privacy policy (draft)

Last updated: March 18, 2016

Eraser Map was specifically designed to limit the collection, use, storage and distribution of personally identifiable information (PII) that normally occurs when using a consumer mapping application.

Privacy is something you may not think about while using a map, but everything about your mobile location can be logged, tracked, shared, and sold. The places you’ve searched, the routes you’ve travelled, even where you are right now produces data that is routinely logged and tracked by map providers. With Eraser Map, we’ve stripped out all unnecessary data collection about our users, and go so far as to erase frequently any relevant logs from our servers for maximum privacy.

We Don’t Want Your Personal Information

Because we run all of our own mapping services, we can make a promise of privacy. We are able to provide the power of internet-connected map tiles, fulltext search and autocomplete, and voice-guided turn-by-turn directions, and promise that we will not be logging, tracking, or selling your data. We do a number of things to increase your privacy when Eraser Map interacts with our hosted services:

1. We only use SSL for all communications, meaning all requests for map tiles, routes, and searches are encrypted.
2. All requests from Eraser Map include “Do Not Track” headers so we can prevent or destroy logs from those requests.
3. All logs related to Eraser Map are destroyed every fifteen minutes.

With Eraser Map, we are trying to maximize user privacy, which means we want no user data on any servers under our control.

No user accounts: You should be able to use Eraser Map without telling us anything about yourself. So there’s no need to log in, and no ability to create an account. We won’t be building a profile around your account, so there’s no need to have one in the first place.

Minimal app permissions: You may notice that the list of permissions we request when you install Eraser Map is surprisingly short. We only need access to things that make sense for a mapping application. You won’t see us requesting access to your address book or photos, for example. All Eraser Map needs to function is an internet connection and your device location, so that’s all we ask for.

Data stored on your device: To provide a better user experience we cache map tiles and searches on your device. If you would like to clear your search history or opt out entirely you can do so in the settings menu.

No Invasive Third-Party SDKs: When a mobile developer builds an app, they routinely use third-party software which provide helpful functionality but may also collect data. We audited many potential third-party SDKs for Eraser Map and rejected them all. We’re not even running the usual analytics packages or crash-reporting software to minimize data sharing (therefore, do email us if you see a crash).

We also built a drop-in replacement for Google Play Services Location APIs. This means that we can access your device location without using your Google Play account, thus sharing as little information as possible. By default, we do share visible wifi networks with Google for improved location accuracy, but this won’t be paired with your Google Play account. Users can also disable wifi sharing in their device settings by selecting “GPS only.”

Third Parties We Use: Of course, we are not an island and there are two third-parties we’re using to provide Eraser Map.

The first is Amazon Web Services, which we use for hosting for all our services. Here’s their privacy policy.

The second is Fastly, a content delivery network that speeds up access to our map tile service globally. See Fastly’s privacy policy for more information, and also their security and technology compliance notice.

All-Open Software & Data: The entirety of Eraser Map is built using open-source software and open data. This means users and developers can inspect the app, improve it, and call out any issues they find. We believe that providing all our work as free open software increases scrutiny and trust in our products, especially those focused on user privacy.

Information We Share: We will comply with all court ordered legal requests for information that we collect or store on our servers. However, since we do not collect any information that can be used to identify an individual, we believe such requests will be of limited value.

Updates: In the future we may decide to update Eraser Map in order to provide greater privacy or to update this policy in order to provide further explanation. Please check back here periodically for any updates.

Feedback: Please email us if you have any questions or concerns about this privacy policy.