Is Fireflies AI Safe? Privacy, AI Training and Lawsuits (2026)

Fireflies AI is secure by the usual business measures: it has a SOC 2 Type II report, encrypts data with AES-256, and says it never trains AI on your meetings. It is not the most private choice. Its Notetaker joins calls as a participant, by default it joins every calendar meeting with a video link and emails the recap to everyone on the invite, and Fireflies is defending Illinois biometric privacy class actions over voiceprints. If you want the notes with nothing in the call, Scribbl, which we make, takes them on Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams with nothing joining, recordings private by default, and your meetings never used to train AI for anyone other than you.

The rest of this page answers the question in full. Every Fireflies fact comes from Fireflies' own privacy policy, terms, security pages, trust center and help center, and every lawsuit fact from the court dockets, checked on October 19, 2026 and rechecked on October 23, 2026. For plans and prices, see Fireflies pricing; for the cases in detail, see the Fireflies AI lawsuit.

Is Fireflies AI safe?

For keeping your data away from outsiders, yes. Fireflies has what a security review usually asks for: an annual SOC 2 Type II audit, AES-256 encryption at rest and TLS 1.2 or later in transit, a published list of subprocessors, a penetration test report and a bug bounty program on HackerOne, a Business Associate Agreement for HIPAA on Enterprise, and a clear statement that it doesn't train AI on your meetings.

What makes people ask whether Fireflies is safe is something else: what its bot does in your meetings and other people's, and where the notes go afterwards. By default, Fireflies.ai Notetaker joins every meeting on your calendar that has a video link, records even when you don't show up, emails the recap to everyone on the invite, and leaves the notes open to teammates and anyone with the link. And in federal court in Chicago, people who were recorded by Fireflies in meetings they never set it up for allege that it captured their voiceprints without consent. Fireflies denies that, and no court has decided it.

Fireflies security at a glance

Does Fireflies use your meetings to train AI?

Fireflies says no, in three places. Its privacy policy (updated September 28, 2026) says "We do not use personal information for AI model training." Its terms of service (updated September 28, 2026) say Fireflies "will not use your User Content to train, retrain, fine-tune" or otherwise improve generative AI models. Its security guide says meeting audio, video, transcripts and summaries are "never used to train any AI models," and that vendors such as OpenAI and Anthropic keep none of your data after processing under zero day retention agreements.

• The loose version. Fireflies' security page says "We don't train on it by default unlike other AI companies." The policy and terms don't describe a setting that turns training on, so if your company needs this in a contract, ask Fireflies to put it in writing.
• Who processes your meetings. Fireflies' subprocessor list names 17 companies, including Assembly.ai and Soniox (transcription), OpenAI, Anthropic, Groq and Baseten (AI models), Perplexity, Elevenlabs, turbopuffer, Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services. Its security guide says "We enforce a Zero Data Retention policy": vendors don't store your data after processing, don't keep access to it, and never train on it.
• De-identified data. Fireflies' data processing agreement (March 6, 2026) lets it use de-identified data to improve its products and services, and its terms let it derive usage and statistical data from your content.
• The license you grant. The terms give Fireflies a perpetual, irrevocable, worldwide, sublicensable license to your content, with a promise to delete copies within a reasonable time if you delete the content, subject to backup and legal exceptions.
• Your voice. This is where Fireflies' pages pull in two directions. Its trust center FAQ says "Fireflies does not create, store, or process voiceprints or biometric identifiers," and that its transcription vendor returns generic labels such as Speaker 1 and Speaker 2. Its privacy policy says service providers "may extract or generate Voice Data from voice recordings" that "may be considered biometric identifiers or biometric information under Illinois law," that providers don't use it to identify people, and that it is destroyed within three years of your last interaction. Voiceprints are the whole of the Fireflies lawsuits.

Fireflies Notetaker: auto-join and consent

The bot. Fireflies.ai Notetaker joins Zoom, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams calls as a participant (How Fireflies joins and records your meetings). On Google Meet, the host may see it flagged as a potential risk in the waiting room; Fireflies says that label comes from a Google Meet security update and doesn't indicate any risk. Pro and higher plans can rename the bot.

Auto-join. Fireflies' setup guide (updated October 19, 2026) says "By default, Fred joins all your meetings with a web-conf link." The other choices are only meetings you own, only meetings with teammates, or only when you invite fred@fireflies.ai (auto-join settings). Its FAQ adds that Fireflies "will record even if you're not present," as long as you invited it and the platform lets guest bots in.

To stop it, set auto-join to Only when I invite fred@fireflies.ai, then check the Upcoming tab: each scheduled meeting has its own toggle, which is on by default (How to remove Fireflies from a meeting). Recording Rules can also block meetings by keyword, email address or domain. During a call, anyone can remove the Notetaker from the participant list, or type /ff leave in the chat.

What other people see. Fireflies says the Notetaker "is always visible in the participant list to ensure compliance," and that it posts a message in the meeting chat with a link to Fireflies' privacy policy (adding Fireflies to a live meeting). The email that tells participants an hour before the meeting that it will be recorded, with a link to decline, is a setting that is off by default (recording consent and meeting compliance, settings guide). When it's on and one participant declines, Fireflies says it won't join.

Whose job consent is. Fireflies' terms say "you must ensure that each meeting participant consents to recordings," and its compliance guide says that if you turn a notification off, "you are responsible for informing participants that the meeting is being captured." Some places require everyone's permission, including California and Illinois; see do you have to tell people you're recording and is it legal to record a meeting. Whichever tool you use, tell everyone you're recording.

Who can see your Fireflies notes?

You, your teammates, everyone on the calendar invite, and anyone with the link, unless you change two defaults.

• The recap email. Send email recap to is set to Everyone on the invite by default, which Fireflies describes as all calendar invitees, internal and external (recap email settings, updated October 8, 2026). The other options are only you and your Fireflies team, or only you.
• Meeting privacy. Every meeting's default is Teammates & anyone with link, under which Fireflies says teammates can open a meeting in All Meetings even if they weren't in it (privacy settings, updated October 8, 2026). Narrow it to Only participants, Only teammates or Only me.
• Super Admin. On Enterprise, a Super Admin role "bypasses all meeting privacy restrictions," including meetings marked Only me. Fireflies says it requires legal documentation and Fireflies' approval (Super Admin role).
• Company accounts. If your employer runs the workspace, admins set auto-delete, retention and access, and Fireflies says its own staff can't access user data by default.

Is Fireflies safe for confidential meetings?

Only after you change its defaults. For a board meeting, a client call or a confidential search, the question isn't whether outsiders can break in; it's who Fireflies tells and who it shares with on its own:

• The client sees the bot. Fireflies.ai Notetaker sits in the participant list, and by default it joins every calendar meeting with a video link, even ones you skip.
• The recap goes to everyone on the invite, internal and external, unless you change it (meeting recap and privacy settings).
• Anyone with the link can open the notes by default. Fireflies warns that if someone forwards the recap email or link, anyone who clicks it can view the meeting.

Set auto-join to Only when I invite fred@fireflies.ai, send the recap to Only me, and narrow meeting privacy before a confidential call. Or use Scribbl: nothing joins the call and recordings are private by default, so there's nothing to change first. Tell everyone you're recording either way.

Do it with Scribbl: nothing joins the call

If the bot, the auto-join and the sharing defaults are the parts of Fireflies that worry you, this is where Scribbl is different. Scribbl takes the notes with nothing in the call:

1. Add Scribbl. For Google Meet, add the Chrome extension (AI note taker for Google Meet). For Zoom and Microsoft Teams, install Scribbl Desktop for Mac (Apple silicon) or Windows (Zoom, Teams).
2. Join the meeting as usual. Nothing joins the call, nothing appears in the participant list, and nothing turns up in meetings you didn't attend. You don't need to be the host. Tell everyone you're recording, the way you would in any meeting.
3. Open the notes when it ends. You get the video recording, a transcript with speaker names, AI notes and action items. Recordings are private by default: nobody sees a meeting unless you share it, and Scribbl doesn't use your meetings to train AI for anyone other than you.

The free plan includes Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams, with 10 meetings a month. Start free.

The Fireflies lawsuits

Fireflies faces proposed class actions under Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act. The complaints allege that its Notetaker records, analyzes and stores the voiceprints of every meeting participant, including people who never created a Fireflies account, without the written notice and consent that law requires. Fireflies denies the claims and has asked the court to dismiss them. No court has ruled on them.

• Fricker v. Fireflies.AI Corp., No. 1:26-cv-02675 (N.D. Ill.), filed March 10, 2026 and combined with Martinez v. Fireflies.AI Corp. on June 4, 2026. A consolidated complaint was filed on June 24, 2026, discovery is stayed, and Fireflies moved to dismiss on July 15, 2026, arguing among other things that an Illinois court has no jurisdiction over it for these claims. The motion was fully briefed on August 26, 2026, and the docket showed no ruling as of October 23, 2026.
• Parrinello v. Fireflies.AI Corp., No. 3:26-cv-02479 (N.D. Cal.), filed March 23, 2026, a nearly identical case, has been on hold since April 24, 2026 while the Illinois case goes forward.
• An earlier Illinois case, Cruz v. Fireflies.AI Corp., filed December 18, 2025, was voluntarily dismissed by the plaintiff on March 11, 2026.

For the claims, Fireflies' arguments, the timeline and what happens next, see the Fireflies AI lawsuit. That page also covers the older Fireflies controversy: Business Insider reported in November 2025 that in 2017 the founders took notes by hand for more than 100 meetings while customers believed an AI bot named Fred was doing it.

How to delete your Fireflies data

• One meeting. Only the meeting owner can delete it, and Fireflies says deleted meetings are "permanently removed and can't be recovered" (delete a meeting). Bulk deletion isn't available on lower plans.
• Your account. Settings, then Account, then Delete my account. Fireflies says the account is permanently deleted after 30 days, and that support can recover it within that window (delete your account). Its privacy policy says personal information is deleted within 30 days of closing an account.
• The bot keeps showing up after you leave. Fireflies' help center says this usually means a colleague's account is sending it, or you cancelled a subscription rather than the account (troubleshooting).
• Someone else's recording of you. Fireflies' privacy policy says to ask the meeting host to delete it.
• Automatic deletion. Auto-delete is off by default; custom data retention is an Enterprise feature.

Settings to check before your first Fireflies call

1. Auto-join: change the default from all meetings with a web-conf link to Only when I invite fred@fireflies.ai, then check the per-meeting toggles under Upcoming.
2. Recap email: change Send email recap to from Everyone on the invite to Only me.
3. Meeting privacy: change the default from Teammates & anyone with link to Only participants or Only me.
4. Notices: turn on the participant email in Meeting Compliance.
5. Voice data: if biometric privacy matters to you, ask Fireflies in writing which of its two statements applies to your workspace.
6. Consent: tell everyone you're recording, every time.

Scribbl vs Fireflies: privacy side by side

What that means next to Fireflies: Fireflies' pages are clear that it doesn't train on your meetings, and its security measures are solid. The privacy risk is in its defaults: a bot that joins every calendar meeting on its own, a recap that goes to everyone on the invite, and notes open to anyone with the link. With Scribbl, nothing joins the call, recordings are private by default, and your meetings don't train AI for anyone other than you.

Who should pick Scribbl: people whose meetings are on Google Meet, Zoom or Teams, who want the video of each meeting, and whose clients or company would rather not see a bot in the call. The free plan includes Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams, with 10 meetings a month. Pro is $13 per user per month billed annually, or $20 monthly (pricing). Start free.

For more on Fireflies, see the Fireflies AI lawsuit, Scribbl vs Fireflies, Fireflies pricing and Fireflies alternatives. For the same check on other note takers, see is Otter AI safe, is Granola AI safe, is Read AI safe, is tl;dv safe and is Fathom safe.

FAQ

Is Fireflies AI safe?

By the usual business measures, yes. Fireflies lists SOC 2 Type II, HIPAA, GDPR and ISO/IEC 42001, encrypts data with AES-256 at rest and TLS in transit, and says it never uses your meeting content to train AI models. It is not the most private choice. Its Notetaker joins calls as a participant and, by default, joins every calendar meeting with a video link, emails the recap to everyone on the invite, and leaves notes open to teammates and anyone with the link. Fireflies is also defending Illinois biometric privacy class actions over voiceprints.

Is Fireflies AI legitimate and trustworthy?

Yes. Fireflies.AI Corp. is a United States company whose terms are governed by Delaware law. It publishes a privacy policy, terms of service, a data processing agreement and a trust center that lists a SOC 2 Type II report, an ISO/IEC 42001 certificate and a 2026 penetration test report available on request. Business Insider reported on November 25, 2025 that the company is valued at $1 billion. What to weigh against that: its bot's defaults and the biometric privacy lawsuits it is defending.

Does Fireflies use my meetings to train AI?

Fireflies says no. Its privacy policy, updated September 28, 2026, says it doesn't use personal information for AI model training, its terms say it won't use your content to train or fine-tune generative AI models, and its security guide says meeting audio, video, transcripts and summaries are never used to train any AI models, with zero data retention agreements with vendors such as OpenAI and Anthropic. Its security page puts it more loosely: we don't train on it by default. Fireflies' policy and terms describe no training setting to opt out of and no charge for one.

Does Fireflies join meetings automatically?

Yes, unless you change it. Fireflies' setup guide says that by default its Notetaker joins all your meetings with a web conferencing link, and its help center says Fireflies will record even if you're not present. To stop it, set auto-join to Only when I invite fred@fireflies.ai, and check the per-meeting toggle under Upcoming, which is on by default.

Can other people tell when Fireflies is recording?

Usually. Fireflies says its Notetaker is always visible in the participant list as Fireflies.ai Notetaker and posts a message in the meeting chat with a link to its privacy policy. The email that tells participants an hour before the meeting that it will be recorded is off by default. Fireflies' terms make you responsible for getting every participant's consent, so tell everyone you're recording.

Who can see my Fireflies notes?

By default, more people than you might expect. Fireflies' recap email goes to Everyone on the invite, internal and external, and every meeting's privacy is set to Teammates & anyone with link, which lets teammates open meetings they weren't in. Change both in Settings. On Enterprise, a Super Admin can open every meeting in the workspace, including ones marked Only me.

Is Fireflies being sued?

Yes. Fricker v. Fireflies.AI Corp., No. 1:26-cv-02675, a proposed class action in federal court in Chicago, alleges that Fireflies captured meeting participants' voiceprints without the written consent Illinois' Biometric Information Privacy Act requires. Fireflies asked the court to dismiss it on July 15, 2026, the motion was fully briefed on August 26, 2026, and the court had not ruled as of October 23, 2026. A nearly identical California case, Parrinello v. Fireflies.AI Corp., is on hold. No court has ruled that Fireflies broke the law.

Is Fireflies HIPAA compliant?

Fireflies says it is, on the Enterprise plan. Its pricing page lists HIPAA compliance, Private Storage and custom data retention under Enterprise only, its Enterprise guide says activation requires a signed Business Associate Agreement, and its BAA page says Private Storage is a requirement for the BAA to take effect.

How do I delete my Fireflies recordings?

Only the meeting owner can delete a meeting, and Fireflies says deleted meetings are permanently removed and can't be recovered. To delete your account, go to Settings, then Account, then Delete my account; Fireflies says the account is permanently deleted after 30 days. If someone else recorded you, Fireflies' privacy policy says to ask the meeting host to delete the recording.

What is the Fireflies.ai controversy?

There are two. Business Insider reported on November 25, 2025 that in 2017 Fireflies' cofounders took notes by hand for more than 100 meetings while customers believed an AI bot named Fred was doing it. Since December 2025, Fireflies has also faced proposed class actions alleging that its Notetaker captured meeting participants' voiceprints without the written consent Illinois law requires. Fireflies denies those claims, and no court has ruled on them.

Does Fireflies have a SOC 2 Type II report and a DPA?

Yes. Fireflies says it has been SOC 2 Type II compliant since December 13, 2021 and is audited annually, and it sends the report once you sign its mutual non-disclosure agreement at fireflies.ai/nda. Its data processing agreement can be signed online at fireflies.ai/dpa. Fireflies also lists ISO/IEC 42001, an AI management standard, and doesn't claim ISO 27001.

Which AI providers see my Fireflies transcripts?

Fireflies' trust center lists 17 subprocessors, including Assembly.ai and Soniox for transcription and OpenAI, Anthropic, Groq and Baseten for AI models, plus Perplexity, Elevenlabs, Google Cloud Platform and Amazon Web Services. Fireflies says it enforces a Zero Data Retention policy, so these vendors don't store your data after processing or train on it.

Is Fireflies safe for confidential meetings?

Only after you change its defaults. By default Fireflies.ai Notetaker sits visibly in the call, joins every calendar meeting with a video link, emails the recap to everyone on the invite, internal and external, and leaves the notes open to anyone with the link. For a confidential call, set auto-join to Only when I invite fred@fireflies.ai, send the recap to Only me, and narrow meeting privacy. With Scribbl, nothing joins the call and recordings are private by default, so there's nothing to change first.

Will people see anything join the call if I use Scribbl?

No. Scribbl, which we make, takes notes in Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams with nothing joining the call, so no bot sits in the participant list and nothing turns up in meetings you didn't attend. You still get the video recording, a transcript with speaker names, AI notes and action items. Recordings are private by default, and Scribbl doesn't use your meetings to train AI for anyone other than you. The free plan includes Google Meet, Zoom and Microsoft Teams, with 10 meetings a month. Start free at extension.app.scribbl.co/signup.

Sources

Every fact above was checked on these pages on October 19, 2026. The SOC 2 report access, the DPA, the subprocessors, the Zero Data Retention wording, the sharing defaults and the court dockets were rechecked on October 23, 2026.

• Fireflies legal pages: privacy policy (September 28, 2026), terms of service (September 28, 2026), data processing agreement (March 6, 2026), sign the DPA, mutual NDA for the SOC 2 report, BAA, HIPAA
• Fireflies security pages: security, trust center, trust center FAQ, subprocessors, Is Fireflies.ai safe? (January 12, 2022, on SOC 2 Type II since December 13, 2021), bug bounty, How Fireflies.ai keeps your information safe (October 14, 2026), pricing, Enterprise plan
• Fireflies help center, the bot and consent: How Fireflies joins and records your meetings, Setting up Fireflies before a meeting (October 19, 2026), auto-join settings, How to remove Fireflies from a meeting (October 8, 2026), How to add Fireflies to an ongoing meeting (October 14, 2026), Recording consent and meeting compliance, Responsible and secure meeting notetaking (October 14, 2026), settings guide
• Fireflies help center, sharing and deleting: meeting recap and privacy settings, recap email settings (October 8, 2026), privacy settings (October 8, 2026), Super Admin role, delete a meeting, delete your account, Fireflies joins meetings after account deletion
• Court records: Fricker v. Fireflies.AI Corp., No. 1:26-cv-02675 (N.D. Ill.), including the consolidated complaint (June 24, 2026) and Fireflies' motion to dismiss (July 15, 2026); Parrinello v. Fireflies.AI Corp., No. 3:26-cv-02479 (N.D. Cal.), including the stay order (April 24, 2026); Cruz v. Fireflies.AI Corp. (C.D. Ill.), via the Justia docket (dismissal, March 11, 2026)
• News: Business Insider, via AOL, on the Fireflies founders' viral LinkedIn story (November 25, 2025)
• Scribbl: pricing