FootSec — privacy policy
2 Oct 2026 · @Jan
Who we are
FootSec is an offline map app for people who work on foot in reserves, and a shared map for the teams they work in. It is made by IlalaDevelopers PTY LTD ("we", "us"), South Africa.
This policy explains what information FootSec handles, why, who can see it, and what you can do about it. It covers the FootSec apps for iPhone and Android and the services behind them.
We process personal information in line with South Africa's Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA). Where people outside South Africa use FootSec, we treat their information the same way.
The short version
- Most of FootSec works with no account and keeps everything on your phone.
- If you make an account and join a group, what you share with the group is stored on our servers so the group can see it.
- Your live position is only shared with a group if you switch that on, and only as often as you choose.
- We don't sell your information, show you ads, or track you. FootSec has no analytics tools of its own; the one exception is the Mapbox map software in the 3D maps (see Services we use).
What stays on your phone
These never leave your phone unless you choose to send them somewhere:
- Maps you import (GeoPDFs) or download.
- Tracks you record, your Logbook, walk plans, and your own layers, pins and notes.
- Your settings, such as which groups you have muted or hidden.
You can share any of these yourself — for example a track as a GPX file to WhatsApp, or a layer as a KML file. When you do, the app you share it with handles it under its own privacy policy.
If you delete the app, this information is deleted with it. We cannot recover it for you, because we never had it.
What we collect, and why
We only hold information on our servers for the parts of FootSec that need it: accounts, groups, map seats and purchases.
Your account — so your group knows who you are and you can sign in on another phone.
- Your name as you want the group to see it, and optionally a profile photo.
- Your email address or phone number, whichever you sign in with, and your password (stored only in a scrambled form by our sign-in provider; we never see it).
What you share with a group — so the group can see it, which is what groups are for.
- Pins you post: where, when you logged them in the field and when they reached the server, what you saw, and any notes, photos or voice notes you attach.
- Comments on pins and on the map's features (a road, a waterhole), road closures, bookings of viewpoints, and notices.
- Chat messages, photos and voice notes, and private messages to one other member.
- Your live position, only if you switch on position sharing for that group (see Location).
- Which groups you belong to, your role in each, and when you were last active.
- Walks you share: the line you walked (cut down to about 1,000 points), its start and end times, its distance, and the pins you dropped on it. A shared walk is on the group's map for a day, then stays in the group's Pins tab. You can take it down at any time.
- Trails you post: the drop-off, dated sleepouts and pick-up, the planned walk between them, and the details you enter, such as the lead and backup guide, the number of guests and the lodge.
Map seats — so a lodge or client can see who is using the seats they paid for.
- When you enter an access code, we record your name and email against that seat. The person who owns the seat pack (for example your lodge) can see them, and can take the seat back.
- What you are entitled to: which FootSec Maps you hold a seat on, and whether you have FootSec Full.
Purchases — so what you bought works on every phone you sign in on.
- Payment happens entirely in Apple's App Store or Google Play; we never see your card or bank details.
- The store tells us, through our purchase service RevenueCat, which product you bought, when it renews or ends, and in which country. RevenueCat knows you only by your FootSec account ID (or a random ID if you are not signed in), never by your name or email, and we link the purchase to your account. If FootSec was a paid app when you downloaded it, we also read the date you first downloaded it from Apple or Google, so you keep FootSec Full without paying again, and we record that on your account.
Notifications — so your phone can be told about new activity in your groups when the app is closed.
- A notification token from Apple or Google that identifies your phone to their notification service, and the notification level you chose for each group.
Diagnostics. FootSec has no analytics, advertising or crash-reporting tools of its own. The Mapbox software in the 3D maps is the exception: it sends Mapbox anonymous usage and location data (see Services we use). If the app crashes, Apple or Google may send us an anonymous crash report if you have allowed that in your phone's settings.
Location
FootSec is a map app, so it uses your phone's location. What happens to it depends on what you are doing:
| When | What is used | Does it leave your phone? |
|---|---|---|
| Looking at a map | Your position, to show where you are | GeoPDF maps: no. FootSec Maps (3D): the Mapbox software sends Mapbox anonymous location and usage data |
| Recording a walk | Your position, including while the screen is off or the app is in the background, until you stop recording | No — the track stays on your phone unless you share it |
| Posting a pin to a group | Where the pin is (usually where you are standing) and the time from GPS | Yes, to the group |
| Position sharing (off unless you switch it on) | Your position every 1, 2, 5 or 10 minutes, as you choose, for that one group | Yes, to that group's members |
| Sharing a walk with a group | The line you walked, cut down to about 1,000 points, with its times, distance and pins | Yes, to that group, only when you choose to share it |
Position sharing is off by default, set separately for each group and on each phone, and you can switch it off at any time. Members see your last shared position with its age, for example “Pieter · 6 min ago”. A group can say that sharing is expected, but only you can switch it on.
You can refuse or withdraw location permission in your phone's settings. The maps still open, but they can't show where you are or record walks.
Who can see what
Your group. Everything you post to a group is visible to its members, with your name on it. Some pins have a smaller audience: a pin sent to admins only is seen by the group's owner and the admins cleared for it, and a pin or message sent to one person is seen only by that person. Admins can hide or remove pins and export the group's pins (as GPX, CSV or a PDF report), for example for a reserve's records.
A seat pack's owner sees the name and email of each person holding one of its seats.
Us. We can access the information on our servers to run and support FootSec, for example to fix a problem you report. We don't look at group content otherwise.
Nobody else, except the service providers below, who handle information only to provide their service to us, and where the law requires us to disclose it. We never sell personal information or use it for advertising.
Services we use
| Provider | What for | What it handles |
|---|---|---|
| Google Firebase (Google LLC) | Sign-in, the database for groups, storage of photos and voice notes, the server code, and notifications | Everything in What we collect, except payment records |
| Mapbox | The FootSec Maps (3D maps) | The map areas your phone downloads or views. The Mapbox software also sends Mapbox anonymous usage and location data to improve its maps |
| Apple App Store and Google Play | Payments and app downloads | Your purchase, under Apple's or Google's own privacy policy |
| RevenueCat | Checking purchases and renewals | Which products your account bought and when, under your FootSec account ID rather than your name or email; also your country and IP address |
| Apple and Google notification services | Delivering notifications | Your phone's notification token and the text of each notification |
| Your phone's speech recognition | Turning a spoken note into text, when you use dictation | The recording of that note, handled by Apple or by the speech app on your Android phone, under their own policy |
Where it is stored, and for how long
Where. Group information is stored with Google Firebase, mainly in Google's data centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. Some of our server code and some Firebase services run in other countries, including the United States, and RevenueCat and Mapbox are based in the United States. When information goes outside South Africa, it goes only to providers bound by data-protection terms that give it protection comparable to POPIA.
How long.
| What | Kept |
|---|---|
| Chat messages, and the photos and voice notes in them | 3 months, then deleted automatically — unless a member marks one to keep |
| Pins and their comments | While the group exists. Pins drop off the map after a set time but stay in the group's archive, because that record is part of what a group is for. An admin can delete them |
| Your shared position | Replaced each time you share; shown as out of date after an hour |
| Your account and profile | Until you delete your account |
| Seat and purchase records | As long as the law requires us to keep financial records (normally five years), then deleted |
| Notification tokens | Until you sign out, or the phone stops accepting notifications |
| Walks you share with a group | On the group's map for a day, then in the group's Pins tab while the group exists. You can take one down at any time with Stop sharing, which removes it for everyone |
| Trails you post | While the group exists. Only you can change or cancel yours; admins can hide or remove it |
Security. Information travels to and from our servers encrypted. Access is controlled by rules on the server: a group's content can only be read by its members, a private message only by the two people in it, and a client's private map only by people holding a seat on it. Payment details never reach us.
Your rights and choices
Under POPIA you may ask us, free of charge:
- what personal information we hold about you, and for a copy of it;
- to correct it, or to delete it;
- to stop using it, where you object to how we use it.
Most of this you can do in the app yourself: change your name or photo in your account, switch position sharing off, change each group's notification level, leave a group, or sign out. For anything else, email us at Ilaladevelopers@gmail.com; we will reply within 30 days.
Deleting your account. In the app, open My profile → Delete my account. It needs signal, and it cannot be undone. We delete your account, sign-in, name and profile photo, your notification tokens, and what you are entitled to; you leave every group, and any map seat you hold is given back (the seat's owner keeps a record that you held it, as a financial record). A group you own passes to one of its admins, or to its longest-standing member; a group with nobody else in it is deleted with everything in it. Pins, comments, messages, shared walks and trails you posted to a group stay with the group, because the group relies on that record; email Ilaladevelopers@gmail.com if you want your name taken off them and we will replace it with “Former member”. If you can no longer open the app, email us from the address on your account, or with its phone number, and we will delete it for you. Anything on your phone is removed when you delete the app.
If you are not happy with how we have handled your information, you can complain to South Africa's Information Regulator (inforegulator.org.za).
Reporting and blocking
Groups are for the people in them, and what members post has to be lawful and respectful. Every message, pin and comment has a Report option: reports come to us, we aim to look at each one within 24 hours, and we may remove the content or the account behind it.
You can also block a member. You will no longer see their messages, pins, comments or walks on your phone, and they are not told. Blocking only changes what you see; to have something removed for everyone, report it. What may be posted is set out in the Terms of use you agree to when you make an account.
Children
FootSec is made for people working in reserves and is not intended for children. We don't knowingly hold information about anyone under 18. If you believe a child has made an account, email us and we will delete it.
Changes to this policy
When FootSec changes in a way that affects your information, we will update this policy and change the date at the top. For significant changes we will also tell you in the app.
Contact
IlalaDevelopers PTY LTD, South Africa. Email: Ilaladevelopers@gmail.com