between your device and chapture travels over HTTPS with modern TLS. Data moving between you and the Service — sign-in, saving a diary, uploading a photo — is encrypted on the wire so it cannot be read by anyone observing the network.
Encryption at Rest
Files and media you upload are stored in cloud object storage, and sensitive secrets we hold on your behalf — such as the OAuth tokens for a connected calendar — are encrypted at rest using authenticated AES-256-GCM before they are written. Your password is never stored in a readable form (see Passwords, below).
Zero-Knowledge Diary Encryption
For your most sensitive entries, chapture offers optional per-diary, zero-knowledge encryption. When you turn it on:
- A key is derived on your device from a passphrase only you know.
- The diary is encrypted locally, in your browser or app, before it is sent to us.
- We store only the sealed envelope. We never receive your passphrase or the plaintext.
- You also get a one-time recovery code — a second way to unlock your encrypted diaries if you forget the passphrase.
Because the key never leaves your device, we cannot read an encrypted diary, reset its passphrase, or recover it for you. If you lose both the passphrase and the recovery code, those diaries are permanently unreadable — by anyone, including us. Keep your recovery code somewhere safe. Note that tags, dates, and attachments are not part of the encrypted body.
Passwords
Passwords are processed with a strong, one-way cryptographic hashing function before storage. We store only the hash, never the password itself, so no one — including chapture staff — can see or recover your password. If you forget it, you reset it rather than retrieve it. Accounts created through a sign-in provider (such as Google) don't have a password with us at all.
Authentication & Sessions
Signed-in sessions are carried by a signed, HTTP-only session cookie, so session data cannot be tampered with or read by scripts in your browser. Optional sign-in methods — Google, Apple, or phone one-time codes — are handled through each provider's standard, audited flow. You can sign out at any time to end a session, which is especially important on shared devices.
Access Controls
Your content is scoped to your account. Files are served through an owner-only access proxy rather than public links, so a photo in one of your diaries is not reachable by guessing a URL. Access to production infrastructure is limited and protected.
Infrastructure
chapture runs on established cloud infrastructure: a managed cloud host for the application, a managed PostgreSQL database for account data and entry metadata, and Cloudflare R2 for file storage. These providers maintain their own physical and network security programs. Optional desktop and mobile builds can keep an encrypted-in-transit local copy of your data on your own device so the app works offline.
Private by Default
Nothing you write is shared until you decide to share it. Diaries, notes, and decisions are visible only to you unless you explicitly mark a diary public, share an item into a chat, or publish a summary. When you do share, chapture warns you before a diary becomes public so the choice is always deliberate.
Your Part
Security is a partnership. The most effective things you can do:
- Use a strong, unique password you don't reuse elsewhere.
- For your most sensitive writing, turn on per-diary encryption and store the recovery code safely.
- Sign out on shared or public devices.
- Keep your own backup of anything irreplaceable — you own your content and can export it.
- Tell us promptly if you suspect unauthorized access.
Backups & Availability
We maintain backups to guard against data loss and to restore the Service after a failure. Backups are retained for a limited period and then purged. As with any online service, we cannot guarantee uninterrupted availability, and you remain responsible for keeping independent copies of content you cannot afford to lose.
Reporting a Vulnerability
If you believe you have found a security vulnerability, please report it privately so we can address it before it is disclosed publicly. Email lifearchive.aven@gmail.com with details and steps to reproduce. Please act in good faith, avoid accessing or modifying other users' data, and give us reasonable time to respond. We appreciate responsible disclosure.
Limitations
No online service can promise perfect security. We implement reasonable technical and organizational safeguards, but no method of storage or transmission is completely secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. This page describes our current practices and may change as the Service evolves; it does not create warranties beyond those in our Terms.