Privacy policy

What we collect

Your account. Your email address, and the username and display name you choose. If you sign in with Google, Google tells us your name and email address; we never see your Google password. We also keep any optional profile details you choose to add.

What you contribute.

• Scout Reports (your ratings and notes) are public and shown with your display name, or your username if you haven’t set one.
• Photos you upload. Before storing a photo we remove its hidden metadata, including GPS location and camera details. Photos stay private until a moderator approves them; approved photos are public.
• “Helpful” votes. We use them to count helpful votes; who voted is not shown.
• Reports you file about content, and BLTs you submit. Only you and our staff can see these.

Technical information. Our hosting providers keep standard server logs (IP address, browser type, the pages requested and when) to run the site securely and fix problems.

Cookies

We use only the cookies needed to keep you signed in. We don’t use advertising, analytics or other tracking cookies, so there is nothing to opt out of.

How we use it

• To sign you in and run your account.
• To show your contributions on the site.
• To moderate content, verify submissions, prevent abuse and keep the site secure.
• To email you about your account (for example, sign-in links). We don’t send marketing email.

We don’t sell or rent personal information, and we don’t use it for advertising. Nothing you contribute is used to calculate the editorial BLT Index.

Who we share it with

We use a small number of service providers to run the site. They process information only on our behalf:

• Supabase: our database, sign-in and photo storage, hosted in Canada.
• Vercel: hosts the website (United States).
• Resend: sends sign-in emails (United States).
• Mapbox: provides the map and address search. When you open the map, your browser loads map images from Mapbox, which receives your IP address. When you submit a BLT, what you type in the address field is sent to Mapbox to suggest matching addresses (United States).
• Google: only if you choose to sign in with Google.

Because some providers are in the United States, your information may be processed there and be subject to its laws. We may also disclose information if the law requires it.

How long we keep it

We keep your account information until you delete your account. Server logs are kept by our providers for a limited time for security and troubleshooting. Photos that were uploaded but never saved are deleted automatically after a day.

Your choices and rights

• See and correct: you can change your username, display name and other profile details on your account page, and edit or withdraw your Scout Reports at any time.
• Get a copy: email us and we’ll send you the personal information we hold about you.
• Delete your account: email us from the address on your account. We delete your account, email address, profile and votes. Scout Reports and photos you published stay on the site without your name (shown as “Former Scout”), unless you ask us to remove them too, which we will.

If you’re not satisfied with how we’ve handled your information, you can also contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada.

Children

BLT Atlas isn’t intended for children under 13, and we don’t knowingly collect their information. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we’ll delete it.

Security

We use encrypted connections, don’t store passwords (you sign in with an emailed link or Google), and restrict access to personal information to the staff who need it. No system is perfectly secure; if something goes wrong that affects you, we’ll tell you.

Changes and contact

If we change this policy, we’ll update the date above, and for significant changes we’ll tell signed-in Scouts on the site. Questions or requests: bltatlas.admin@gmail.com. See also our terms of use.