Occult Watcher Cloud · OW Mobile
Privacy Policy
OW Mobile is the companion mobile app for Occult Watcher Cloud (OWC), used to plan, submit, and report observations of asteroid occultations. This page explains what information the app collects, why, and what you can do about it.
1Information we collect
Account credentials
Your OWC username and password. There's no separate mobile-only account system — signing in uses the same account as the desktop and web versions of Occult Watcher. Your password is stored on your device using its OS-level secure storage (Android Keystore / iOS Keychain) and is sent to OWC's servers only to authenticate your session.
Location information
- Home Site — the location you designate as your primary observing site (latitude/longitude/altitude), entered manually or chosen from your saved sites. Stored on your device and on OWC's servers, and used to show relevant search results, compute weather forecasts for your area (see §2), and personalize event predictions.
- Station locations — when you register yourself as an observer for a specific occultation event, that location is sent to and stored on OWC's servers as part of your observation record, and may be visible to other observers of that event. This is core, expected functionality of a collaborative observation platform, and works the same way as the existing desktop and web apps.
- Move Station (GPS) — if you tap "Move Station" on an event you're already registered to observe, the app requests a one-time, high-accuracy GPS fix from your device and shows you the exact coordinates and accuracy before sending anything. It's only sent to OWC's servers if you confirm, and it updates that station's location the same way Station locations above does. This requires your permission (Android/iOS will prompt you the first time you use it) and only happens when you deliberately tap the button — never automatically or in the background.
OW Mobile never reads your device's live GPS location automatically or in the background — only when you explicitly tap "Move Station" to update an existing observing station, and only after you've reviewed and confirmed the exact coordinates first. Every other location used by the app is one you've manually entered or selected.
Observation reports
The outcome, duration, and any comments you submit for an event you observed. Sent to and stored on OWC's servers, tied to your account, and visible to the observing community in the same way it already is on the desktop and web apps.
Device and diagnostic information
Device model, OS version, and app version. This is only collected, and only ever sent anywhere, when you explicitly submit a log file ("Submit Logs" / "Send Error Reports" in Settings) — or if you've separately opted in to automatic crash-report submission, which is off by default. A submitted log is a technical record of recent app activity meant to help diagnose a specific problem — it does not include browsing history, contacts, or content from other apps.
Information that stays on your device
The following is never transmitted anywhere:
- Event reminders — scheduled as local notifications using your device's own OS; no push service or external server is involved.
- App settings and display preferences (units, formats, colour scheme, and similar).
- Cached copies of events and weather data, kept only so the app works offline and loads quickly.
2Third-party services
Cloud-cover, wind, and temperature forecasts are fetched directly from 7Timer!, a free public weather-forecasting service, using your Home Site's coordinates (rounded to roughly 0.1° for the request). This is the only third-party data flow in the app. We don't control 7Timer!'s own data practices — see their site for details.
OW Mobile does not include any advertising, analytics, or third-party crash-reporting SDKs.
3How we use this information
To operate your account and keep it in sync with the desktop and web Occult Watcher apps; to show you relevant events, predictions, and weather for your location; to let you submit observation reports and see others'; and to help diagnose bugs when you choose to send a log.
We do not use your information for advertising, and we do not sell or rent it to anyone.
5Retention & deletion
Your OWC account and its data persist on OWC's servers until deleted.
Using "Remove Account" in the app's Settings signs the app out and clears data cached locally on that device — it does not delete your OWC account or any data already stored on OWC's servers.
To request deletion of your account or the data associated with it, contact us at the address in §10 — these requests are handled by the OWC service directly, the same as they would be for the desktop or web apps.
6Children's privacy
OW Mobile is not directed at children, and we do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 13 (or the relevant minimum age in your jurisdiction). If you believe a child has provided us information, contact us and we'll remove it.
7Security
Credentials are stored using your device's OS-level secure storage, and all communication with OWC's servers uses HTTPS. No method of storage or transmission is 100% secure, but we take reasonable steps to protect your information.
8Your rights
Depending on where you live, you may have rights to access, correct, or delete your personal data, or to object to or restrict its processing. Contact us at the address below to exercise these rights.
9Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as the app changes. Material changes will be reflected here, with an updated "last updated" date at the top of the page.
10Contact
Questions about this policy, or requests regarding your data: hristo_dpavlov@yahoo.com