How your keyboard learns

Your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard uses machine learning to:

• Adapt automatically to your writing style
• Help you to type more efficiently

This means your keyboard remembers words that are important to you and how likely you are to use certain words together. It also adapts to the positions of your keystrokes as you type, helping it decide what you mean if you tap the area between two keys.

By default, nothing Microsoft SwiftKey learns about your typing leaves your device.

Backing up what Microsoft SwiftKey learns

If you choose to, you can sign into SwiftKey with your Microsoft or Google account. Microsoft SwiftKey will then periodically send fragments of data about the words you use to a Microsoft cloud service. The service stores the fragments in a format that can be synchronised with any other devices where you use SwiftKey.

Unless you choose to share your data with Microsoft, any data we store about your typing is private to you and accessible only to your keyboard. You may also ask us to delete your data at any time: you can do this via your Microsoft SwiftKey settings or https://data.swiftkey.com/

How to help Microsoft improve

When you first use Microsoft SwiftKey, or in certain other situations, SwiftKey may ask if you would like to share typing data with Microsoft to help us improve our products.

Agreeing to this allows Microsoft to collect two different sorts of data about your typing:

• Your keyboard may occasionally capture ‘snippets’ of your typing. This includes short phrases, plus data about the keypresses you made to type the words, and whether you deleted or changed anything. These snippets are captured anonymously and you do not need to be signed in to share them.
• If you are signed in, your keyboard sends fragments of data about words you use and how likely you are to type them together to a Microsoft cloud backup service. When you agree to share your typing data, these fragments will also be shared with a separate Microsoft product improvement service. As part of this process, your shared data fragments will be anonymized and any personal or unusual words will be removed.

You are under no obligation to share this data, and if you agree to do so, you can change your mind at any time.

To opt in or out of sharing:

1. Tap ‘Privacy’ in your Microsoft SwiftKey settings
2. Toggle the ‘Help Microsoft to improve’ slider

1. Why do I have to be over 16 in the EU to use Microsoft SwiftKey?
2. How do I verify my age?
3. What does it mean if I am an under 16 EU Microsoft SwiftKey user?
4. Can I still use the Microsoft SwiftKey keyboard if I don’t have a Microsoft SwiftKey Account?

1 - Why do I have to be over 16 in the EU to use Microsoft SwiftKey?

The new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requires controllers like Microsoft to have authorization from parents to get a child’s consent where that consent is required for personal data processing in the context of Microsoft products and services, including Microsoft SwiftKey.

2. How do I verify my age?

You will be prompted to verify your age when opening the Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard. Tap on the button to sign in to your Microsoft SwiftKey Account and verify your details.

If you choose to ignore the prompt we will remind you on several more occasions.

Alternatively you can trigger verification by:

• Opening your Microsoft SwiftKey app and tapping on 'Account'.
• Downloading a Theme

3 - What does it mean if I am an under 16 EU Microsoft SwiftKey user?

EU users under 16 will not be able to create a Microsoft SwiftKey Account.

4 - Can I still use the SwiftKey keyboard if I don’t have a Microsoft SwiftKey Account?

Yes, your Microsoft SwiftKey keyboard will work on your device as normal and will adapt to your typing style even without a Microsoft SwiftKey Account. That will be true of all devices on which you use the Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard. The only difference is that your typing model won’t be backed up in the cloud and available for new or other devices on which you use the Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard. 

Your predictions are associated with your Microsoft SwiftKey Account, and go with you when 'Backup & Sync' is enabled.

Note: Your Typing stats don't transfer across devices, so if you've recently installed Microsoft SwiftKey on a new device, you might wrongly assume your predictions have disappeared. 

A good test would be to begin typing an email address (or other such phrase unique to you). If Microsoft SwiftKey is not returning the expected result, this might be cause for further investigation.

In this instance, we recommend trying the following steps in order:

Logout of your Microsoft SwiftKey Account

1. Open Microsoft SwiftKey and select 'Account'
2. Tap 'Account'
3. Choose 'Logout from this device'
4. Restart your device
5. Open Microsoft SwiftKey and log back into your Microsoft SwiftKey Account

Start typing and see if your predictions have been restored.

If you're still having trouble follow the steps below:

Check Backup & Sync

1. Open the SwiftKey App and select 'Account'
2. Tap 'Account'
3. Choose 'Backup & Sync'
4. Check to see when a sync last took place (it should be within the last day). Toggle the button to force a sync.

Start typing and see if your predictions have been restored.

Your Microsoft SwiftKey Account provides several great benefits for users, including:

• The ability to safely back up the words and phrases you use regularly
• Sync what you teach Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard across all your devices
  
  

To set up your Microsoft SwiftKey Account please follow the below steps:

1. Open the Microsoft SwiftKey app
2. Tap ‘Account'
3. Choose your desired log in method (Google, Facebook or Microsoft Account) and follow the instructions.

Please note: if you've already signed into Microsoft SwiftKey on an Android device you'll need to use the same account (and vice versa) in order to sync your data.

Granting Full Access to Microsoft SwiftKey does not mean everything you type is transferred, despite a warning message that shows when you allow the permission.

No language data or words you type will ever be transferred while using your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard unless you specifically create a Microsoft SwiftKey Account.

On iOS, Microsoft SwiftKey’s keyboard extension requires Full Access in order to share data with the “container” app on your device, i.e. the Microsoft SwiftKey app on your home screen. This is because we house key components of Microsoft SwiftKey in the container app, and need to obtain your permission for the keyboard extension to access these components.

For more information on how to grant Full Access please read our article on this.

What is Full Access?
Granting an iOS keyboard extension Full Access is the permission that allows it to share data with its broader “container” app and gain network access. We request this permission in order to provide you with a full Microsoft SwiftKey feature-set and simplify how settings are managed.

Do you transmit anything I type?
Your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard does not “transmit anything you type,” as Apple’s warning message may lead you to think. That warning message (which is displayed before a user allows Full Access) is there to make sure you are aware of what is technically possible before making a decision about whether to trust the developer of a keyboard extension. We hope this article gives you the confidence that Microsoft SwiftKey has taken measures to protect both your privacy and security.

What exactly is Full Access used for?
We require Full Access because your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard stores language models, personalized learning and keyboard preferences outside the keyboard extensions framework on your device. Without this permission, the keyboard extension would not be able to read or write to these files.

Architecting Microsoft SwiftKey for iOS in this way allows us to make sure the keyboard is both as user friendly and powerful as possible. It allows you to manage your settings in a clear and simple way from the app on your home screen, have access to a library of frequently updated language models, have further customization of the keyboard with themes, and ensure all of this is presented within a reasonably-sized app.

To give you added peace of mind, you can delete learned language data from your device (or your Microsoft SwiftKey Account) at any time.

By having Full Access, we’re also able to seamlessly improve both language predictions and our feature-set in the future; for example, we can roll out new or improved languages without disrupting your typing by requiring the app to be updated. In order to keep up with how quickly language evolves, we update our language models from time to time.

Microsoft SwiftKey Account
By creating a Microsoft SwiftKey Account, your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard learns from your typing. Your predictions are securely backed up to our servers and synced across other devices that you opt in with. 

You can read more about the benefits of a Microsoft SwiftKey Account here.

Privacy
We take user privacy very seriously, and all of the data that we handle is strictly guarded by our Privacy Policy. You can read it here:

Privacy Policy

There are a few instances where Microsoft SwiftKey will need to be given full access again, even if it had previously been given full access and was working fine.

When this happens, you will see a message above your keyboard telling you that you need to enable full access. You will need to toggle full access off and on to reset this and fix the problem.

To do this, please follow these steps:

1. Go to Apple Settings, and select ‘General’.
2. Tap ‘Keyboard’ and then ‘Keyboards’.
3. Tap ‘Microsoft SwiftKey’, and then toggle the ‘Allow Full Access’ switch.
4. Press ‘Allow’.

Read this article to learn more about why SwiftKey needs Full Access. 

1. What is Personalization?
2. How to Personalize with Microsoft SwiftKey
3. How does Microsoft SwiftKey ensure privacy?

1 - What is Personalization?

The Microsoft SwiftKey engine will learn from your personal language data as you type to understand your writing style and offer tailored predictions and corrections. 

It doesn’t matter what you’re typing; be it a Tweet, a Facebook status, SMS message, or email - your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard will continue to learn and personalize your language model appropriately.

2 - How to Personalize with Microsoft SwiftKey

To set up personalization, just sign into your Microsoft SwiftKey Account as per the steps below.

1. Open the Microsoft SwiftKey app.
2. Tap ‘Account'. If you have not signed up for a Microsoft SwiftKey Account, simply follow the onscreen steps to sign into Facebook or Google to create your account.

3 - How does Microsoft SwiftKey ensure privacy when accessing my accounts?

If you elect to use Microsoft SwiftKey Account personalization services, you give explicit permission for our servers to process your personal message data from these services, in order to improve the word predictions that Microsoft SwiftKey gives you.

The policy for personalization services is explained in our privacy policy. All of this data can be destroyed at any time by erasing your Microsoft SwiftKey Account.

If you are signed into your Microsoft SwiftKey Account (see How do I create a Microsoft SwiftKey Account on iOS? for further information), and have enabled Backup & Sync, then the words and phrases that matter to you are backed up securely and seamlessly synced across all of your devices.

With a Microsoft SwiftKey Account your personal profile is kept safe in the event of your mobile or tablet being lost or stolen, or changed due to an upgrade. Your most current words and phrases will be available on all devices connected to your Microsoft SwiftKey Account. Entering a new word or phrase on one device will automatically sync up with all of your other connected devices.

You can access your Backup & Sync settings in the following way:

1. Open Microsoft SwiftKey
2. Tap 'Account'
3. Tap 'Backup & Sync'

Note: If you recently switched to using a new device, your "Microsoft SwiftKey Statistics" will be blank. They are not transferred between devices, and this may make you mistakenly think that your predictions have disappeared.

If you've created a Microsoft SwiftKey Account, then you can remove all the data attached to your account in the following way:

1. Open Microsoft SwiftKey
2. Tap ‘Account'
3. Tap on your account
4. Press ‘Delete Account’ and confirm

If that's not enough, it's also possible to remove data stored on your device as well as remote data. See how.

Two types of data can be transferred while using Microsoft SwiftKey.

First, anonymous usage stats are periodically sent back to help us understand how people use the functionality of their Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard and how we can make it better. We get meta-level insights such as how many characters people have entered in total and how many keystrokes have been saved, but we don’t know anything about what you have been writing. If the app crashes, anonymous info about the crash will also be sent to us.

Second, if you sign up for a Microsoft SwiftKey Account, various additional data can be transferred to our servers to help us provide these services. For example, if you have Backup and Sync enabled, you give explicit permission for your personal language model data to be stored on our servers and processed to ensure prediction consistency between your devices. If you elect to use Microsoft SwiftKey Account personalization services, you give explicit permission for our servers to process your personal message data from these services, in order to improve the word predictions that Microsoft SwiftKey gives you.

The policy for personalization services is explained in our privacy policy. All of this data can be destroyed at any time by deleting your Microsoft SwiftKey Account.

How can I remove my data and consent to remove my data?

If you've created a Microsoft SwiftKey Account you can choose to remove both the data stored on your device and any associated remote data.

1. How to remove data from your device
2. How to remove your remote data
3. How to logout of your Microsoft SwiftKey Account

1 - Removing data from your device

To remove the personal language data stored on your device please follow the steps below:

1. Open Microsoft SwiftKey
2. Tap ‘Account' and then ‘Data settings’
3. Press ‘Remove my data from this device’
4. Confirm your choice

2 - Removing your remote data

The steps for removing your remote data are very similar.

1. Open Microsoft SwiftKey
2. Tap ‘Account' and then ‘Data settings’
3. Press ‘Remove my remote data’
4. Confirm your selection

3 - Logout of your Microsoft SwiftKey Account

In addition, logging out of your Microsoft SwiftKey Account will stop any further data being sent to the Microsoft SwiftKey servers. To do this:

1. Open Microsoft SwiftKey
2. Tap ‘Account'
3. Tap on the email address associated with your Microsoft SwiftKey Account
4. Select 'Logout from this device'

Your Tap Map shows how Microsoft SwiftKey uses artificial intelligence to adjust the keys on your keyboard to better fit your typing style. For example, if you typically hit the right half of the F key when you’re aiming for G, the shape of G on your Tap Map will probably be larger and skewed to the left.

To view Microsoft SwiftKey Tap Map on iOS:

1. Open the Microsoft SwiftKey app.
2. Tap the 'Your Tap Map' option.

You'll also find options here to share your Tap Map via social media, or save it to your camera roll. 

If you have previously opted-in to personalize your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard from third party services such as Gmail or Twitter, Microsoft SwiftKey will retain this data and your personalized language model will remain the same.  
 

Your Microsoft SwiftKey Keyboard will continue to learn the words and phrases that matter to you as you type. It doesn’t matter what you’re typing; be it a Tweet, a Facebook status, SMS message, or email, Microsoft SwiftKey will continue to learn and personalize your language model appropriately. However, please remember this excludes passwords, credit card numbers and other sensitive information.