Privacy Policy
Effective July 27, 2026 · PistonMaps LLC
What this covers
This policy describes what the PistonMaps app and website ("PistonMaps") collect, how it is used, and the choices you have. PistonMaps is operated by PistonMaps LLC ("we", "us").
Information you give us
- Account details: email address, username, display name, and a password (stored as a secure hash — we never see or store the plain password).
- If you sign in with Google, we receive your name, email address, and profile photo from Google to create or link your account. We never see your Google password.
- Profile content you add: bio, profile photo, garage cars and photos.
- Content you post: meets you host, comments, event photos, and direct messages you send to other users.
- Verification applications: the message, links, and photo evidence you submit.
Location and motion data
- Map location — used on-device to center the map and find meets near you. Nearby-search coordinates are sent to our server to return matching events.
- Drive recording— when you record a drive (manually or with auto-detect, which requires your explicit "Always" location permission), the app collects a GPS trace plus speed and g-force metrics and stores a simplified version on our server so you can view your drives, roads, and stats. Drives are private to your account.
- Live location sharing — off by default. If you turn it on, your latest position is shared only with users you mutually follow who also share theirs, and expires after a few minutes.
- Motion sensors — accelerometer data powers the g-force display and drive metrics. It is processed on your device; only summary peaks are stored with a drive.
Collected automatically
- A session cookie (or, in the mobile app, a bearer token) keeps you signed in. We do not use advertising cookies or cross-site tracking.
- Standard server logs — IP address, request URL, and timestamps — kept briefly for security and debugging. Our servers are hosted on Fly.io in the United States.
Third-party services
- Map tiles are loaded from Carto/OpenStreetMap servers (they see your IP address and the map areas you view).
- Turn-by-turn routing uses the public OSRM service and address search uses OpenStreetMap Nominatim — route and search coordinates are sent to those services to fulfil each request.
- Weather shown for events comes from Open-Meteo — approximate (rounded) coordinates are sent from your device to fetch the forecast.
- App updates are delivered by Expo (EAS Update).
- Google sign-in is provided by Google per its own privacy policy.
- We do not sell your personal information. We do not currently show third-party ads; if that changes, this policy will be updated first.
Retention and deletion
Your content stays until you delete it or your account. To delete your account and its data, contact us at contact@pistonmaps.com — deletion removes your profile, drives, messages, photos, and posts, except records we must keep for safety or legal reasons. In-app account deletion is coming to the Profile screen.
Your rights and choices
You can edit or delete your posts, photos, drives, and messages in the app, block or report other users, and turn location features off in your device settings at any time. Depending on where you live, you may also have legal rights to access, correct, delete, or receive a copy of your personal data — email contact@pistonmaps.com and we will honor these requests for all users regardless of location.
Children
PistonMaps is not directed at children under 13, and you must be old enough to hold a driver's license or attend automotive events responsibly to use drive features.
Changes and contact
We will update this page when our practices change, and note material changes in the app. Questions: contact@pistonmaps.com.