Your employer is setting up Daytide. Here is what that means for you.
This page is written for the people whose computers Daytide runs on, not for the person paying for it. It says the same things we say to your employer.
The short version.
Daytide keeps a record of working time. It notes which app, document or website is in front of you and for how long, and uses that to work out which client or project the time belongs to. The point is that nobody has to fill in timesheets.
It does not take screenshots. It does not record what you type. It does not read your documents, e-mails or messages. It does not use your camera or microphone.
You see everything it records about you. Your employer, unless they tell you otherwise, sees totals for the team.
You are told before it starts.
The first time the app runs it shows a notice of what it will and will not record. Nothing is recorded until you have acknowledged it.
Your employer has set up Daytide to keep a record of working time. Here is what that means on this computer.
It records
- Which app and window you work in, and for how long
- Document names and web addresses, with personal details removed
It never records
- Screenshots, typing, or what is in your files and messages
- Private windows, or personal sites such as banking and health
You can see everything it has recorded about you, pause it, and mark time private.
You see your own day, and why it looks the way it does.
Every stretch of work is an entry with a client or project beside it. Pick one and Daytide shows what it based the label on: the file name, the folder, the site, an answer you gave earlier. If it is wrong, you change it. If it does not know, it says so and leaves the time unsorted.
Why here
Left as general e-mail
- Outlook, 25 min
- Messages to four different clients, none longer than a few minutes
Short e-mail across several clients is not split up. It is counted as e-mail.
Why here
Sorted automatically, from your earlier answers
- Excel, 1 h 20: “Harbour Dental October figures”
- Word, 35 min, in the same folder: ~/Clients/Harbour Dental/2026-10
- On Tuesday you confirmed that this folder belongs to Harbour Dental Group
Wrong? Change it in one click. Daytide will not overwrite your correction.
Why here
You marked this time private
- 15 min
- Only the length is kept. Not the app, not the site, not the window.
Why here
Sorted automatically, from the meeting window
- Teams call, 1 h 05
- Window title: “Mill Lane School weekly”
- “Mill Lane” is on your client list
- 12:20 to 13:05AwayScreen locked, not counted45 min
Why here
Sorted automatically, from the file and folder
- Word, 1 h 25: “Mill Lane fee proposal v3”
- Folder: ~/Clients/Mill Lane School/Proposals
- A PDF from the same folder, 15 min
Why here
Not sorted. Daytide asks instead of guessing.
- A spreadsheet called “Q3 reconciliation”, 14 min
- xero.com, 11 min
- Two of your clients are in Xero and the file name does not say which
The question is in your chat with three answers to tap. If nobody answers in three days it expires and the time stays unsorted.
Why here
Sorted automatically, from a rule you approved
- PDF reader, 1 h 10: “Kessler supply agreement”
- Your rule: files with “Kessler” in the name belong to Kessler & Daughters
Rules are personal, visible in your settings and can be switched off.
Why here
Sorted automatically, from your earlier answers
- Excel, 30 min: “Harbour Dental October figures”
- Outlook, 20 min, messages about the same report
- Working time
- 7 h 30
- Sorted without asking
- 7 h 05
- Private
- 15 min
- Questions waiting
- 1
What you control.
- Pause for 15 or 60 minutes. Nothing is recorded while it is paused.
- Mark the last 30 minutes private in one click, or tell the chat which time was private. Only the length is kept.
- Correct any entry. Your correction stands. Daytide does not overwrite it.
- See, export and ask to delete everything recorded about you.
- Sign out or quit the app. It is an ordinary program in your menu bar or tray. It does not hide.
What your employer can switch on, and how you would know.
We would rather you heard this from us.
- Detail per person. Off by default. When it is on, managers can see individual time and not only team totals. You can see that the setting is on.
- Detailed mode. A stricter way of working in which every working minute ends up in an entry and a reviewer approves each day or returns it with a note. Your employer chooses it during setup. In this mode the reviewer sees your day.
- How much of a title or address is kept. There are three levels. The notice you acknowledge describes what is recorded at your firm.
None of these settings adds screenshots, typing or contents. Those are not switched off. They do not exist in the app.
Depending on where you work, your employer may have legal duties before installing software like this: written notice, an impact assessment, agreement with a works council. If you have not been told anything and the app has appeared on your computer, ask.
Questions people ask.
- Can my manager see which websites I visit?
By default, no. The default view for owners and managers is the team as a whole: hours by client, project and kind of work.
A firm can switch on detail per person. If yours does, you can see that the setting is on. Even then, personal categories such as banking, health, personal e-mail, social media, shopping and job sites are recorded only as “personal” with a number of minutes, never as the site itself.
- Does it know when I take a break?
It knows when the computer is idle, locked or asleep, because that time is not counted as work. It does not know why. A locked screen is a locked screen, whether you are at lunch or with a client.
- Does it take screenshots if my employer asks for them?
No. There is no such feature and no setting that turns one on. The same goes for recording what you type.
- What about my private browsing window?
For a private or incognito window Daytide keeps the name of the browser and the length of time. Not the sites, not the titles.
- What if it gets my day wrong?
It will, sometimes, most of all in the first week. Every entry shows why it was put where it is, and you can change it in one click or by saying so in chat. Once you have corrected an entry, Daytide does not overwrite it.
- Is there a score? Is it ranking me against my colleagues?
Your own view is a record of your time, not a score. What your employer can see about individuals depends on settings that are off by default and visible to you when they are on. If you are unsure which are on at your firm, ask. You are entitled to know.
- I work on my own computer. Does it record my evenings?
Recording stops outside the working hours your firm has set, unless you start work yourself. You can also pause it, or quit the app, from its menu at any time.
- Can I get my data, or have it deleted?
Yes. You can export everything recorded about you from the “My data” page, and send a deletion request from the same place. If you cannot get an answer from your employer, write to us at privacy@daytide.ai.
Still uneasy?
That is reasonable. Read the full list of what is recorded, and if something here does not match what you see on your computer, tell us:privacy@daytide.ai.