Last updated: 2026-05-12
This privacy policy describes how the Poles mobile app (“Poles”, “we”, “us”) handles information when you use the app.
What we collect
- Account information: when you sign in, we receive your email address and password. Passwords are stored hashed (never in plaintext). You may also set a display name and team name.
- Location: while the app is open, we use your device’s location to show you which poles are nearby and to determine whether you’re close enough to scan one. Poles never accesses your location in the background. Your precise location is sent to our backend only as needed to verify proximity to a pole; we do not store a history of your movements.
- Camera input: scanned barcodes are decoded on-device and sent to our backend to register a scan. We never capture, store, or transmit camera images or video — only the decoded barcode value.
- Gameplay data: we record which poles you’ve scanned and any teams you belong to, to operate the game.
- Crash diagnostics: if the app crashes, we receive a stack trace and metadata (device model, OS version, app version) through Sentry. These reports do not include your location, account credentials, or scanned barcodes.
What we don’t collect
- We do not use advertising identifiers.
- We do not share data with advertisers or use it for tracking across apps or websites.
- We do not sell your data.
- We do not access your contacts, photos, microphone, or files outside the app.
How we use information
- To run the game (validate scans, show which poles are yours, communicate state to teammates).
- To send you transactional email (account confirmation, password reset).
- To diagnose and fix crashes.
Third parties
Poles relies on a small number of service providers:
- Sentry (sentry.io) — receives crash reports.
- Mailgun (mailgun.com) — delivers transactional email.
- OpenStreetMap / CartoDB — provides map tiles. Tile requests include the geographic area being viewed but no account information.
We do not share data with any other third party except as required by law.
Children
Poles is not directed at children under 13 and we do not knowingly collect information from them.
Retention and deletion
Account data is retained while your account exists. You can request deletion of your account and all associated gameplay data by emailing privacy@events.chromatin.ca. Deletion is typically completed within 30 days.
Security
We use HTTPS for all communication between the app and our servers. Account credentials are stored hashed. We host on Hetzner Cloud servers we operate ourselves.
Changes
If we change this policy, we’ll update the date at the top. Material changes will be announced in the app.
Contact
Questions: privacy@events.chromatin.ca