Privacy policy

Pro subscription and purchases

Apple handles purchases, payments and renewals for MetarBot Pro through the App Store. The app receives verified subscription information from StoreKit (product, validity and status) and checks it on the device to provide Pro access. MetarBot does not receive payment-card numbers or send purchase history to its servers. Restoring purchases may require Apple Account authentication. Deleting the app does not cancel a subscription; manage or cancel renewal in your App Store subscriptions.

About the app and contact

The app is published by Artem Bystrov (MetarBot). This policy applies to the native MetarBot app for iPhone and iPad. MetarBot displays aviation weather, airport information, maps and notifications. For privacy questions or requests concerning access to or deletion of data, contact support@metarbot.com.

Search, weather and maps

When retrieving information, MetarBot sends the relevant request to a service: for example, an airport code, a route-point identifier, weather-chart parameters, a selected time or flight level, or the bounds of the visible map area. These details are used to return the information requested. The recipient of an internet request also receives the IP address and technical HTTP request details. Requests use metarbot.com and db.metarbot.com. Weather layers and the base map are downloaded through db.metarbot.com; aircraft data and images use their existing separate services.

Server logs

Server logs contain the IP address, request time, address and parameters, User-Agent and response details. This information is used to operate, diagnose and secure the service. Airport weather requests from MetarBot iOS version 1.0 (11) carry an app marker shared by all installations and are excluded from website visitor analytics: no visitor identifier is created for them from the IP address and User-Agent. Website analytics applies when you visit the website in a browser.

Favorites and preferences

Folder names, saved airports, recent airports, language and appearance preferences, map settings and local copies of downloaded information are stored in the app’s storage on your device. Updating saved airport weather sends those airport codes to the weather service. iOS backup settings may affect how local data is retained.

Location

After iOS permission is granted, the app uses the device’s coordinates, accuracy and, when available, speed and course to display your position and move the map. The app requests location access while it is in use. You can change permission in iOS Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services → MetarBot. Map tile requests identify the area being viewed and may allow a location to be inferred. The map SDK’s data handling is described below.

Notifications

The app requests iOS permission for notifications. Once registration succeeds, Apple provides a push token for this installation. MetarBot sends the token to its notification service together with language, technical app parameters and your configured notification choices: airport lists, aircraft identifiers and transponder codes when those notifications are configured. This enables delivery through Apple Push Notification service. The service stores registration data, airport preferences and technical synchronization and delivery information, including badge and error counts. You can disable notification display in iOS Settings and change selected objects and modes in the app. Disabling notification display in iOS does not itself establish that an earlier server subscription record has been deleted.

Update checks

To check for a newer version, the app contacts Apple’s public service at itunes.apple.com. The request contains MetarBot’s App Store identifier (6811976547) and the store country code; Apple also receives the IP address and technical request details. The installed app version is compared with the response on the device. The lookup result, check time and versions for which a reminder has already been shown are stored locally. The check itself does not request a separate iOS permission. A local update notification can appear only if iOS notifications have already been authorized; update checking does not itself request that permission.

Maps and third-party services

The map uses the Mapbox Maps SDK. Its documentation and bundled privacy declarations cover precise and coarse location, a technical identifier, product interactions, usage information, performance information and diagnostics for SDK functionality and analytics. Mapbox describes its telemetry as de-identified location and usage data. To change participation, tap ⓘ on the map, open Mapbox Telemetry, and choose “Stop Participating” or “Don’t Participate.” This choice controls Mapbox telemetry; iOS controls location permission. See the Mapbox privacy policy and telemetry information.

Base map tiles, fonts, graphic resources and weather layers are downloaded from db.metarbot.com. The MetarBot server retrieves and caches provider data. Aircraft positions, tracks and images continue to use separate services and the image addresses they return. Recipients of network requests receive the IP address and request parameters. If you open an external link, further data handling is governed by the service you open.

Photos and sharing images

When you save a weather chart, the app requests permission to add the image to Photos. Saving takes place at your request. Using the system Share menu sends the selected image to the app or recipient you choose; that service controls its subsequent handling.

Retention and deletion

You can delete local folders and airports in the app. A separate command clears the local map cache. Deleting the app through iOS removes its local storage; offloading the app and restoring backups may preserve or restore data. Images previously saved to Photos or shared with another recipient are managed separately. Main access logs rotate daily when they contain entries; the current file and up to 14 archived files are retained. The retention period therefore depends on service activity and is not a fixed 14-day period.

For a request concerning information previously sent to MetarBot services, contact support@metarbot.com. Identify MetarBot iOS and describe the request; do not send passwords or payment-card information. Server notification registration is used to deliver subsequent notifications. To request deletion of that registration and its associated preferences, contact the address above. Changing iOS permissions does not replace that request. Information needed to handle a support request is processed to respond to it.

Changes to this policy

When data handling changes, an updated version of this policy is published and the App Store privacy information is updated. The revision date appears at the start of this document.