Pandemic Watch
Privacy Policy
Effective May 14, 2026 · Last updated September 12, 2026
The short version. We built Pandemic Watch to be private by design.
- We do not require accounts to read the site.
- We do not collect, sell, or share personally identifiable information.
- We use Google Analytics 4 to understand aggregate visitor counts and which pages people read. You can opt out at any time (see §4).
- We do not track you across other websites we don't operate.
- The site is informational, not medical advice.
1. What this policy covers
This policy describes how the website at pandemicwatch.org handles information. It applies to the free, public-facing parts of the site.
1a. Purposes and legal bases (GDPR)
Where the GDPR applies, we rely on the following legal bases for the limited processing described in this policy:
- Aggregate analytics (Google Analytics, §4) — your consent (Art. 6(1)(a)), which you can withdraw at any time using the opt-out methods in §4. Analytics cookies are not strictly necessary and are used only in the aggregate.
- Security and abuse prevention (server logs, §3) — our legitimate interest (Art. 6(1)(f)) in keeping the service available and secure.
- iOS advertising (§7) — your consent, collected in the app via Apple's App Tracking Transparency prompt and Google's consent form where required.
Providing any personal data is entirely optional: you can read the whole site and use the app without providing any. There is no statutory or contractual obligation to provide data, and no consequence to declining. We carry out no automated decision-making or profiling that produces legal or similarly significant effects. We obtain personal data only directly from you, never from third-party sources.
2. Information we don't collect
- We don't ask for your name, email, phone number, or address to read the site.
- We don't fingerprint your browser or device beyond what standard analytics requires.
- We don't share or sell any data to data brokers.
3. Server logs
Our hosting provider, Cloudflare, automatically logs basic request metadata (IP address, user agent, timestamps) for security and abuse prevention. These logs are retained per Cloudflare's standard retention policy and are not used by us to profile visitors. Cloudflare's own privacy practices are described at cloudflare.com/privacypolicy.
4. Google Analytics
We use Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to understand aggregate site usage — how many people visit, which pages they read, how they found us. The data we see is statistical, not individual: total pageviews, device categories, top referrers, country-level geography.
GA4 places cookies in your browser and may report a hashed identifier and your IP address to Google. We've configured the property with anonymized IP and disabled Google Signals (cross-device tracking). We do not export GA data to other systems or join it to any other dataset.
How to opt out:
- Install the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on — disables GA on every site you visit.
- Use your browser's "Do Not Track" or "Global Privacy Control" setting.
- Block third-party cookies in your browser settings.
- Use a privacy-respecting browser (Brave, Firefox with strict tracking protection, etc.) that blocks GA by default.
Google's privacy practices for GA4 are described at policies.google.com/privacy.
5. Cookies
The only cookies Pandemic Watch sets are Google Analytics cookies (`_ga`, `_ga_*`), placed when you visit any page. Used for the aggregate analytics described in §4. Persist for up to 2 years; opt out per §4.
The site sets no session, account, or sign-in cookies — there is no site login — and no advertising-specific cookies (see §6).
6. Advertising
The website does not run any third-party advertising network. The only promotional content on the site is a clearly-labelled, first-party "house ad" — a link to our own or affiliated products. It is plain server-rendered HTML: it loads no third-party ad script, sets no advertising cookies, runs no tracking pixel, and shares nothing about you with anyone. If you click it, your browser simply follows the link to the destination, which has its own privacy policy. (This is separate from the iOS app, which shows Google AdMob ads — see §7.)
7. Pandemic Watch iOS app
The Pandemic Watch iOS app (App Store, bundle org.pandemicwatch.app) reads the same outbreak data this site publishes and renders it natively on iPhone. The app shares the website's privacy posture: no account, no email, no personal data collection. A few iOS-specific disclosures:
- No Health Data. The app does NOT integrate with HealthKit, does NOT request HealthKit permissions, and does NOT collect, store, or transmit any personal health information. The data shown is general-population outbreak surveillance from WHO, CDC, and PHAC bulletins.
- Outbreak data. The app downloads outbreak snapshots from our server at api.pandemicwatch.org and, if that is unreachable, from Apple's public CloudKit database. No sign-in is required for either, and neither request carries anything about you beyond what any network request does, such as your IP address. A local copy of recent snapshots is cached on-device (via SwiftData) for fast launch and offline access. The cache is deleted when you delete the app.
- Push notifications. The app registers an Apple CloudKit subscription so that Apple's Push Notification service (APNs) can wake it when outbreak figures change. The app then checks the new data against any alert rules you have created, on your device, and shows a notification only if a rule matches. If you have alert rules but iOS cannot run the app at that moment (for example after you force-quit it), Apple may show a generic "Outbreak data updated" notice instead, which the app removes the next time it runs. The app may also refresh in the background using iOS Background App Refresh. Your rules never leave your device, and we never see your device push token. You can turn notifications off at any time in iOS Settings, Notifications, Pandemic Watch.
- App Tracking Transparency (ATT). After onboarding, the app shows Apple's standard tracking-permission prompt. If you grant tracking, the AdMob SDK may include your device IDFA in ad requests so participating networks can serve more relevant ads. If you decline, ads still load but with no IDFA — only generic contextual targeting. You can change this any time in iOS Settings → Privacy & Security → Tracking.
- Display advertising. The free app shows banner ads via Google AdMob. AdMob's own privacy practices are described at policies.google.com/technologies/ads.
- Pandemic Watch Pro on iOS. Subscriptions are handled by Apple StoreKit; we never receive your payment details. We retain only a "subscription is active" flag on-device. Cancel any time via iOS Settings → Apple ID → Subscriptions.
- Analytics and crash reporting (Google Firebase). The app includes Firebase Analytics, for aggregate information about which screens and features are used, and Firebase Crashlytics, for crash diagnostics. Both ship turned off and are switched on only once the app knows your region and consent: in the European Economic Area, the UK and Switzerland, only if you consent through the privacy prompt; elsewhere, by default. Firebase Analytics does not use your advertising identifier (IDFA). Turning off "Share anonymous usage data" in the app's Settings stops analytics; crash reporting continues so we can fix stability problems, except in the regions above, where it follows your consent choice. In those regions, "Manage privacy choices" in Settings lets you withdraw consent at any time. Separately, if you share iOS Analytics with developers, Apple may send us aggregate crash reports.
- Third-party SDKs. The app includes Google Mobile Ads (AdMob), Google's User Messaging Platform (the consent prompt for advertising and analytics), and Google Firebase Analytics and Crashlytics. It includes no attribution SDKs. The app's network requests go to pandemicwatch.org and api.pandemicwatch.org (outbreak data), Apple (CloudKit, StoreKit, APNs) and Google (AdMob, the consent prompt, and Firebase).
8. Children's privacy
The site and app are intended for a general audience and are not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone in this age range. If you believe a child has provided us with information, please contact us and we will delete it.
9. Your rights
Depending on where you live, you may have rights under the GDPR, UK GDPR, CCPA, or other privacy regulations to access, rectify, or erase personal data we hold about you; to restrict or object to its processing; to data portability; and to withdraw consent at any time (without affecting the lawfulness of processing before withdrawal). For visitors to the free site, the only data associated with you is the aggregate analytics described in §4 — opt-out instructions are also in §4. iOS Pro subscribers: we hold no billing records of our own to access or delete (see §7) — Apple manages your subscription and payment data directly. To exercise any of these rights, email support@pandemicwatch.org.
If you are in the EU/EEA or UK, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority — in the EU/EEA, your local data protection authority (see the EDPB member list); in the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office.
10. Changes
We may update this policy as the site and app evolve. The "Last updated" date at the top will change when we do. Material changes will be flagged on the site for at least 30 days before taking effect.
11. Contact
Pandemic Watch is operated and published by Embay, LLC, a limited liability company registered in Florida, United States. For the purposes of the EU and UK GDPR, Embay, LLC is the data controller for personal data processed through the website and iOS app. We have not appointed a Data Protection Officer; given the scale and nature of our processing we are not required to.
Questions, privacy requests, or complaints about this policy: email support@pandemicwatch.org. The data controller is Embay, LLC, 7901 4th St N, Ste 300, St. Petersburg, FL 33702, United States.
