1. Information We Collect
1a. Mobile App (Account Users)
When you create an account in our mobile app, we collect:
- Email Address and Name: Used to create, authenticate, and manage your account via Firebase Authentication (Google).
- Profile Information (Optional): Display name, preferred units, and general location (city or country) that you voluntarily supply in your profile settings. Stored securely in Google Firestore.
- Push Notification Token (FCM): A randomized device token issued by Firebase Cloud Messaging used solely to transmit urgent earthquake alerts. Never shared with advertising brokers.
- Alert Preferences: Your selected minimum magnitude threshold, email alert status, and push notification toggles.
1b. Location Data
- On-Device GPS (Optional, On-Demand): When you tap the "Locate Me" or "Near Me" button, the app requests on-demand location coordinates solely to center the map viewport. We do not log, track, or transmit your exact GPS coordinates to our backend servers.
- IP-Based Location (Approximate): We utilize an IP lookup utility (ip-api.com) to automatically suggest your city or region during initial profile onboarding. This is approximate and never permanently retained without confirmation.
1c. Website
- Browser localStorage: Strictly used on your device to persist your visual theme preference (light or dark mode) and map filter toggles. Not transmitted to external servers.
- Usage Analytics: Anonymized telemetry to observe page performance, bandwidth usage, and browser compatibility.
2. How We Use Your Information
- To provision, authenticate, and maintain your account profile.
- To dispatch real-time earthquake push alerts and email notifications you have explicitly enabled.
- To synchronize your custom magnitude thresholds across multiple devices via Cloud Sync.
- To render seismic telemetry relative to your regional radius only upon request.
- To ensure system uptime, detect anomalies, and prevent denial-of-service disruptions.
3. Data Storage & Security
Account and preference data is stored with enterprise-grade encryption using Google Firebase (Firestore and Firebase Authentication), complying with strict SOC 1, 2, and 3 security standards. We enforce Firebase Security Rules ensuring users can only read and write their own data.
Passwords are never visible to or stored by Earthquake Today: all authentication hashes are handled end-to-end by Google Identity Platform.
4. Third-Party Infrastructure & Services
We work only with vetted infrastructure providers essential to delivering real-time telemetry:
- Google Firebase: Cloud authentication, Firestore database, and Cloud Messaging delivery. Firebase Privacy Overview.
- USGS, EMSC-CSEM, and GeoNet (GNS Science): Public seismic scientific data endpoints. No user data is ever transmitted to these agencies.
- ip-api.com: Utilized strictly for approximate geographic routing during onboarding.
- Google AdSense: Serves non-intrusive advertisements on web pages to support platform hosting costs. Google may utilize standard advertising cookies. You can manage your preferences via Google Ad Settings.
5. Account & Data Deletion
You retain full ownership of your data. You may delete your account and all associated profile preferences at any moment directly in the mobile app settings or by contacting our team. Upon request, all records stored in Firestore are permanently purged within 30 days.
6. Children's Privacy
Our services are designed for general audiences and do not knowingly collect personal identifiers from children under the age of 13. If you believe a minor has registered an account, contact us and we will promptly delete the data.
7. Policy Modifications
We periodically update this policy to reflect new product features and evolving legal standards. Any revisions will be published here with an updated revision date.
Questions or Data Requests?
If you have inquiries regarding our data handling practices or wish to submit a data erasure request, please reach out through our contact page.