Privacy Policy for Leeward

Last Updated: May 11, 2026

Overview

Leeward is a free hurricane tracking application for the Caribbean region. This privacy policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your information.

Information We Collect

Anonymous User Identifier

On first launch, Leeward generates a random anonymous identifier (UUID) stored in your device's secure Keychain. This identifier:

• Is not linked to your name, email, Apple ID, or any personal information
• Is used solely to count unique users, measure app reliability, and enable data deletion
• Survives app reinstalls (Keychain persistence) but not device resets
• Can be permanently deleted via "Delete My Data" in Settings

Legal basis (GDPR): Legitimate interest in service reliability and analytics. This identifier is a pseudonymous identifier under GDPR Article 4(5).

Device Token

When you enable push notifications, we collect your device's push notification token. This token is used solely to send you hurricane alerts for your selected Caribbean region.

Island and Notification Preferences

We store the following preferences on your device and send them to our server to deliver appropriately scoped notifications:

• Primary island: your home island group (e.g., Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico)
• Watched islands: additional island groups you want to monitor (red and purple alerts only)
• Notification mode: how aggressive you want notifications to be (storm-only, storm-alerts, peace-of-mind, verbose, or custom)
• Storm event preferences: when on custom mode, the specific storm events you want alerts for (formation, category changes, warnings, watches, approach, passage)
• Daily summary: whether you want a daily weather summary and at what hour

None of these preferences are linked to your name, email, or Apple ID. They are tied only to your anonymous device token.

Location (Optional, One-Time)

During initial setup, the app may ask permission to use your device's coarse location once to suggest the closest Caribbean island group as your primary island. If you grant permission:

• Your location is read a single time and used only to compute the nearest island
• Your location is never stored on the device or sent to our servers
• You can decline at any time and pick your island manually

Granting location permission is entirely optional — the app works fully without it.

Activity Data

We record the last time your device fetched weather data (debounced to at most once per hour). This is used to measure daily/monthly active users and detect inactive devices. No browsing history, location history, or usage patterns are collected.

Crash Reports and Diagnostics

Leeward uses Firebase Crashlytics (a Google service) to collect anonymous crash reports and performance diagnostics. This data helps us identify and fix bugs. Collected information may include:

• The app version and iOS version at the time of the crash
• Device model (e.g., "iPhone 17")
• Stack traces and non-personally-identifying diagnostic data

Crashlytics data is not linked to your identity and is not used for advertising or tracking. You can opt out of crash reporting at any time in your iPhone's Settings > Privacy & Security > Analytics & Improvements.

Usage Analytics

Leeward uses Firebase Analytics (a Google service) to collect anonymous, aggregate usage data — for example, which screens are viewed and how often the app is opened. This helps us understand which features are valuable and where to invest improvement effort.

• We have disabled all advertising-related Firebase features: ad storage, ad user data, ad personalization, and the iOS advertising identifier (IDFV) are not collected
• We do not use this data for advertising, do not share it with advertising networks, and do not use it to track you across other apps or websites
• The data is aggregate and not linked to your identity

How We Use Your Information

Push Notifications

Your device token is sent to our secure servers and used exclusively to deliver time-sensitive hurricane alerts when weather conditions change in your selected region.

Weather Data

The app fetches current hurricane advisory data from our servers based on your selected island group. This data is publicly available from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and processed by our AI system to provide clear, actionable information.

Data Storage and Security

Device Token Storage

• Device tokens are stored securely on our Google Cloud Platform servers
• Tokens are encrypted in transit using HTTPS/TLS
• We retain tokens only while you have the app installed with notifications enabled
• Tokens are automatically removed from our system if push notifications fail (indicating app uninstallation)

Local Storage

• Your island group preference is stored locally on your device
• Your anonymous identifier is stored in your device's secure Keychain
• No personal information (name, email, location) is stored on our servers
• You can change your island group preference at any time

Third-Party Services

Google Cloud Platform

We use Google Cloud Platform to host our backend services. Data transmitted to our servers is subject to Google Cloud Platform's security and privacy practices.

Firebase Crashlytics

Crash reports and performance diagnostics are collected via Google Firebase Crashlytics. See Firebase's privacy documentation for details on the data it processes.

Firebase Analytics

Aggregate, anonymous usage analytics are collected via Google Firebase Analytics with all advertising-related features explicitly disabled. See Firebase's privacy documentation for details.

National Hurricane Center (NHC) and Other Weather Sources

Weather, marine, and beach data is sourced from publicly available feeds (NHC, NWS, NOAA, local met offices). No personal data is shared with these sources.

Gemini AI

Hurricane advisories are analyzed using Google's Gemini AI to generate clear, easy-to-understand summaries. No personal information is sent to Gemini — only publicly available weather data.

Your Rights and Choices

Notifications

You can enable or disable push notifications at any time through:

• The app's settings screen
• Your iPhone's Settings > Notifications > Leeward

Data Deletion

You can delete all your data from our servers at any time:

1. In-app: Go to Settings > "Delete My Data" — this permanently removes your device registration, anonymous identifier, and all associated data from our servers, and resets your local app settings
2. Disable notifications in the app settings, or
3. Uninstall the app (device token automatically removed after delivery failures)

Data deletion is processed immediately. There is no retention period after deletion.

Island Group Selection

You can change your selected island group at any time in the app's settings screen.

Children's Privacy

Leeward does not knowingly collect information from children under 13. The app is designed for general audiences and does not require age verification.

Data Retention

• Device tokens: Retained while the app is installed and notifications are enabled
• Anonymous identifier: Retained until you delete it via "Delete My Data" or reset your device
• Activity timestamps: Last-active time retained alongside device registration
• Failed tokens are automatically removed after delivery failures
• Devices with no activity for 60+ days may be marked inactive and stop receiving notifications

International Data Transfer

Our servers are located in Europe (Google Cloud europe-west1 region). By using Leeward, you consent to the transfer of your device token to our European servers.

Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last Updated" date. Continued use of the app after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

No Sale of Personal Information

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties. Ever.

Contact Information

If you have questions about this privacy policy or our privacy practices, please visit our website at leewardapp.com.

GDPR Rights (EU/EEA Users)

If you are located in the EU/EEA (including French Caribbean territories: Guadeloupe, Martinique, Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthélemy), you have the following rights under the General Data Protection Regulation:

• Right of access: You can view your data via the app's Settings
• Right to erasure: Use "Delete My Data" in Settings to permanently delete all server-side data
• Right to data portability: Your data consists of an anonymous identifier and island preference — available in the app
• Right to object: You can disable notifications or delete your data at any time

Data controller: Leeward App. Data processing location: Google Cloud Platform, Europe (europe-west1).

Legal Compliance

This app and privacy policy comply with:

• Apple's App Store Review Guidelines
• General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (EU/EEA users, including French Caribbean)
• California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) (California users)

Your Consent

By using Leeward, you consent to this privacy policy.

Summary:

• We collect your device token (for push notifications), an anonymous identifier (for service reliability), your island and notification preferences, and anonymous crash and usage analytics
• Location is optional, used once for island suggestion, and never stored or sent to our servers
• No names, emails, or personal identifiers — ever
• No ads, no advertising identifiers, no cross-app tracking, no data sales
• You can delete all your server-side data instantly via Settings > "Delete My Data"