TrackEcho PRIVACY POLICY

Project Computing developed and is responsible for the TrackEcho app and the associated web service.
This page defines our data privacy policy for TrackEcho users.
This page is linked to from the App Store, the TrackEcho app itself, and the app web site.
Your use of TrackEcho implies your agreement to our data collection described here.

We only collect or retain data needed for TrackEcho to function as promised.

Obviously we need to collect and retain some location data, because the main purpose of TrackEcho is to enable you to begin a 'trip', and record a sample of GPS track points on that trip, so you can later view it via a special private web link, and so any nominated observers can view the track in near real time, after having received an email (containing that web link) sent on your behalf, by our server.

We assume you value your privacy, and don't want distractions, so a feature of TrackEcho is an avoidance of advertising and clutter.
If you need an app to help you promote your activities on social media, then TrackEcho is not for you!

We collect your email address at your initial service registration for identity validation.
We collect location related data only when you are actively using the app.

Precise Location data is collected at intervals when you request the app to start a trip.
Location data collection ceases when you request the app to stop (or pause) a trip.

When you are about to start a trip, TrackEcho lets you create descriptors for that trip.
Your trip descriptor data is also collected.

Your location related data can be shared by you with your own trusted trip observers.
Any trip observers (identified only by email addresses) must be nominated by you for each trip.
TrackEcho server will queue emails for sending, at trip start and stop, to any trip observers you nominated for that trip.
TrackEcho may send a trip update email to any observers you nominated for that trip, if you request that during the trip.

The observer emails will contain your trip descriptors.
The observer emails will contain your name and phone number, if you provided it for that trip.
The observer emails will contain a private link to a generated map of the trip.

TrackEcho has an app function allowing you to delete all your location related web service data.
This data is also subject to deletion by us if you have not used the service for 12 months.

Apart from your own designated observers, no third party receives emails, links, or any access to your trip data.
If you delete your location related data, the generated maps will then become void.

There are no third party advertisers associated with the TrackEcho app or web service.
TrackEcho has no associations with any social media sites.
Cookies and tracking pixels are not used in the web service.
The TrackEcho app has no third party code dependencies - it only uses standard iOS libraries.

If we are legally forced to by a government agency, we may extract the minimal amount of collected data, and provide it to them.

If you fail to indicate completion of a trip recorded by TrackEcho, this may be noticed by any observer you had designated.
We encourage you to discuss this possibility with anyone you choose to designate as a trusted trip observer.
A concerned observer may need to decide if a search and rescue agency should be notified, after attempting to contact you.

Any collected data the relevant search and rescue authority needs to know can be obtained from a copy of the observer email.
In particular, subject to minimal data connectivity, location information (including a GPX file) can be seen in the email links.
There is no need to for us to provide any extra information about that trip to anyone, and we will not.

During a trip (only), small compressed and hashed packets of data are sent over the internet from the TrackEcho app to our server.
These packets are securely stored in a database on that server.
Data packets resulting from a specific user action (such as trip START or STOP) are also used to generate an observer email.

The following data may be included in some data packets: your email address, your name or nickname, your phone number, a short name (tag) you have given the trip, departure and destination location names you have given for the trip, GPS error, your estimated elapsed trip time (if given), your maximum elapsed trip time (if given), your search and rescue time (if given), your device battery level, speed and course (if available).
Periodic trip location update packets will contain a number of recent locations (time, latitude, longitude, altitude).

The observer emails are sent by our server ONLY to your nominated observers for that trip, and include a link to an associated map and GPX file.
These emailed links are virtually impossible for a third party to guess, unless they have seen the email.
That is because these private links have an embedded random 9 letter key which has over 5 trillion possible values.

Actions which may initiate (or terminate) location data collection by the server are only possible via your button presses on the device screen.
These particular button controls are outlined in red, and require special presses so you will not accidentally send your data to our server.

If you opt to send an SMS message to an observer in conjunction with the standard trip start email, the TrackEcho app helps by generating a suggested short text message for suggested phone numbers.
The TrackEcho app plays a minimal role here, because iOS sends the SMS only after presenting it to you for edit via the standard iOS interface.
Furthermore, TrackEcho does not directly access your contact list, but simply asks iOS for phone numbers of contacts matching your given emails which define your trip observers.

This data privacy policy was created in October 2020.