What NearbyCheck sends, and why.

Phone location

If you allow browser location access, NearbyCheck uses the latitude and longitude supplied by your browser to find nearby source-backed places and practical fallbacks. Those coordinates are sent to NearbyCheck API endpoints when needed to query connected municipal or City Open Data sources or search NearbyCheck’s own controlled place-identity snapshot. NearbyCheck’s product-event analytics do not include your exact coordinates.

Place search

When you submit a destination search, the search text is sent to NearbyCheck’s geocoding endpoint, which uses OpenStreetMap Nominatim to resolve a Canadian place or address. Search text is not included in NearbyCheck’s coarse product-event analytics.

Commercial washroom and Try Nearby data

The positive commercial washroom layer and reviewed OSM Try Nearby layer are static snapshots derived from exact OpenStreetMap place objects. NearbyCheck also queries the City of Mississauga 2025 Business Directory at request time for nearby exact-business fallback identity. That City query uses the checked latitude/longitude and returns practical venue records; it does not provide or infer restroom evidence. Every directory-only result remains Restroom not confirmed.

A controlled high-confidence Overture Maps Places snapshot provides broader GTA exact-place identity. The Overture source is downloaded during the controlled data/release workflow and served from NearbyCheck’s own compact runtime index; your per-search coordinates are not sent to Overture Maps at request time. Overture-only results also remain Restroom not confirmed.

The underlying v1.5.2 logic changes only the local Try Nearby ranking heuristic: bounded access-friction credits may affect ordering, but they do not create new data collection or restroom claims. The v1.5.3 through v1.7.0 releases are presentation-only refinements and do not change this data flow.

Maps and directions

The in-page map loads OpenStreetMap tiles. When you choose Directions, NearbyCheck hands the route origin and selected destination coordinates to Google Maps so Google can provide street routing.

Product analytics

NearbyCheck sends a deliberately small set of coarse events so the pilot can identify product gaps without turning location searches into an advertising profile. Allowed event fields include:

• the type of product action, such as a check, map view, evidence view, feedback, result expansion or directions handoff;
• selected need identifiers such as washroom or parking;
• result count, Now/Later mode, broad source mix and coarse outcome;
• for decision-outcome measurement, only bounded categories such as active quick intent, Best Match versus alternative/fallback, distance band, evidence state and a fixed failure reason.

Exact latitude/longitude, destination search text, place names, place IDs, addresses and free-text comments are not accepted as product-event fields. The event endpoint rejects payloads that contain those sensitive location or identity fields.

Recommendation feedback

The post-visit question is currently paused. Opening Directions does not create a pending follow-up or schedule a question. Any old unsent reminder is removed from this browser when the updated page loads; other saved preferences are preserved.

Coarse directions and result-expansion events still help us understand how the product is used. Previously submitted feedback is a product-quality signal; it never automatically upgrades or downgrades a facility evidence claim. The event endpoint retains its privacy restrictions.

Infrastructure and source providers

Web hosting, mapping, geocoding, City Open Data and municipal-source providers may process technical request logs under their own operational policies. NearbyCheck does not claim that ordinary internet infrastructure produces zero logs. The product instead minimizes what it intentionally sends in its own analytics and avoids user accounts for basic checks.

Appearance preference

Your Light, Dark or System appearance choice is stored locally in your browser when storage is available. System follows your device appearance. This preference is not sent to NearbyCheck analytics or source providers.

Pilot status

NearbyCheck is a GTA pilot. Data sources and infrastructure may change as coverage expands. If the data flow changes materially, this notice should change with it.