Vectosat Privacy Policy

This policy explains how the Vectosat Android app (package dev.josefdez.vectosat) handles information. Vectosat is developed by José Manuel Fernández ("I", "me").

Summary

Vectosat does not collect, transmit, sell or share any personal data. All data it handles is 100% local to your device: the app has no network access, no account, no ads and no analytics. Everything it shows stays on your device.

Permissions

Vectosat requests the permissions below, and does not request several others you might expect:

• Precise location (ACCESS_FINE_LOCATION) — requested. This is the app's core purpose: reading the raw sentences produced by your device's GPS receiver to display your position, movement and satellite information, and to record a track if you ask it to. Raw GPS data is only available with precise location, so the app doesn't work without it.
• Approximate location (ACCESS_COARSE_LOCATION) — requested only because Android 12 and later require an app to ask for it together with precise location. Vectosat uses the precise one and does nothing with approximate location on its own.
• Foreground service (FOREGROUND_SERVICE, FOREGROUND_SERVICE_LOCATION) — requested. Android grants these at install, with no dialog. They let Vectosat keep recording a track while the screen is off or another app is in front, with a notification showing for as long as the recording runs (see “When location is used” below).
• Notifications (POST_NOTIFICATIONS, Android 13 and later) — requested so the recording notification is visible. Recording still works if you decline.
• Background location (ACCESS_BACKGROUND_LOCATION) — not requested. Vectosat reads your location in the background only through the foreground service while you are recording, never otherwise.
• Storage — not requested. Exporting a GPX track or a raw NMEA log uses Android's system file picker, which lets you choose where to save the file without Vectosat needing broad storage access.
• Internet / network access — not requested. Vectosat cannot connect to any server, so it has no way to send anything anywhere.
• Camera, microphone, contacts, and any other permission — not requested.

When location is used

• While Vectosat is open on screen, it reads your device's GPS to show live data.
• While you are recording a track, it keeps reading the GPS in the background (screen off, or another app in front) through an Android foreground service. Android shows a notification for as long as it runs, and it stops when you stop the recording, or if Android ends the app.
• At any other time Vectosat does not access your location: it doesn't track you, and it has no background location permission.
• Location and NMEA data are processed only on your device. They are never sent to me or to any third party: the app does not declare the internet permission and cannot connect to any server.

Track recordings and exports

If you choose to record a track, Vectosat stores the recorded positions and raw NMEA sentences in the app's private storage on your device, writing them to disk as they arrive so that very little is lost if Android closes the app or the phone shuts down. When you open the app again, Vectosat recovers an interrupted recording and lets you export it or resume it. A recording stays on your device until you start a new one (Vectosat asks before discarding one you haven't exported), clear the app's storage, or uninstall the app. Nothing leaves your device unless you export it: the GPX or NMEA file is written only to the location you choose in the Android system file picker. What you do with an exported file afterwards is up to you.

Settings

Your preferences (units, time zone display, console buffer size, and whether to keep the screen on while recording) and a few internal flags, such as having accepted the safety notice, are stored locally on your device. They contain no personal information.

Backups

Vectosat opts out of Android's automatic cloud backup, so its data is not copied to your Google account backup by the app.

Third parties

Vectosat contains no advertising, analytics, crash-reporting or other third-party SDKs, and does not share data with anyone. If you installed it from Google Play, Google may show me aggregated crash and performance statistics from users who chose to share them with Google, along with any ratings or reviews you choose to post there. Vectosat itself sends nothing to me or to Google. The open-source libraries it includes are listed on the open-source licenses page.

Children

Vectosat is not directed at children and collects no data from anyone, including children.

Your rights

Because I do not collect or hold any personal data about you, there is nothing for me to access, correct or delete. You can remove all data the app stores locally at any time by clearing its storage in Android settings or by uninstalling it.

Contact & support

For questions about this policy, or for help and feedback about Vectosat: contact@josefdez.dev