Yūgen — Privacy Policy

Last updated: 11 November 2026

Yūgen is a map of places where you can observe unusual natural and human phenomena. This policy explains what data the app uses, where it goes and what you can do about it.

The app is developed by Matlaeva Anastasiia ("we"). Contact: yugen.anastasiia@gmail.com.

The short version

• You can use Yūgen without an account. Everything you mark then stays on your device.
• Your location is processed on your device. Your coordinates are not sent to us or to anyone else. The exception is walk routes you record yourself: if you are signed in, they are saved to your account.
• If you sign in, we sync the places you mark and the things you create, so you can restore them on another device.
• No advertising, no tracking, no analytics, no selling of data.
• You can delete your account and your synced data inside the app at any time.

1. Data stored only on your device

Without signing in, all of this stays on your iPhone:

• places you mark as visited or add to favourites, favourite folders, visit dates and notes;
• the profile name and picture you choose in My Yūgen;
• your routes, places you add yourself and recorded walks;
• opened categories and achievements;
• recently opened places and your search history (on this device only, never sent to your account; erased when you sign out);
• location-based evidence that you were at a place (coordinates, accuracy, time). This always stays on the device, even if you sign in.

2. Location

Location. With your permission, Yūgen uses your location to show places near you and to confirm visits: a place counts as visited only when your location shows you are there. The coordinates are processed on your device and are not sent anywhere (except walks you record, see below). You can turn location access off in iOS Settings; the app keeps working, but nearby places and confirmed visits will not be available.

Walks. If you start a walk yourself, Yūgen records its route, including while the screen is locked, to show the path you took and the places nearby. Background location runs only during a walk and stops when you end it. Walk routes are stored on your device and, if you are signed in, in your account too (see section 3), so they are not lost when you change phones.

3. Account and sync (optional)

You can sign in with Apple. Sign-in and sync are provided by Google Firebase (Firebase Authentication and Cloud Firestore).

When you sign in, we receive and store:

• the email address and name that Apple shares when you sign in (you can hide your email with Apple’s “Hide My Email”), and a technical user ID;
• the profile name you entered and the profile picture you chose (one of the built-in pictures; we never upload photos);
• the places you mark (visited, favourites, folders) with dates;
• your visit notes, routes, places you added yourself (including the coordinates you set for them) and memory notes;
• recorded walks: the route line (coordinates and time of its points), duration, distance and the places you passed.

Apart from walks you start yourself, we do not sync your device's location history or the coordinates recorded when you confirm a visit.

We use this data only to keep your marks in sync between your devices and to restore them. Legal basis (where GDPR applies): performance of the service you asked for.

Firebase may process data on servers outside your country. Google acts as our service provider: https://firebase.google.com/support/privacy.

4. Purchases

Yūgen currently has no purchases. If they are added, Apple will process payments through the App Store: we will not receive your payment details, and the app will receive from Apple only a confirmation of the purchase.

5. Maps, content updates and network requests

• Maps and walking directions use Apple Maps and map tiles from our map provider. To draw a map, your device requests map images for the area you are looking at; the provider sees your IP address and the requested area, as with any website.
• The app may download updated place content from our server. This request contains no personal data beyond what any internet request reveals (IP address).

6. What we do not do

We do not show ads, do not use analytics or tracking SDKs, do not build advertising profiles and do not sell or share your data with third parties for their own purposes.

7. How long we keep data

Synced data is kept while your account exists. When you delete your account, your account and synced data are deleted from our servers. Data on your device stays until you delete it or the app.

8. Your choices and rights

• Delete: My Yūgen → Account and sync → Delete account. You can choose to delete only the account (cloud data) or the account and all data on this device.
• Get a copy of your data: write to us and we will send it in a machine-readable form.
• Correction: edit or remove your marks and notes in the app.
• Withdraw permission: location can be turned off at any time in iOS Settings.
• Where GDPR or similar laws apply, you may also object to processing, request restriction, and complain to your data protection authority.

To exercise any right, write to yugen.anastasiia@gmail.com.

9. Children

Yūgen is not directed at children under 13 and we do not knowingly collect their data. If you believe a child has created an account, contact us and we will delete it.

10. Changes

If this policy changes, we will update the date above and, for significant changes, tell you in the app.