Privacy policy
Mapsfera runs in your browser, with no accounts and no server of our own. This page explains, in plain words, what stays on your device, which services receive a coordinate or an address when a tool needs one, and what happens if you write to us.
Last reviewed:
The short version
- No accounts, no sign-up. We never ask for your name, email or a password to use anything.
- What you do stays in your browser. Measurements, points, address batches and your quiz scores are calculated and stored on your device; we never receive them.
- Some tools ask public services. To get the elevation of a point, its address or a driving route, your browser sends that coordinate or address to the service that works it out (OpenStreetMap, the US Census Bureau, Spain’s IGN…). They’re all listed below.
- No cookies, no analytics and no ads, for now. If that changes, we’ll say so here first.
Who is responsible
The data controller for Mapsfera is the owner of Mapsfera, the independent project that runs this site. For anything about your data, use our contact form.
What we don’t collect
Mapsfera has no user database and no server of its own receiving what you do. We don’t store your location, the addresses you look up, the shapes you draw or your results. We don’t track you across pages or build profiles. We don’t sell or share personal information with anyone.
What stays on your device
A few preferences are saved in your browser’s local storage (localStorage) so the site remembers them next time. They never leave your device:
| What | Why |
|---|---|
mapsfera.locale | The language you picked, so the site opens in it. |
mapsfera.unidad.altitud | Whether you prefer elevation in feet or meters. |
mapsfera.unidad.distancia | Whether you prefer miles or kilometers. |
mapsfera.juego.marcas | Your best score in each map quiz. |
mapsfera.direcciones.modo and mapsfera.direcciones.lote.en / .es | “Address to coordinates”: single or batch mode, and your last batch, so you don’t lose it on reload. |
mapsfera.chinchetas.v1, .titulo and .nombres | “Map with pins”: your pins, the map title and whether labels show, so they’re still there when you come back. |
mapsfera.dibujo.v1 and .titulo | “Draw on a map”: what you drew and its title, so it’s still there when you come back. |
mapsfera.azar.historial | “Random location generator”: the last points you got. |
mapsfera.google.clave | “Google Maps embed code”: your Maps Embed API key, only if you check “Remember it in this browser”. |
You can clear it at any time in your browser settings (site data). Address batches, pin maps, drawings and the random location history also have their own delete button in the tool.
Your location
Tools like “What is my elevation?” or “What county am I in?” offer to use your location. It’s only requested when you press the button, and your browser asks you first. Your position is used right then for the calculation: it’s sent only to the service that needs it (for example, the one that returns the county) and it isn’t stored. If you share a link, the point is part of the page address.
Services that receive data when you use a tool
To draw the map and run some calculations, your browser connects directly to these services. Like any internet connection, they receive your IP address and the technical details of the request, plus whatever they need to answer (the map area you’re viewing, a coordinate, an address or the points of a route). Each one handles that data under its own policy:
| Service | Provided by | What it receives, and when |
|---|---|---|
| OpenFreeMap | The OpenFreeMap project | The map tiles for the area you’re viewing, in every tool with a map. |
| Terrain Tiles | Amazon Web Services (US) | The terrain and elevation tiles for the area you view or the points you measure. |
| Photon | Komoot GmbH (Germany) | What you type in the place and address search boxes, and the coordinates of points whose name or address you ask for. |
| TIGERweb | U.S. Census Bureau (US) | The coordinates of US points whose county, city or ZIP code you ask for. |
| OSRM and Valhalla | FOSSGIS e. V. (Germany) | The points of driving, cycling and walking routes, distance tables, drive-time areas and meeting points (each person’s position and the candidate spots). FOSSGIS keeps requests in its server logs. |
| The National Map | U.S. Geological Survey (US) | The aerial imagery tiles for the US if you switch them on in the area calculator. |
| Catastro | Directorate General for Cadastre (Spain) | In the Spanish cadastral parcel tool: the reference you type or the coordinates of the point you tap, without cookies. |
| Google Maps or OpenStreetMap | Google LLC (US) or the OpenStreetMap Foundation (UK) | Only in “Google Maps embed code”, and only if you press “Show the preview”: the map you set up. Google may set its own cookies in your browser. A Maps Embed API key you type isn’t sent anywhere until you ask for the preview, and then only to Google. |
| IGN and CartoCiudad | Instituto Geográfico Nacional (Spain) | Coordinates of points in Spain whose elevation you measure, Spanish addresses you look up, and PNOA aerial imagery tiles if you switch them on. |
They only receive what’s needed to answer your request, and we don’t send it: your browser requests it when you use the tool. If you’d rather not use them, the tools that only calculate (converters, straight-line measurements, blank maps) work without them.
Mapsfera maps embedded on other sites
Other websites can embed our widgets (radius, distance, blank maps and thematic maps). These widgets set no cookies, store nothing in your browser, and carry no analytics, ads, place search or location requests. When you view one, your browser loads the widget page from Mapsfera and, for the radius and distance widgets, map tiles from OpenFreeMap; both receive your IP address, as with any website. The code we provide uses referrerpolicy="no-referrer", so we aren’t told which page the widget is on, and its settings sit after the “#” in its address, which never reaches a server.
Technical data when you visit
The site is served by Cloudflare (Cloudflare, Inc., US), which receives your IP address, your browser and the page you request in order to deliver it quickly and protect it from attacks. In the EU and UK, the legal basis is our legitimate interest in keeping the site working and secure (GDPR art. 6(1)(f)). Cloudflare participates in the EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework.
Visitor statistics
We don’t use any analytics right now. If we start counting visits, it will be with a cookie-free tool that only reports totals, and we’ll explain it here before switching it on.
If you write to us
Through the contact form we receive the type of message, what you write and, if you add them, your name and email. For bug reports, also the page and, if you tick the box, technical details about your browser (browser, screen size and language). We use them only to handle your message and reply, and delete them once it’s resolved, within a year at most. The legal basis is your consent when you send it (GDPR art. 6(1)(a)).
Your message travels through a Cloudflare service to our inbox, and the form uses Cloudflare Turnstile to tell people from bots, usually without asking you anything (at most, ticking a box): it looks at technical signals from your browser on that page.
Children
The tools, blank maps and quizzes don’t ask for any personal information, so they’re fine to use in class. The contact form is optional: if you’re under 13, ask a parent, guardian or teacher to write to us for you.
Your rights
For any data we hold about you (in practice, only a message you sent us) you can ask for access, correction, deletion, restriction, objection and portability through the contact form. California residents: we don’t sell or share personal information. In the EU you can complain to your data protection authority, and in the UK to the ICO.
Changes to this policy
If anything on this page changes (a new service, analytics or advertising), we’ll update it before the change reaches the site, with the date at the top.