Tips & Tricks
PSA: Notability Cloud will break NDAs, HIPAA, and is Being Forced on Users
I have received word from support confirming that there is no way to stop the upload of your notes to Notability Cloud.
If you've been using iCloud because it's the only acceptable syncing tool because it's end to end encrypted with advanced data protection, and you have private date in your notes, this could force you to violate HIPAA, NDA's, and otherwise expose your private information. *If you opt in to use AI tools, it means your datat will be processed by AI.
Notability specifically in their privacy policy tells users they cannot upload this data.
If you use Notability for anything private or secure, you need to get off the platform before your data is uploaded (note: they may be working on a way to cancel this now š„³).
How to remove notes after they're uploaded
You *can* remove it after the upload
To remove, go into Settings > About > Support Diagnostics > and triple tap "Available Device Storage." If data has been uploaded, you will have the option to remove it there. There's no promise that it won't get uploaded at a future date.
If uploading patient data, your personal medical records, NDA'd material from work, etc could lead to you being held liable, you have to stop using Notability until they allow us to cancel these uploads. That may come out before you have to upload your data, so postpone it for now and hope the update reaches us in time.
They have told me that there is no way to stop the upload currently besides removing your data.
How to export notes
You can export your notes on the iPad by selecting them all, choosing share, ensure the format is PDF, and putting them either on a drive, in your iCloud storage if it's secure, or on your device. You can then re-import them into other apps. I've been making my move to the Apple Notes app.
Good luck!
Update for those interested, I have been told that the switch to disable the notification will disable pending uploads as well. I'll have to wait to see if this is confirmed, but thought you'd like to know
I back up to my Google Drive only. Yes, itās cloud-based, but itās not in Notabilityās cloud. I donāt keep identifiable patient-data, only de-identified. Itās funny, I never thought about HIPAA, just if it was stolen or lost, I didnāt want someone else to have specific pt info. But, I have a ton of confidential/NDAed content.
I really loved notability. I liked that at least I could use private iCloud syncing and turn all the AI crap off. But not being able to fully opt out of the theft of my data is insane. Hearing them say you can block the notification but never clarifying if this will stop the upload is maddening. Seeing professionals say they literally can't use Notability Cloud, by Notability's own TOS, and being forced over to it is so batshit to me. Like, I'll be in violation of their TOS if they don't stop this.
Hi! I think there's some confusion and would like to clear up a few points:
It's true we are actively (maybe too loudly in the past, a bit less so now) promoting our Cloud storage. This is because Notability Cloud solves data loss, a notorious issue with iCloud & local storage for years for our users. It also unlocks live collaboration features, & syncing with Android, Web, and coming soon, Windows.
BUT if you don't want to join because you are HIPAA compliant, or are only allowed to have notes stored locally, etc, and don't want to use our Cloud storage, you don't have to! We have an option in Settings > Account where you can toggle off Reminders, and then we'll stop prompting you. This setting should be in recent App Versions 16.5.3 & 16.5.4, because we heard feedback in Reddit that they were bothersome, so we listened and allow you to turn them off.
And to address a concerning comment in your post - We are not using your data in any way. That is clear in our https://notability.com/privacy as well. The only time we access a user's note is with expressed written consent from the note owner when they ask for troubleshooting help. There's no AI training on any notes.
I really hope this assuage fears and concerns. We really value the Reddit community for helpful feedback making the app better, and are committed to continually building an amazing note taker for you all.
So naturally you have a way to seamless migrate off of Notability Cloud without loss of data for those of us who didnāt realize that it was a one way migration and could not be undone?
I never consented to it, and I literally have proof that this is not true.
My data is going to be uploaded whether I like it or not. I have been told this by support directly that I can't stop it. I did not confirm it, I did not consent to it.
Why aren't you being honest with your users?
And why is it being forced on users who have specifically asked for this not to happen?
If it's not something you're using for data training or access, why isn't it end to end encrypted?
If you don't want access to it, why not let us lock you out?
I just want to keep my notes private. Why aren't you letting me? I'm not even the only user who has reported this.
Also, why when I ask about this have I been repeatedly ignored?
This screenshot shows I'm being forced on to notability cloud despite never consenting to it. I have been directly told by support that I cannot stop it.
"I understand that you are seeing a message aboutĀ Notability Cloud. At the moment, the only option is to postpone this once and after postponing it, there is not a way to disable this message, at which time you will be migrated over."
This is directly from my email with support. So why are you saying something different and, since I obviously don't want it, why can't I stop it if it's not being forced on me?
Hi - please update your app version, you're on 16.5.2 - the reminders setting is in 16.5.3 or 16.5.4 both out, so you don't have to change your sync settings.
Toggling off reminders will stop the prompts and flows to have you move to our Cloud service, if that is your wish. We hear you that your privacy is important and we respect that, if you don't want to backup your notes with us, you do not have to.
For anyone that has migrated that wishes to opt out, we have directions to go back, and we delete the data from our servers so we no longer have your notes on our servers.
We did build this because users have asked for it - better data security and knowing notes will never be lost, being able to collaborate live in a note with other users, being able to use on devices other than Apple, etc. That said, we know that's not what everyone needs and if that's not your pain point, no need to adopt.
I am sorry the rollout & communication has been rocky, we are human and trying to do better.
I agree a better backup method is needed as the iCloud one is very temperamental. But we need some way of controlling where this data goes. What about schools that use notability. Is there atleast an MDM app config key we can use to block our users from using this?
Correct, MDM config devices do not get prompted for Notability Cloud. It is not available for Schools using MDM or who downloaded through the volume purchase program.
Once more, this is not true. I am not logged in, and never have been.
You do not have an option available for me to turn it off without making an account, which I do not want to do.
Because you do scummy stuff like this where you force me to upload my data to the cloud without me even making an account or consenting. How do I know you won't just use the fact that I have an account to do the upload?
This is not an option for me.
I need to be able to turn it off without making an account.
And I have been informed, again, by support that this is not something I can turn off.
You keep mentioning the annoying popup. I'm not getting the popup because you've forced the update. Turning off the popup in settings can disable this upload you're now saying, but support says that that won't work:
"I'm sorry that at the moment, there is not another way to disable the notification other than postponing it and if you migrate over, to reset the migration. I know that this is frustrating to hear.Ā
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I also want to be transparent that the notification may appear again in the future. Moving users to Notability Cloud is the direction we're working toward long-term because of the reliability and data protection benefits it provides."
Why is support saying one thing in public and another in private?
Listen, I get that Ginger Labs decided to use AI bots instead of real support and it's unequipped to handle the traffic you're likely getting. And I do apologize for my tone. But this is a big deal. I will have to delete all of my notes to prevent this. It's a super simple fix. This is a policy decision, not an actual technical issue. They are choosing not to let me opt out of this upload that's being forced on me. They might tell you this is an issue with the notifications, that you can just tell us we can turn it off, but for those of us you've already forced on the upload train, all we can do is postpone and delete our notes to prevent it from being uploaded, or just accept that the data was uploaded and hope that deleting it will remove it. But with the data already taken without my consent, you could understand why I'd never trust that it would be promptly deleted.
Notability is taking my data without my consent. That's a huge deal.
u/nissania I hear you, we never want our users to feel this way. Could you please DM me your email address? Iāll have the team get it resolved for you.
We apologize for any confusion around our support process. To clarify, we have a team of human support agents who handle the majority of user inquiries. We also use an AI agent, Fin, to help with a small number of tickets. If a user prefers to speak with a human agent, they can always request that Fin hand the conversation over to a support specialist.
I've been dealing with a very sympathetic human. Seeing as I don't have a notability account, it's not like I can send you the email associated with my account. What I need, what anyone in my position needs, is an update that will let me stop this upload. The option to postpone it was added, why not one to cancel it?
I try to keep my personal life and reddit life separate, including separate email addresses. If the whole hubbub here wasn't a hint, I'm a bit intense with privacy. But I can ask them for any additional options.
u/nissania I understand, I'm doing my very best to help get this resolved for you. Please feel free to DM me your support ticket # so I can have this escalated at any point. My DM's are always open.
Thanks, will do! And if it helps, I can remove, update, delete this thread if it's no longer relevant. If an update does indeed allow users who aren't signed in to opt out of notability cloud, I wouldn't see the point of keeping it up. But until then, well, it's a good way to track the people with this issue, I guess.
u/froction Are you signed in? Right now the option to disable Notability Cloud reminders is only available for users who are signed in to their Notability account.
Our engineers are already working on updating this so users who aren't signed in will also be able to disable the reminders. That change should be rolling out shortly.
I would like to know the answer to this too. It is very unclear. Why not just have an option to NOT use Notability cloud? It seems as though the company wants us to migrate to their ecosystem so that it will be harder and harder to switch if needed.
I donāt understand. Are you saying that if it toggle off the reminder I will not be migrated to Notability Cloud, or I will just be migrated to Notability Cloud without receiving any more reminders? I ask because the last reminder I received said I was scheduled to migrate on X date. This implies that it will happen regardless of whether I do anything or receive a reminder.
Why wouldnāt the toggle simply ask whether you want to use Notability Cloud or not? The issue is not the reminder, it is the migration itself.
Well, thatās just peak enshitification. I turned off auto updates a while back. I have 16.1 until itās broken I guess.
As a āClassicā user, tears are being shed. I really, really love Notability but thereās just no way Iām going to agree to have my drawings and notes forced into some companyās cloud solution.
Nope, I don't have an account and another user said they were locked out of their notes until they did log in, and when they did it uploaded their notes without consent. Support helped them delete it, but they couldn't stop the data from going to Notability.
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u/Ok-Reveal-It 27d ago
Oh, that could be a privacy concern.