USAirQMinder Privacy Policy
Last updated: August 17, 2026
USAirQMinder ("the App", "we", "us") shows the U.S. Air Quality Index (AQI) modelled for your location. This policy explains what the App does with your information.
- There are no accounts, no sign-in, and no API key to enter.
- We run no servers and receive no data about you at all.
- Your approximate location is sent to Open-Meteo, which returns the air quality figures for that point.
- Your approximate location is also passed to Apple's geocoder, on the device, to turn coordinates into a place name like "Denver, CO".
- There is no analytics, no advertising, and no tracking of any kind.
Information the App Uses
Location. With your permission, the App asks iOS for your location while you are using it, and the widget asks for it when it refreshes. The App requests only kilometre-level accuracy — it does not ask for, and does not receive, a precise fix.
Your latitude and longitude are included in the request the App makes to Open-Meteo, because that is how the service knows which point to return figures for. This means your approximate location is transmitted to Open-Meteo. It is not stored on your device beyond the life of that request.
Turning your location into a place name. So the reading can say where it is for, the App passes your coordinates to Apple's geocoding service using iOS's built-in CLGeocoder. This is the same first-party facility Maps uses, and Apple's handling of it is covered by Apple's privacy policy. If it fails, the App simply shows "Your location" and carries on. We never see the result.
Settings and the last reading. Your chosen refresh interval, and the most recent reading the widget fetched, are stored on your device so the widget can show something useful when a refresh fails. Both are removed when you delete the App.
Information We Receive
None. The App has no backend, no account system and no telemetry. There is no server operated by us for the App to talk to, so there is nothing for us to collect, store, sell or disclose.
Third Party Services
Open-Meteo (air-quality-api.open-meteo.com) supplies the air quality figures. Requests to it carry your approximate coordinates over an encrypted connection, and nothing else — there is no key or identifier attached, so the request says where, not who. Open-Meteo's handling of it is governed by its own terms and privacy policy.
Apple receives your approximate coordinates through the operating system's geocoder, as described above.
The App contains no advertising networks, no analytics libraries, and no third party SDKs of any other kind.
Data Retention and Deletion
Everything the App stores is on your device: your refresh interval and the last reading. There is no account to close and nothing held elsewhere. Deleting the App removes all of it.
Your Choices and Rights
- Location: turn location access on or off at any time in iOS Settings. Without it the App cannot look up your air quality, but nothing else changes.
- Deletion: delete the App to remove everything it has stored.
Because we hold no personal information about you, there is nothing for us to give you a copy of, correct, or delete on request. Rights under laws such as the GDPR, UK GDPR or the California Consumer Privacy Act still apply in principle; in practice they are satisfied by our not collecting anything. We do not sell or share personal information as those terms are defined under the CCPA.
Security
Requests to Open-Meteo are made over HTTPS. Your settings are stored using the operating system's own storage for app preferences, protected by iOS device encryption. No method of transmission or storage is completely secure, but the App holds very little and sends almost nothing.
Children's Privacy
The App is not directed at children and collects no personal information from anyone, including children under 13.
Important Note About Air Quality Information
The figures the App shows are modelled, not measured. They come from the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS) global forecast, served by Open-Meteo, which estimates pollutant concentrations across a grid rather than reading them from an instrument near you. They are not EPA measurements and do not come from a monitoring station. What the App borrows from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is the scale: the index and its six categories follow the EPA's published AQI breakpoints, so a number means what it means on airnow.gov.
A forecast can differ from what a nearby monitor would record, particularly during fast-moving events such as wildfire smoke. The App is for general awareness. It is not a medical device, and it should not be relied on for decisions about health, safety, or emergency response. If you have a health condition affected by air quality, follow the advice of your doctor and of official public health guidance, and check airnow.gov for actual EPA monitor readings.
USAirQMinder is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Open-Meteo, or the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service.
Changes to This Policy
If this policy changes, the "Last updated" date above will change with it. Material changes will be noted in the App's release notes.
Contact
Questions about this policy: wjfrench@proton.me.