CalRoam helps you discover and check in to California’s historical sites. This policy explains what we collect, why, the legal bases we rely on, and the control you have over your data. It covers the CalRoam apps for iPhone and iPad and the web app at calroam.com — they share one account and one set of data, so signing in on any of them is the same account. We do not sell your data, share it with data brokers, or use it for advertising or cross-app tracking.
Who is responsible for your data
The data controller is Mike Verinder (the “we” in this policy). For any privacy question or request, contact support@calroam.com.
What we collect
Account (Sign in with Apple). When you sign in, Apple gives us a stable account identifier and, only if you choose to share them, your name and email (which may be Apple’s private-relay address). This is what lets your progress sync across your iPhone, iPad, and the web and survive a reinstall.
Location. See the dedicated section below — this is the most sensitive data we handle, and it’s always under your control.
Your visits. The historical sites you check in to, and any sites you mute, so your map, points, and ranks stay in sync across your devices.
Reviews & photos you post. If you choose to add a rating, written review, or photo to a marker, tour, or trail, we store that content (and, for photos, the image itself) so we can review it and, once approved, show it to others.
Sign-in & device info. Each time you sign in we record the date, platform (iOS or web), app version, OS version, and device model, plus a coarse, city-level location derived from your internet (IP) address by our infrastructure provider. We store your IP only as a salted one-way hash, never the raw address, and use it to keep the service secure and to understand aggregate usage. In the iPhone app, if you have allowed location, the sign-in record also includes your device’s location at the moment you sign in.
Early-access email. If you enter your email on calroam.com to hear when the iPhone app launches, we store that email, the date, and the coarse, IP-derived area it came from, and use it only to tell you about the launch.
Security logs. Our firewall records the IP address, time, and request details of blocked or suspicious traffic, and we keep a list of addresses that have attacked or scraped the service. These logs are used only to protect the service.
Subscription status. CalRoam+ subscriptions are purchased and billed by Apple through the App Store. Apple — not us — processes your payment and payment details; we never see or store your card number or Apple Account credentials. The app checks with Apple whether your subscription is active so it can unlock the paid tours and trails. To unlock recorded narration for paid tours, the app also sends the purchase’s transaction identifier to our server, which asks Apple whether that subscription is active; we never receive your payment details.
Support chat & notifications (iPhone and iPad app only). If you use Chat with us, we store your messages, your account identifier, the app version and device model you’re using, and — only if you give it — a contact email, so we can answer you by chat, push notification, or email. If you allow notifications, we store your device’s notification token so we can tell you when we reply. This is used only to help you; it isn’t sold or used for advertising, and it’s deleted when you delete your account.
How you use the app. The app records the features you use — for example opening a marker, tour, or trail, searching, starting a tour, or viewing the subscription screen — together with a random identifier for your installation, the app version, device type, whether you subscribe, and an approximate location rounded to about half a mile. Our infrastructure provider adds a city-level location from your internet connection, and we keep only a salted one-way hash of the IP address. If you’re signed in, this is linked to your account so we can see how the app is really used and fix problems. It is not used for advertising, not sold, and not used to track you across other companies’ apps or websites.
Crash & performance reports. When the app crashes, freezes, or starts slowly, Apple’s built-in diagnostics hand the app a technical report (what code was running, the device model and iOS version, launch time and memory use), which the app sends to us so we can fix it. It carries your installation identifier and, if you’re signed in, your account identifier. It contains no content you’ve typed and no location.
Anonymous app opens. The app also sends an anonymous per-install signal when it is opened (including whether you are signed in or browsing as a guest) so we can understand overall reach. This one is not linked to your identity.
Analytics & cookies
Usage analytics (Rouge Advisory). Our sites and the iPhone app send simple usage events (for example, “page viewed”, “app opened”, “sign-in clicked”) to our analytics provider, Rouge Advisory (rougeadvisory.com). Each browser or app install gets a random identifier (on the web, the ra_anon and ra_sess cookies; in the app, a random ID stored on the device). When you sign in on the web, that identifier is linked to your CalRoam account ID and, if you shared it, your email, so we can understand how people move from visiting to signing up. In the app, these events don’t include your name, email, or location.
StatCounter. calroam.com uses StatCounter, a third-party web analytics service, to count visits. It sets cookies and records information such as your IP address, browser, pages viewed, and referring site, under StatCounter’s own privacy policy.
Map tiles, fonts & libraries. The web map loads map images from CARTO, fonts from Google Fonts, and code libraries from cdnjs (Cloudflare). Like any website resource, these requests reach those providers along with your IP address and browser details.
We use analytics only to understand and improve CalRoam. We don’t use it for advertising, and we don’t track you across other companies’ apps or websites. You can clear or block cookies in your browser settings; the site still works without them.
Location, in detail
CalRoam uses location in two ways, and only with your permission:
“Near me” on your device. When you tap to find sites near you, the app reads your device location to center the map and list nearby markers. This happens on your device and is not sent to us. The same goes for guided tours and trails: the app uses your location on the device to know when you reach a stop or how far a trail is.
Sign-in. If you have allowed location, the app includes your device’s current location when you sign in, and we store it with that sign-in record to keep accounts secure and understand where the app is used.
CalRoam only uses location while you are using the app — there is no background tracking and no continuous monitoring of your movements. You can grant or revoke location permission at any time in your device Settings, and most of the app works without it. When you check in to a site, we save which site and when, not your location. Precise device location is only stored on our servers with a sign-in record, and only if you’ve allowed location; otherwise we hold only the coarse, IP-derived area above.
Why we use it (legal bases)
For users in the EEA and UK, the GDPR requires us to name a legal basis for each use:
Performance of our agreement with you — creating your account, saving and syncing your visits, points, and ranks, showing nearby sites, and publishing the reviews and photos you choose to post. Without this we can’t provide the features you signed in for.
Your consent — using your device’s precise location. You give this through the system permission prompt and can withdraw it at any time in Settings; doing so doesn’t affect anything we already did with your consent.
Our legitimate interests — keeping the service secure, preventing abuse, moderating user content, fixing problems, and understanding aggregate, non-identifying usage so we can improve CalRoam. This includes the usage analytics and security logs described above. We balance these against your privacy (for example, by hashing the IP addresses in sign-in records).
Where your data is stored & international transfers
Your data is stored on Cloudflare infrastructure in the United States and is transmitted over encrypted (HTTPS) connections. If you are in the EEA or UK, this means your data is transferred to the US; that transfer is covered by the data-protection terms and Standard Contractual Clauses in our agreement with Cloudflare. Sign in with Apple is operated by Apple under Apple’s own privacy policy. Purchases of CalRoam+ are handled entirely by Apple; we never see your payment details. The analytics and web providers named above process data under their own terms.
How long we keep it
We keep your account, visit data, and posted reviews/photos for as long as your account exists. Sign-in/device records are also kept while your account exists and are deleted with it. Early-access emails are kept until we’ve told you about the launch, or until you ask us to remove yours. Security logs are kept as long as they’re needed to protect the service. When you erase your data or delete your account (below), the corresponding records are removed promptly from our live database.
Your controls — access, erase, delete
You can act on your data directly inside the app, under Profile:
Erase my data — wipes all your visits, points, ranks, mutes, and posted reviews/photos from every device while keeping your account, so you can start fresh. This can’t be undone.
Delete account — permanently erases your account and all associated data (visits, ranks, reviews, photos, sign-in history, and support chats) from our servers. This can’t be undone.
To request a copy of your data (a portable export), or to exercise any other right below, email support@calroam.com and we’ll respond within the time the law requires (within one month under the GDPR).
Your rights
Depending on where you live (including under the GDPR in the EEA/UK and the CCPA in California), you have the right to: access the data we hold about you; correct it; erase it; export/port it; restrict or object to certain processing; and withdraw consent you’ve given. We don’t sell personal information or use it for targeted advertising, and we won’t discriminate against you for exercising any right. To use any of these, use the in-app controls above or email us. If you’re in the EEA or UK and believe we’ve mishandled your data, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data-protection supervisory authority.
Children
CalRoam is not directed to children. We don’t knowingly collect data from children under 16 in the EEA/UK or under 13 elsewhere. If you believe a child has provided us data, contact us and we’ll delete it.
Changes
If this policy changes, we’ll update the date above and post the new version here.