Effective Date: February 15, 2026 | Last Updated: February 15, 2026
CarbonAware ("the App", "we", "our") is a personal carbon footprint tracking application developed by SA Mobile. This Privacy Policy describes what data the App collects, how it is used, and your choices regarding that data.
We do not collect personal information such as your name, email address, phone number, or account credentials. The App does not require you to create an account.
When you first launch the App, a randomly generated unique identifier (UUID) is created and stored on your device. This identifier:
The App collects location data to calculate carbon emissions from your transportation and daily activities. This includes:
Location data is collected continuously in the background while the App is installed, including when the App is not in the foreground. This is necessary for passive transport mode detection, which is a core feature of the App.
The App uses Android's Activity Recognition API and on-device machine learning to detect your mode of transportation (walking, cycling, driving, public transit, etc.). This includes:
This data is processed and stored entirely on your device.
If your device has the relevant sensors, the App may collect:
This data provides environmental context for carbon calculations and is stored locally on your device.
You may optionally enter information to improve the accuracy of your carbon estimates, such as:
This data is stored locally on your device and is never transmitted.
The App may automatically share and receive anonymous environmental observations with other App users in your general area. This data includes:
This sharing is anonymous. Messages contain only the App's randomly generated device identifier, a timestamp, and the environmental data described above. No personal information, precise location, or carbon footprint data is included.
You can think of this as a community weather station: the App shares and receives environmental observations to enrich carbon context data for users in the same area.
The App integrates the following third-party services, each of which has its own privacy policy:
All data collected is used exclusively for the following purposes:
| Purpose | Data Used |
|---|---|
| Calculate your estimated carbon emissions | Location, activity, transport mode, vehicle info, home energy data |
| Detect your mode of transportation | Location, activity recognition, on-device ML models |
| Display your carbon history and trends | Locally stored emission calculations |
| Suggest personalized reduction strategies | Carbon calculations, user preferences |
| Share anonymous environmental observations | Weather data, environmental context (via Firebase Cloud Messaging) |
| Improve App stability | Crash reports (via Crashlytics) |
| Understand aggregate App usage | Anonymous analytics (via Firebase Analytics) |
We do not use your data for:
All carbon tracking data, location history, activity data, and user preferences are stored in an encrypted local database on your device. This data:
Anonymous environmental data shared through the community data-sharing feature is routed through Firebase Cloud Messaging. These messages are transient and are not stored permanently by our Firebase project.
Crash reports sent to Firebase Crashlytics are retained according to Google's standard retention policies (typically 90 days).
The App maintains local diagnostic logs on your device for up to 7 days. These logs are stored only on your device, are not transmitted, and are deleted automatically.
We share data only in the following limited circumstances:
| Recipient | Data Shared | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Nearby App users (via Firebase Cloud Messaging) | Anonymous weather observations, environmental context | Community environmental data enrichment |
| Google (Firebase Crashlytics) | Crash reports, device info | App stability improvement |
| Google (Firebase Analytics) | Anonymous usage events | Aggregate usage understanding |
| Google (Maps SDK) | Map tile requests | Map display |
| Weather providers (NWS, Open-Meteo) | Approximate location | Weather data retrieval |
We do not:
You can revoke location permissions at any time through your device's Settings. Note that the App's core carbon tracking functionality requires location access to detect transportation modes.
You may choose to grant only foreground location access. Background location enables passive, automatic transport tracking. Without it, the App can only track when actively open.
You can revoke the activity recognition permission through your device's Settings. This will reduce the accuracy of transport mode detection.
Body sensors (heart rate, step counter) are optional. The App functions fully without these permissions.
Uninstalling the App from your device permanently deletes all locally stored data, including:
There is no residual data on any server after uninstallation, as the App does not maintain user accounts or cloud-stored personal data.
When you uninstall the App, your device is automatically removed from the community data-sharing network.
The App is not directed at children under 13 years of age. We do not knowingly collect data from children. Since the App does not collect personal information or require account creation, there is no mechanism through which a child's personal data could be stored or transmitted.
We take the following measures to protect your data:
The App's Firebase services are hosted in the United States. The following data may be processed in the US:
No personal information is included in any data sent to these services.
If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or other jurisdiction with data protection laws, please note that Google LLC operates these Firebase services and processes data in accordance with its own privacy policies and applicable data processing agreements.
If you are a California resident, you have the right to:
Since the App does not collect personal information (no name, email, account, financial data, or advertising identifiers), most CCPA provisions do not apply. Location data collected by the App is stored locally and not shared with third parties.
If you are located in the EEA or UK:
For GDPR inquiries, contact us at the address below.
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be reflected by an updated "Last Updated" date at the top of this document. If we make material changes to how we handle your data, we will notify you through the App.
Your continued use of the App after any changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Privacy Policy.
All carbon emission estimates provided by the App are approximations for educational and informational purposes only. They should not be relied upon for regulatory compliance, carbon credit verification, or official reporting. Calculation methodologies are based on publicly available emission factors and may not reflect your exact circumstances.
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or the App's data practices, please contact us at:
Email: [email protected]