Privacy Policy

Version of 2 August 2026 · This is a translation for convenience; the German version is legally authoritative.

1. Controller

The controller within the meaning of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) for processing personal data in the Mapestro app and on this website is:

Distributed Systems Vertriebs- und Beratungsgesellschaft mbH
Lange Flagge 21
48366 Laer, Germany
Phone: +49 2554 917708
Email: info@d-sys-gmbh.de

For the managing director and further mandatory details, see our legal notice. We have not appointed a data protection officer, as the statutory conditions requiring one do not apply. Please use the contact details above for all privacy matters.

2. Core principle: local data storage

Mapestro is deliberately built so that as little data as possible ever reaches us. Your content — projects, pieces, passages, ratings, achieved tempos, practice diary, question list and all imported score images — is stored exclusively on your device, in the app's own database and app directory. This data is never transmitted to us or to third parties automatically, and it is not synchronised to any cloud.

Data leaves your device only in the cases described in section 4 — that is, when you yourself trigger a feature that requires a server (sign-in, score recognition, dictation, subscription check). Even then, we transmit only what that feature requires.

3. This website (mapestro.app)

This website provides information about the app. It sets no cookies and embeds no analytics, tracking or advertising services, no external fonts and no social media elements.

When you open a page, our web server processes technically necessary access data in server log files: IP address, date and time, requested address, HTTP status code, volume of data transferred and the identifier sent by your browser (user agent). The sole purpose is to deliver the page and to ensure operational security and stability. The legal basis is Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR; our legitimate interest lies in secure, trouble-free operation. These logs are not combined with other data sources, are not used to build usage profiles, and are deleted automatically after a short period.

4. Processing in the app

4.1 Account and sign-in

Features that require our server (score recognition, dictation, subscription) require an account. Sign-in is passwordless: you receive a one-time six-digit code by email; alternatively you can sign in with your Google or Apple account.

On our server we store:

• a random account identifier (UUID) assigned by us,
• your email address,
• an internal pseudonymous identifier for the sign-in process,
• the time the account was created and last used,
• per device used, a random device identifier plus platform (iOS/Android) and app version — so that the device limit can be enforced and errors attributed.

We operate the sign-in service using the open-source software Hanko on our own server — your sign-in data is therefore not passed to an external identity provider. The emails containing sign-in codes are likewise sent via a mail server we operate ourselves. If you sign in via Google or Apple, that provider learns that you are signing in to Mapestro; we receive only your email address and a pseudonymous identifier in return.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract).

4.2 Score import and recognition

When you import sheet music as a photo or PDF, have a passage played back, or have a whole piece recognised, the app transmits the relevant image data to our server. There it is first analysed by the open-source score recognition software Audiveris, which we run ourselves. Only if that fails or is insufficient for the task is the image data additionally sent to the AI service Anthropic (see section 5).

We do not build score archives. Transmitted images are retained only for the duration of the respective job — necessary because an import can take several minutes and is designed to survive the app being closed. Results and associated intermediate data are deleted automatically no later than seven days after the job ends. In addition, we store technical administrative data for each job (job identifier, type, status, page count, timestamp, and any error message) in order to attribute jobs to your account and prevent double billing.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract).

4.3 Sheet music inbox (transfer from a computer)

When you send sheet music files to the app from a computer via upload.mapestro.app, the following data is processed: the transmitted score pages (image data), a technical browser identifier, and an IP address truncated to its network range (IPv4 to /24, IPv6 to /48) used to recognise the paired browser. The sole purpose is transferring the files from the computer to the app; no content analysis takes place at this step.

The score pages sit unencrypted and only temporarily on our server — deleted automatically no later than 48 hours after upload, or immediately once picked up. A browser pairing lasts up to 30 days and can be revoked at any time in the app under “Connected browsers”. No disclosure to third parties occurs beyond the processors already named in section 6.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract).

4.4 Voice input

Converting your voice into text is handled by your operating system's speech recognition (Apple or Google). Audio recordings never reach our server. Depending on your device and system settings, Apple or Google processes the speech data either directly on the device or on their own servers; the respective provider's privacy terms apply to this.

We transmit only the recognised text, together with the project context needed to interpret it: titles and composers of your pieces, passage labels and bar ranges, rating states and tempo values. This is sent to Anthropic for analysis (see section 5) and is not stored permanently by us.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract).

4.5 Quota and cost control

So that the service can be operated sustainably, we record per account the consumption of server-side features: the number of score pages processed per billing period, and per operation the type of use, the AI model used, the volume processed and the cost incurred. No content is stored in the process — only counts and cost figures.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract) and Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in preventing abuse and controlling costs).

4.6 Subscription and payment

Purchase, renewal and cancellation of the subscription run exclusively through the in-app purchase systems of Apple and Google. We never receive payment details such as card or bank account numbers — these remain with Apple or Google.

To check whether your subscription is active, we use the service RevenueCat. Only our pseudonymous account identifier is transmitted to it — not your name or email address. In return we receive: product, status, expiry date, whether it renews automatically, and the purchase identifiers from Apple or Google. We store the latter so that we can independently verify subscription status in future.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR (performance of a contract).

4.7 App updates

On launch, the app checks whether an update is available. This request goes to the update service Expo Application Services (650 Industries, Inc., USA), which for technical reasons receives your IP address, platform and installed app version. No usage or practice data is transmitted.

Legal basis: Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR (legitimate interest in delivering bug fixes and security updates).

4.8 Obtaining the app from the app stores

Downloading and installing the app takes place via the App Store (Apple) or Google Play. Apple and Google process the resulting data under their own responsibility; we have no influence over this. From the stores we receive only anonymous, aggregated statistics with no personal reference.

5. Use of artificial intelligence (Anthropic)

For analysing score images and interpreting dictation we use the AI platform of Anthropic PBC, 548 Market St, PMB 90375, San Francisco, CA 94104, USA. Only the content required for the respective task is transmitted (score images, or dictated text with project context); your email address or account identifier is not sent along with it.

According to its own assurances, Anthropic processes this data solely on our instructions to provide the service, and does not use content submitted via the API to train its models. As this constitutes a transfer to the USA and therefore to a third country, we base it on the Standard Contractual Clauses adopted by the European Commission (Art. 46(2)(c) GDPR) together with supplementary safeguards. We note that, despite these measures, access by US authorities cannot be entirely ruled out.

If you prefer no data to be transmitted to Anthropic, simply do not use the relevant features (score import, score recognition, dictation) — all other functions of the app remain fully available to you.

6. Recipients and processors

We share personal data only where necessary for the purposes described. Data processing agreements pursuant to Art. 28 GDPR are in place with our processors. We do not sell data.

The sign-in service, the mail delivery for sign-in codes and score recognition with Audiveris are operated by us on our own infrastructure — no further third parties are involved there.

7. Retention and deletion

• Account and device data: for as long as your account exists.
• Score images and job data: only for the duration of processing, deleted automatically after seven days at the latest.
• Subscription and usage data: for the duration of the contractual relationship; where commercial or tax retention obligations apply, until these expire.
• Server log files: short-term, then deleted automatically.

You can delete your account completely at any time directly in the app. All associated data on our server is removed immediately and irreversibly; only a pseudonymous identifier remains briefly in a technical queue until the sign-in account has also been deleted. Practice data stored locally on your device is unaffected — remove it by uninstalling the app or deleting the data within it. Create a backup beforehand using the export function if you wish to keep it.

8. Your rights

You have the following rights in relation to us:

• Access to the personal data we process about you (Art. 15 GDPR)
• Rectification of inaccurate data (Art. 16 GDPR)
• Erasure (Art. 17 GDPR)
• Restriction of processing (Art. 18 GDPR)
• Data portability (Art. 20 GDPR)
• Objection to processing based on legitimate interests (Art. 21 GDPR)
• Withdrawal of any consent given, with effect for the future

An informal message to info@d-sys-gmbh.de is sufficient to exercise these rights.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with a data protection supervisory authority, in particular in the Member State of your residence or of the alleged infringement. The authority responsible for us is the State Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information of North Rhine-Westphalia, Kavalleriestraße 2–4, 40213 Düsseldorf, Germany.

9. Is providing data required?

Providing your data is neither legally nor contractually required. However, without an account and the transfers described, the server-side features (score recognition, dictation, subscription) cannot be provided. All purely local functions — managing and rating passages, the metronome, the practice diary, export — remain unaffected.

10. No automated decision-making

No automated decision-making, including profiling, producing legal effects concerning you within the meaning of Art. 22 GDPR takes place. The app's practice suggestions are calculated exclusively on your device from your own ratings and are purely advisory.

11. Children and young people

Mapestro is aimed at musicians of any age, though entering into a contract (subscription) requires legal capacity. For minors, we assume that an account is set up with the consent of a parent or guardian. We do not knowingly collect data from children under 16 without such consent.

12. Data security

All communication between the app or browser and our servers is protected by TLS encryption (HTTPS). Access to our systems is limited to a small group of people; internal services are not reachable from the outside. We review our technical and organisational measures continuously and adapt them to the state of the art.

13. Changes to this privacy policy

We update this privacy policy whenever processing in the app or on this website changes — for example when new features ship — or when legal requirements make it necessary. The version published on this page always applies; we additionally point out substantial changes within the app.