1. Scope and operator
This Policy applies to the Catown Map mobile application, official website, and related features (collectively, the “Service”).
The Service is operated by Catown Map Operations (“we,” “us,” or “our”).
2. Information we collect and process
Depending on the features you use, we collect or process:
- Account information: your email address, authentication identifiers, information provided through Google sign-in, registration time, and authentication status. Password authentication is handled by Supabase; we do not receive or store your password in plain text.
- Profile information: your display name, bio, and other information you add to your profile.
- Content: cat details, sightings, photos, sighting or capture time, GPS coordinates, notes, comments, and other content you submit.
- Activity: favorites, likes, votes, name or attribute suggestions, reports, disputes, and moderation records.
- Location: device location when you use features that need it, such as finding nearby cats, checking your viewing radius, or setting a sighting location.
- Detail-view history: your account, the cat or sighting viewed, and the date and time when you open a detail page while signed in.
- Technical and security information: IP address, request time, device, operating system, browser, language, authentication and bot-detection signals, abuse-prevention information, and error data.
- Support communications: your email address, message, and information needed to respond.
We do not use third-party advertising or advertising trackers on the official website. Cloudflare still processes technical request information to deliver and protect the site.
3. How we use information
- To create accounts, authenticate users, manage sign-in, and send authentication emails
- To provide maps, cat and sighting records, photos, comments, favorites, voting, and other Service features
- To identify duplicate or similar cats and photos and improve how the Service works
- To apply viewing-radius and location-safety controls and prevent scraping, bots, abuse, and unauthorized access
- To investigate reports, moderate content, enforce our Terms, and respond to risks of harm to animals or people
- To respond to questions, incidents, deletion requests, and other support needs
- To comply with legal obligations and valid legal requests
4. Location and photos
We access your current device location only when you use a feature that needs it and grant permission through your operating system. You may revoke location permission in your device settings, although some features may stop working.
Coordinates submitted with a sighting are stored at their precise value so we can manage the record and apply safety features. When showing a location to other users, we may blur it, restrict its visibility, or hide it based on viewing conditions or safety concerns.
We use Google ML Kit to detect and blur faces before upload. Image analysis takes place on your device; the input image and detection results are not sent to Google servers. ML Kit may contact Google to receive model updates or related technical information.
We may send a posted image or its image URL to Replicate to generate an image embedding used to identify similar cats or photos. We use the resulting embedding only to provide similarity features in the Service.
5. Detail-view history
When you open a cat or sighting detail page while signed in, we record your account, the record viewed, and the time. We do not create account-linked detail-view history for guests.
We use this history to deter and investigate suspected animal harm, stalking, or misuse of location information. We may disclose relevant records where there is a serious risk of harm or in response to a valid legal request from law enforcement or another competent authority.
6. Legal bases for processing
Where applicable law requires a legal basis, we process information as necessary to perform our agreement with you, based on your consent, for our legitimate interests in operating a safe Service and preventing abuse, to protect vital interests, and to comply with legal obligations.
For processing based on consent or operating-system permission, such as device access to location or photos, you may withdraw permission through your device or the relevant feature.
7. Service providers
The following providers process information as necessary to operate the Service. Features independently provided by them are also governed by their own terms and privacy policies.
- Supabase: authentication, database, photo storage, and server functions. Supabase Privacy Policy
- Google: Google sign-in, Google Maps Platform, Geocoding and Time Zone APIs, ML Kit, Google Fonts, and support email. Google Privacy Policy
- Cloudflare: website delivery and security, and Turnstile bot detection. Turnstile processes browser, device, and network signals needed for bot detection, not your form entries or communications. Turnstile Privacy Addendum
- Resend: delivery of authentication and password-reset emails. It processes the recipient address, email content, and delivery metadata. Resend Privacy Policy
- Replicate: generation of image embeddings for photo and cat similarity features. Replicate Privacy Policy
8. Disclosure of information
We do not sell your personal information or share it for third-party advertising.
We disclose information only when:
- You give us permission
- It is necessary for the providers listed above to operate the Service
- Disclosure is required by law or requested through valid legal process
- It is urgently necessary to protect the life, safety, or property of an animal or person
- The Service is transferred as part of a business transaction in compliance with applicable law
Because Catown Map is a community service, cat details, photos, sightings, display names, and comments you post are shown to other users.
9. Data retention
- Account, profile, content, and activity information: while your account remains active or as needed to provide the relevant feature, subject to the deletion rules below.
- Cat and sighting detail-view history: 90 days from the time of the view.
- Account identifier or IP address used for rate limiting: no more than 24 hours.
- Reports, disputes, and moderation records: the link to the reporter or moderator is generally retained for one year from the record date. We may then remove that link and retain a de-identified record to prevent repeat abuse and preserve decision history.
- Account-deletion work records: up to 90 days from the start of deletion.
- Support communications: for a reasonable period after resolution to maintain response history and prevent disputes.
We may retain only the information necessary for longer where required by law, a dispute, a safety investigation, a valid preservation request, or another legitimate reason. Provider logs and backups may contain information scheduled for deletion for a limited period under each provider's operational retention process.
10. Account deletion
You can delete your account from “Profile & Account Settings” in the App.
During deletion, you may choose either to delete all sightings and photos you posted or keep them as anonymous community records. If you keep them, we remove the link to your account and your private notes. You cannot edit, restore, or reclaim those records after deletion.
We delete your account, profile, comments, favorites, votes, detail-view history, and other account-linked personal data. We may keep safety and moderation records, but we remove their link to your deleted account.
See Account deletion for more information.
11. International processing
The Service is available to users around the world. Information may be processed outside your country, including in countries where our service providers operate servers. Where required, we use safeguards made available by those providers and comply with applicable transfer requirements.
12. Security
We use reasonable safeguards such as access controls, encrypted transmission, separation of privileges, location-visibility restrictions, face blurring, and rate limiting. No method of internet transmission or electronic storage, however, can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
13. Your rights and choices
You can review or change profile information, revoke location permission, and delete content or your account through the App.
Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, delete, restrict, or object to processing of your personal information; receive a portable copy; withdraw consent; and complain to a data-protection authority.
To make a request, email [email protected] with information sufficient for us to verify your identity. We will respond within a reasonable period unless an exception under applicable law applies.
14. Children's privacy
The Service is not directed to children under 13, and children under 13 may not use it. If your country or region requires a higher minimum age, you must meet that higher age requirement.
If we learn that we collected information from a child below the applicable age without appropriate parental consent, we will investigate and take steps to delete it.
15. Changes to this Policy
We may update this Policy when laws, Service features, or our data practices change. We will provide advance notice of material changes through the App or official website and request renewed consent where required by law.
16. Contact us
Catown Map Operations[email protected]