wxs.us is one free US weather service that you can reach several ways:
the website (including the radar page), the terminal service at
t.wxs.us (curl and ssh), the Android app, the
Fire tablet app, the desktop app (Linux, Windows, and the Microsoft
Store), the browser extension (Chrome and Firefox), and the Alexa
skill. This one policy covers all of them. Everything is built to collect as little as
possible. This page explains exactly what is collected, why, and what
we do not do.
What we collect, whichever way you use wxs.us
-
The location you give us. To show weather for a place,
that place (a zip code or a pair of coordinates) is sent to our server,
and only to retrieve the forecast, alerts, and outlooks for it. We do
not keep a history of the places you look up and we do not build a
profile of where you go. We never work out your location from your
network address: every app, page, and command sends a location you
chose, and if none was given the server asks for one instead of
guessing.
-
Basic request logs. Like any web service, our server
records standard technical information with each request (such as the
time, the type of request, and a general network address) to operate
the service and keep it secure.
-
Anonymous visit counts. To see how many people use
each part of the service, we count unique visitors. No IP addresses
are stored and no cookies are used: each visitor's network address is
hashed with a random key that never leaves the server, so we can tell
two visits apart without any way to recover who they were. Each app
and page tells the server which kind of client it is (website,
Android, desktop, extension, and so on) with a fixed label that is the
same for everyone using that client, so the counts can be shown per
product. The counts are published at
wxs.us/stats.
Website
The site has no accounts and sets no cookies. Two things are kept in
your browser's local storage and never sent to us: whether you have
dismissed the first-visit notice, and your radar settings (product,
opacity, layers, and the like). If you allow the location prompt on the
forecast page, your coordinates are sent to our server only to fetch
that forecast.
The radar page loads some data straight from public sources rather
than through us: map fonts from MapLibre, the national radar mosaic
from Iowa State University's Iowa Environmental Mesonet, and radar,
forecast model, and lightning files from NOAA's public archives on
Amazon Web Services. Those requests go from your browser directly to
those services, so each of them sees your network address the same
way any image on any web page does. Their own privacy policies apply
to those requests. The base map tiles under the radar are drawn by us
from OpenStreetMap data and come from our own content delivery
network (cdn.wxs.us), which sees your network address the way our
server does and keeps nothing else.
Android and Fire tablet apps
-
Location. If you grant location permission, the app
uses your device's location to look up the weather where you are, and
sends those coordinates to our server only to retrieve that forecast.
The app asks for precise location on purpose: severe weather warnings
are drawn as polygons with edges, and which side of an edge you are on
matters. If you deny permission, the app does not guess; it asks you
for a zip code or a saved place instead.
-
An anonymous install identifier. The app generates a
random identifier the first time it runs and sends it with its
requests, so that active installs could be counted without any
personal information. It is a random value: not your name, email,
phone number, account, or advertising ID, and not tied to your
identity. Our server does not currently record it.
-
What stays on the device. Your saved places, unit
preference, radar settings, and your last location fix (so the app
opens instantly) are stored on the device. They are not uploaded to
us. Removing the app removes them.
-
Radar. The radar map loads base map tiles from CARTO,
the national mosaic from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet, and radar
and lightning files from NOAA's public archives on Amazon Web
Services, directly from your device, as the website does.
Desktop app
The desktop app has no location permission to grant: you type a zip
code or coordinates, and that is what is sent to our server to fetch
the forecast. Your settings (places, units, radar options) are kept in
a file in your user configuration folder and are not uploaded. The
radar view loads base map tiles from CARTO, the national mosaic from the
Iowa Environmental Mesonet, and radar, model, and lightning files from
NOAA's public archives on Amazon Web Services, directly from your
computer. The app tells our server whether it is the Linux, Windows, or
Microsoft Store build, and nothing else about you.
Browser extension
The extension talks to one server, ours at t.wxs.us, and only to fetch
weather. Your saved locations (zip codes, or coordinates from the
browser's location prompt, which is used only when you press Locate or
Use my location), your settings, the last forecast for each location,
and the list of alerts already announced are stored in the browser's
extension storage and never uploaded. The extension does not run on the
web pages you visit, does not read your browsing, and sends no
identifier beyond the fixed "chrome" or "firefox" client label.
Terminal service
curl t.wxs.us/<zip> and ssh t.wxs.us use
the location in the address or command you typed, or the one you enter
in the dashboard. Nothing is stored on your side. When you connect over
SSH your client sends a username as part of the protocol; the service
does not use it.
Alexa skill
-
Your location. The skill needs a place to look up.
If you grant it the device address permission in the Alexa app,
Amazon hands our server the postal code you set on the device, and
only the country and postal code, not a street address. It is used
to fetch that weather and is not stored. If you would rather not
grant it, or want a different place, you can say a five-digit zip
code instead.
-
A saved zip code. A zip code you set by voice is
kept on our server so you do not have to say it every time. It is
stored with the identifier Amazon assigns your Alexa account for
this skill, which is a random value specific to this skill and is
not your name, email address, or Amazon account. That identifier
and the zip code are the only things stored, and saying "use my
device's address" deletes them. Disabling the skill in the Alexa
app also stops us receiving anything further.
-
Visit counts. The same anonymous count as every
other surface: the skill's requests are counted under a fixed
"Alexa" label, using that same skill-specific identifier hashed
with a key that never leaves the server.
-
What Amazon sees. Your voice request is processed
by Amazon and delivered to our server as text; Amazon's own privacy
policy covers what Alexa records. Our server receives only the
request, the identifiers above, and, with permission, the postal
code.
What wxs.us does not do
- No ads and no third-party advertising, analytics, or tracking libraries, on any surface.
- No advertising ID and no cross-app or cross-site tracking.
- No accounts, sign-in, names, emails, or contacts.
- No location guessed from your network address, anywhere.
- We do not sell your data, and we do not share it with third parties.
Where your data goes
The information above is processed by our own servers in the United
States. Weather data itself comes from the National Weather Service,
the NOAA Storm Prediction Center, NOAA's radar and satellite archives,
and the EPA AirNow program, which are public US government sources; the
full list is on the Sources page.
All connections between the apps, the website, the extension, and our
servers use encryption (HTTPS).
Links out
The apps and the website contain links to wxs.us
and to thesimpledev.com; the
extension links to wxs.us. Once you follow a link, the destination
site's own policies apply.
Children
wxs.us is a general-audience weather service and is not directed at
children, and it does not knowingly collect personal information from
children.
Changes
If this policy changes, the updated version will be posted on this page
with a new effective date.
Contact
Questions about this policy: support@wxs.us.