Privacy policy

1. Operator and scope

The operator of Earth & Volcano Explorer and this website is GBApps Company. For data and privacy questions, contact mail@gbapps.company. Website: https://earthexplorer.gbapps.company.

This policy covers the current Android app, the web app under /app/ and the informational website. New features with different data practices will require an appropriate policy update.

2. A brief overview

The app requires no account, includes no advertising or analytics SDKs and does not request GPS, contacts, camera or microphone access. Background push delivery is not connected in the current client, which does not collect notification tokens.

Regions are entered manually. Preferences, bookmarks, regions, a checklist and public catalog snapshots are kept in app storage on the device or in browser storage. The informational website does not read those records. We do not sell personal data or use it for advertising profiles.

3. Website visits and technical logs

To deliver a page, the server and network provider process the IP address and technical connection information. Informational pages have no web analytics, advertising pixels, registration forms or tracking cookies. Article search and the educational calculator run in the browser without sending the entered query to the server.

Successful-request access logging is disabled for this website. A separate error log may contain an IP address and details of an unsuccessful request, including its path, query parameters or referring page. It is used for diagnosis and service security and is normally rotated out in approximately eight days.

That period refers to the website error log when rotation works normally. Hosting-provider network logs and other operations are governed by that provider’s terms. The absence of analytics does not mean that no technical IP processing takes place.

4. Local storage and backups

Language, theme, unit and time settings, entered regions, bookmarks, the preparedness checklist and saved snapshots support the features you choose to use. In the standard configuration, the app does not send your personal region or checklist to the project server.

Android uses local app preferences and a database; the web app uses browser storage. Records remain until deletion, a reset or cleanup by the browser or operating system. Device settings also affect restoration and automatic cleanup.

The operating system or backup tools may include app data in backups. Android backup is not specifically disabled in this version. We therefore do not promise that records never leave the device. Review your device’s backup settings and the backup provider’s terms.

In updated Android builds, an optional age range is stored with app preferences. No date of birth is requested. The app does not send the age range to USGS, map providers or a project server. The backup rules above also apply to this preference.

5. External sources and services

The standard builds directly request public USGS earthquake and volcano-notice feeds over HTTPS. The provider receives the IP address and ordinary request metadata. Your manually selected region is not sent to USGS as a personal filter: the app fetches a general feed and filters it locally.

Enabling the street layer requests OpenStreetMap tiles. The provider receives an IP address and the requested map area, which may reveal an approximate region being viewed. You can disable the street layer in map-layer settings.

Original reports, the USGS shaking questionnaire, NOAA and other reference links open external services with their own policies. If you complete an external questionnaire, that service receives the information. The app does not control later use or deletion. The built-in NOAA feed is not requested when no aggregation server is configured.

6. Purposes and legal bases

Technical information supports delivery, availability and security; local storage provides the functions you use. The project does not use this information for targeted advertising or interest profiling.

Where the GDPR applies, limited technical processing for operation and security relies on the operator’s legitimate interest in providing an available, protected service, balanced against your rights. Email correspondence is used to respond and meet applicable obligations. External providers describe their own processing bases in their policies.

7. Recipients and international processing

Technical transfers include the hosting and network infrastructure necessary to operate the site and, when you use the relevant functions, external data and map providers. Email correspondence also involves the sender’s and recipient’s mail services.

USGS, OpenStreetMap, NOAA, mail and hosting systems may be located outside your country of residence. We do not attribute guarantees or retention periods to external organizations that they have not made. Access to technical logs controlled by the operator is limited to operational and security needs.

8. Deletion and your choices

Choose Delete local data in your profile and confirm. This resets app preferences, bookmarks, regions, the checklist and saved snapshots. You may also clear this site’s data using your browser settings.

This does not erase OS backups, separate HTTP or tile caches, or information submitted to external organizations. Those systems provide their own controls. Public feed data may automatically download again after a reset when the app is open.

To reduce external map requests, choose the bundled atlas instead of OSM streets. You can avoid opening external reports and questionnaires. Selecting a region does not require GPS permission.

9. Requests and your rights

Send data questions and requests to mail@gbapps.company. Identify the relevant function or correspondence. Do not send passwords or documents that are unnecessary for the request.

Depending on applicable law, you may have rights to information, access, correction, erasure, restriction, objection and a complaint to the competent supervisory authority. Where consent is the processing basis, it may be withdrawn where applicable.

In the standard configuration the operator cannot access local bookmarks or the checklist; you need to delete these on your device. Correspondence is used to answer, handle requests and resolve the relevant matter and should not be retained longer than required for those purposes or legal obligations.

10. Children and family use

The website does not offer child accounts or ask for age. Educational materials can be explored with an adult; decisions about protective actions for a child should involve a responsible adult and local authorities.

Avoid sending unnecessary personal information about a child to support. If you believe such information was sent to the operator by mistake, use the contact above to request its review and deletion.

In the Android build with the age-range setting, selecting a range below 13, or leaving age unspecified, uses the bundled Natural Earth atlas and disables direct OpenStreetMap Foundation street-map requests and in-app links to its services. Selecting a range of 13 or older allows the street layer to be enabled separately. This is a self-declared setting, not identity verification or parental consent. The currently hosted web app does not have this age-range setting.

11. Policy updates

We will update this page and its revision date when functions or data practices meaningfully change. New server features involving personal data require an appropriate updated notice before activation. This policy does not assert completed store review or guaranteed compliance in every jurisdiction.