Privacy policy

TextTheBible is operated by Verseful LLC (“we”, “us”). You send us a message and we reply with a Bible verse. This policy explains what we collect to do that, and what we don’t.

The short version

• We never store the text of the messages you send us.
• We never sell your personal information.
• We keep only what we need to reply, avoid repeating verses, and understand how the service is used overall.

Where you can reach us

You can message TextTheBible on Instagram, Facebook Messenger, Telegram, and (where available) SMS. Each channel is a separate account with us.

What we collect

• Your channel ID. The identifier the platform gives us for your conversation: your Instagram-scoped ID, Messenger page-scoped ID, Telegram chat ID, or phone number for SMS. We don’t receive your password, contacts, posts, or profile content.
• Your email address, when you reply with it to join.
• Settings, such as your time zone, membership status, and whether you receive a daily verse.
• Recent verses we sent you, so we don’t send you the same one again.
• Anonymous message labels. For each message we record labels about it (for example the topic “anxiety” or the tone “hopeful”), the verse we chose, the channel, and the time. We do not record what you wrote.
• Payment status, if you pay for SMS support. Payments are handled by Stripe; we never see or store your card number.

How we handle your messages

To choose a verse, the text of your message is sent to our classification provider, TypeSafe, which returns labels such as topic and tone. We may briefly hold your last message in memory (up to 30 minutes, never in our database) so a follow-up like “another one” makes sense. Every verse we send comes from a fixed library of published Bible translations.

If you tap “Pray about this,” the message that verse answered is sent to our AI provider, Groq, to write a short prayer. Each one ends with a note that some AI was used to create it. The Bible verse quoted in the prayer is inserted by us, word for word from the translation you received; AI never writes Scripture. We still don’t store your message: on Instagram and Messenger it travels inside the button itself, and on Telegram it comes from your original message, which our verse replies to.

If a message suggests someone may be in crisis, we reply with information about the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. We record only that a crisis reply was sent, with no user ID or labels attached.

How we use information

• To reply to your messages and, if you opt in, send a daily verse.
• To prevent repeats, abuse, and spam (for example rate limits).
• To publish aggregate insights, such as which topics people write about most. These reports never include anything that identifies you.
• To contact you about your account or the service, using the email you gave us.

Who we share it with

We share information only with the providers that run the service, and only what they need:

• Meta (Instagram, Messenger) and Telegram, to receive and deliver messages.
• Google Firebase, which stores our database.
• Vercel, which hosts our website and servers.
• TypeSafe, which classifies message text as described above and doesn’t keep it for other purposes.
• Groq, which writes a prayer from your message only when you tap “Pray about this.”
• Stripe, for payments.

We may also disclose information if required by law. We don’t sell or rent personal information, and we never share phone numbers or SMS opt-in consent with third parties for their marketing.

Data from Instagram and Facebook

We use the Instagram and Messenger platforms only to receive the messages you send to TextTheBible and reply to them. We use the data we receive from Meta only for that purpose, in line with Meta’s Platform Terms, and we delete it when you ask us to.

How long we keep it

We keep your account information until you ask us to delete it. Anonymous message labels are kept to improve the service and the verse library; they can’t be used to identify you.

Your choices

• Stop messaging us at any time. On SMS, reply STOP.
• Ask us to delete your data. See how to request deletion.
• Ask us what we hold about you, or to correct it, by emailing dan@verseful.co.
• You can remove TextTheBible’s access in your Instagram or Facebook settings under Apps and websites.

Children

TextTheBible is not directed to children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect their information.

Security

Data is encrypted in transit and stored with access limited to the people who run the service. No system is perfectly secure, but we keep what we store to a minimum.

Changes

If we change this policy we’ll update the date above. Significant changes will be announced on this site.

Contact

Questions about privacy: dan@verseful.co.