Privacy policy

Last updated 28 July 2026

The short version

TrainSpy works without an email address, a password, or your name. We use your location once per check-in to verify you are really at the station, we never show your coordinates to anyone, and we never sell or share data. There is no advertising and no cross-site tracking.

What we collect and why

An anonymous account

The first time you contribute, TrainSpy creates an anonymous account: a random identifier stored in a secure cookie, an optional public display handle you choose, and a contribution score. None of it is linked to your real identity, and the app never asks for or stores your name, email address, or phone number. (The optional launch waitlist on our website does take an email address — see below.)

Your reports

A report records the station or gateline, what you saw (barriers open or closed, or a ticket check), the time, and — for gate reports only — optionally a photo. When you check in, your device sends its location once so our server can confirm you are within about 150 metres of the station — this is what keeps reports trustworthy. The check-in coordinates are stored with the report to help us detect abuse, but they are never displayed publicly: anything shown on the map is pinned to the station’s public location, not yours. TrainSpy never tracks your location in the background.

Photos

Photos are optional, only ever taken and uploaded by you, and can only accompany gate reports — ticket-check reports are a simple yes/no tap and never carry a photo. Please do not photograph identifiable people. If a photo shows a person, we will remove it; you can ask us to delete any photo you uploaded.

Journeys you plan

When you plan a journey, the origin, destination and time are processed by our server and passed to our journey-planning and live train data providers (Transport for London and National Rail Darwin) to build your itinerary. We do not keep a history of your searches on our servers. Recent stations and your current journey are saved only on your own device so the app feels quick — clearing your browser data removes them.

Usage counts and errors

We count page visits and feature use with privacy-friendly, cookie-less analytics that store no personal identifiers — we can see that someone planned a journey, never who. If the app hits a technical error we record the error message so we can fix it; error reports do not include your location or the content of your reports.

The launch waitlist (optional)

If you join the waitlist on our website, we store the email address you give us and which channel you signed up from — nothing else — and use it for exactly one thing: telling you when the app launches, including any early test-build invitations you opt into. No newsletter, no marketing list, never shared. Reply to any waitlist email, or write to contact@trainspy.co.uk, and we will delete your address. Once the launch email has been sent, the list has done its job and will be deleted.

What we never do

• No selling or sharing of data with anyone.
• No advertising, ad networks, or cross-site tracking.
• No background location tracking — location is used only at the moment you check in, and only to verify distance.
• No public display of your coordinates, ever.

Cookies and on-device storage

TrainSpy sets one cookie: the secure session cookie that holds your anonymous identifier. Everything else — theme preference, recent stations, your in-progress journey, whether you have seen the intro — lives in your browser’s local storage on your own device.

How long we keep things

Reports and their confidence naturally expire in the app within days, but are retained internally so station coverage improves over time. Photos are kept while the report is useful. If you ask us to delete your contributions or photos, we will.

Your rights

Under UK data protection law you can ask what we hold, ask for a copy, and ask for deletion. Because accounts are anonymous, include your display handle (or the approximate time and station of your reports) so we can find your data. Contact: contact@trainspy.co.uk. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ico.org.uk).

Changes

If this policy changes in a way that matters, we will say so in the app. The date at the top always reflects the latest revision.