PRIVACY POLICY

The short version

  • You do not need an account to use our tools.
  • Your precise location is read by your own browser, and only after you give permission. You can also skip location completely by tapping the map or typing a place.
  • We do not store your coordinates or addresses on our servers, and we do not sell your personal information.
  • To show you results, your browser sends coordinates or the text you search for to a few outside services, listed below. Our elevation tools round the coordinates first. The ZIP code finder sends the exact address or position you give it, because it needs that to find the right code.
  • The ZIP code finder’s “Detect from internet” option does not ask for permission. It asks an outside service to guess your place from your IP address.

Who we are

Elevation Generation (“we”, “us”) runs the website at elevationgeneration.org. Our contact details are at the end of this page. This policy covers this website and the tools on it: the elevation reading, search, map, weather, nearby peaks, USGS map list and comparison table, and the ZIP code finder with its address and postal code search, map, area details and comparison.

How our tools use your location

When you press the location button, or allow location when your browser asks, your browser shares your position with the page. Everything then happens inside your browser:

  • The page works out your ground location, place name, weather and nearby features by asking outside services (see the next section). The ZIP code finder does the same for your address, ZIP or postal code, time zone and area figures.
  • Speed, direction, distance travelled and compass readings are calculated on your device. Compass data is read only if you turn the compass on, and it is never sent anywhere.
  • Your location is not saved by us. When you close or refresh the page, the reading is gone.
  • Location only works on secure (https) pages, and you can withdraw permission at any time in your browser or phone settings.

The ZIP code finder also has a “Detect from internet” option. It does not use your browser’s location permission. Instead, an outside service looks at your IP address, as every website can, and returns an approximate place, usually only a city or region.

Information sent to other services

Our tools do not have their own map, terrain or postal code database. To give you results, your browser contacts the services below directly. In the elevation tools, coordinates are rounded before they are sent, as shown. In the ZIP code finder, the address or coordinates are sent as you entered them or as your position was read.

Service Why it is used What it receives
Open-Meteo Ground elevation and local weather, and your time zone in the ZIP code finder. Elevation tools: coordinates rounded to about 11 m for elevation or about 1 km for weather. ZIP code finder: exact coordinates of the point. Search text if the backup place search is used.
OpenTopoData Backup source for ground location. Coordinates rounded to about 11 m.
BigDataCloud Place name for your position. Coordinates rounded to about 110 m.
OpenStreetMap (Nominatim) Address and place search, and converting a point into an address, city and region in the ZIP code finder. Text entered into a search box and, in the ZIP code finder, the exact coordinates of the selected point.
OpenStreetMap (Overpass) Nearby peaks. Coordinates rounded to about 1 km and the search distance.
USGS National Map List of USGS topographic maps. Coordinates rounded to about 100 m.
U.S. Census Bureau In the ZIP code finder: matching U.S. addresses, finding the ZIP area of a point, and neighborhood figures. The U.S. address entered, the ZIP code searched, and sometimes the coordinates of a point.
Zippopotam.us Postal code lists in the ZIP code finder. The country and postal code, or the state and city being searched.
ipwho.is Rough location from your connection using “Detect from internet”. Nothing from you except the request itself, which includes your IP address.
World Bank Country figures in the ZIP code finder. A country code, not your position.
Wikidata City population when OpenStreetMap does not list it. A place identifier, not your position.
timeapi.io Backup time zone source in the ZIP code finder. The exact coordinates of the point, only if the main time zone service does not answer.
Map tile providers OpenStreetMap, OpenTopoMap, Esri, USGS and MapTiler provide map pictures and terrain relief. The map area you are viewing, so the provider can send the right tiles.
Cloudflare (cdnjs) Delivers the map software library. Standard request information.

Like any website request, these services can also see your IP address and browser type. Each one has its own privacy policy, and we encourage you to read them. We do not control how they handle the information they receive.

Information we store

  • Your unit choice. If you switch between feet and meters, your browser remembers it using local storage on your device. It does not identify you, and you can clear it in your browser settings. The ZIP code finder does not store anything on your device.
  • Messages you send us. If you email us or use a contact form, we receive your name, email address and message, and we keep them as long as needed to reply and handle follow-ups.
  • Server logs. Our hosting provider records standard technical details of visits, such as IP address, browser, pages requested and time. These logs are used for security and keeping the site running.

Cookies, analytics and advertising

Our tools do not set cookies. The website runs on WordPress, and the hosting, security, caching and statistics tools we use may set their own cookies or collect usage data such as pages visited and device type. [Add here: the names of any analytics or advertising services you use, for example Google Analytics, and a link to their opt-out page. If you use none, say so.]

We do not sell your personal information. If we ever add advertising, we will update this page first.

Shared links

In the elevation tools, the “Copy shareable link” button creates a link that contains the coordinates of the spot you picked. Anyone who opens that link, and any website log that records it, can see those coordinates. Please check the spot before sharing, and avoid sharing links that point to your home or other private places. The ZIP code finder does not create shareable links.

Your choices

  • Do not share your location. Every tool except “use my location” works without it. Tap the map, search an address, or enter coordinates instead. In the ZIP code finder, “Detect from internet” does not ask permission but does use your IP address, so skip it if you prefer.
  • Avoid sending a home address. In the ZIP code finder, the address you type goes to the services above, so you can search a nearby public place or a town instead of your exact home address.
  • Withdraw permission. Use the lock icon next to the address bar, or your browser’s site settings, to set Location back to Ask or Block.
  • Clear stored data. Clear this site’s data in your browser settings to remove your unit choice.
  • Ask us to delete a message. Write to us at the address below.

Your U.S. privacy rights

Depending on where you live (for example, California under the CCPA/CPRA, or other states with privacy laws), you may have the right to ask what personal information we hold about you, to ask us to correct or delete it, to opt out of the sale or sharing of personal information, and to be treated equally if you use these rights. We do not sell or share personal information for advertising. Because we do not keep your location or have user accounts, the only personal information we are likely to hold is what you send us in a message. To make a request, contact us using the details below. We may need to confirm that the request comes from you before we act on it.

Children’s privacy

Our website is for a general audience and is not directed to children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has sent us personal information, contact us and we will delete it.

Security

The website uses HTTPS, and location features only run on secure pages. No method of sending or storing data is completely secure, but we limit what we collect so there is little to protect.

Changes to this policy

When we change this policy, we will update the date at the top. If a change is significant, we will say so on this page.

Contact

For any further information please visit our Contact Us page. Questions about this policy or a privacy request: [email protected]