Effective September 8, 2026
CatchTrail has no app account, social feed, or developer-operated journal cloud. Your fishing journal is stored in the app on your device. Free users may see consent-managed Google AdMob banners and may choose to complete rewarded ads for additional catch entries. CatchTrail Plus provides unlimited logging and suppresses both banner and rewarded ads.
Information stored on your device
Journal entries, coordinates, notes, measurements, settings, free-entry allowances, and photos are stored in CatchTrail’s app-private storage. CatchTrail does not automatically upload or synchronize that journal to Mindware Consulting, Inc.
CatchTrail creates an export only when you choose Create a backup. The resulting JSON file is controlled by you and can include embedded photos and precise fishing locations. Store and share backup files carefully.
Optional location and network requests
- Location and weather: CatchTrail requests foreground location only after you choose automatic location during setup or tap Use current location. The operating system provides a position and place name. From build 27, weather requests send coordinates rounded to two decimal places to MET Norway, with forecasts cached on the device. MET Norway receives the device IP address and rounded coordinates and may retain them in access logs in Norway. No catch photos, notes, or account identifier accompany these requests. Older test builds used Open-Meteo directly. Weather is a forecast estimate, not an observation or a safety forecast. Weather sources and licenses.
- Species references: Opening species information or displaying a reference picture can request a species name and freely licensed content from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons. These services receive normal technical request information, including IP address and user agent. CatchTrail does not send catch photos, notes, or fishing coordinates with these requests. Reference information is cached locally, and source and image credits are available in the app.
- Nearby fish: When you tap Near me, CatchTrail sends the selected latitude and longitude to iNaturalist over HTTPS to retrieve counts of research-grade fish observations near that point. It begins within 10 km and can widen to at most 50 km when the closer search has too few useful choices. CatchTrail does not send journal entries, photos, notes, or measurements to iNaturalist.
- Maps: The native Map tab requests map styles, vector tiles, fonts, and icons from OpenFreeMap. The web version loads an OpenStreetMap embed for selected coordinates. These services receive technical request information such as IP address and the map area needed for display, but CatchTrail does not send journal notes, photos, or measurements to them.
- Advertising: The free version can show a banner supplied by Google AdMob. When the free catch allowance is full, a user may explicitly choose to complete a rewarded AdMob ad to add three catch entries. CatchTrail requests legally required consent before requesting ads and exposes ad privacy choices in Settings when required. Google’s Mobile Ads SDK can collect and share IP address, app interactions, diagnostics, and device or account identifiers for advertising, analytics, and fraud prevention. CatchTrail does not put journal entries, photos, notes, measurements, or saved fishing coordinates in ad requests. For a resolved Plus entitlement, CatchTrail does not initialize consent, request ads, or render ads.
- Purchases: Google Play or the Apple App Store processes payment details. RevenueCat validates CatchTrail Plus using an anonymous app user ID and receives store purchase history, product identifiers, and entitlement status. CatchTrail disables automatic advertising-device-identifier collection in RevenueCat and does not send contact details or journal content to RevenueCat.
- Distribution: Google Play, the Apple App Store, and the device operating system have their own distribution, security, and optional system-backup behavior. They are not CatchTrail journal-synchronization services.
Free allowance, CatchTrail Plus, and Play Pass
A new free journal includes seven catch entries. A completed rewarded ad adds three entries. Existing and imported journal records are preserved. CatchTrail Plus is an auto-renewing annual subscription that provides unlimited catch logging and removes advertising. The app checks entitlement status when it opens and returns to the foreground. If CatchTrail is accepted into Google Play Pass, a separate Play Pass product unlocks the same Plus entitlement. Purchases can be restored from Settings and managed or canceled through the applicable store.
Permissions
- Camera: take a catch photo when you request it.
- Photo library: attach an existing photo when you request it.
- Foreground location: record the current fishing location when you request it.
CatchTrail does not request background location or microphone access.
Deleting your data
Delete individual journal entries inside CatchTrail. To remove all local app data, clear CatchTrail’s storage where the operating system provides that option or uninstall the app. CatchTrail cannot delete exported backup files; remove those from the destination you selected.
Children
CatchTrail is a general-audience utility and is not directed to children. It does not knowingly collect personal information through a developer server.
Changes and support
This policy will be updated before a release that materially changes CatchTrail’s data practices. For privacy questions or support, email [email protected].